Twitter
Advertisement

Classical music loses its brightest note

Shocked, bereaved, and at a loss of words, the who’s who of the music and film industry gather at Kishori Amonkar’s residence to pay their respect

Latest News
article-main
Legendary singer Kishori Amonkar’s mortal remains being taken from Ravindra Natya Mandir to Shivaji Park crematorium
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

“I feel a complete loss of words at her passing away,” sighed Mewati maestro Pt Jasraj. “Who’ll I fight with now?” He was referring to the child-like arguments on music that he looked forward to having with renowned Hindustani classical vocalist Kishori Amonkar, a singer he had known since 1944. The Padma Vibhushan music legend passed away at her Mumbai residence on Monday night.

“We met at her grand daughter’s wedding and at a felicitation organised in her honour three months ago, where she’d complained to the audience laughingly about how I fight with her all the time,” he reminisced. “In reply, I’d asked who else is there to fight?”

The ‘Gaan-Saraswati’ (a title conferred by the Shankaracharya of the Sringeri Peeth), had just had soup, and told Meena, her resident help of many years, not to disturb her as she wanted to lie down. “It was around 9 pm. I let her rest but after about 45 minutes I felt concerned because she hadn’t eaten, and went to wake her up only to find her unresponsive and cold,” Meena told DNA and added, “I immediately came out and alerted Nandini Bedekar (her student) and Bibhas (Amonkar’s elder son). A doctor was called but he announced that she had already breathed her last.”

The first-floor residence of the legend’s central Mumbai Prabhadevi home saw stalwarts walk in through the night to pay their respects to ‘Kishori-tai’ as she was fondly referred to by most. DNA saw classical vocalist Dr Ashwini Bhide Deshpande, Shahsi Vyas of the Pancham Nishad (son of late vocalist Pt CR Vyas, who enjoyed a familial rapport with Amonkar), percussionist Taufique Qureishi, Pt Jasraj’s daughter Durga and nephew Ratan Mohan Sharma at the residence which saw a sizable media posse present.

Dr Deshpande, whose singing has several resonances of Kishori Amonkar’s musicality, has in the past emphatically underlined how she never studied directly with Amonkar. “I’ve always been my mother Manik Bhide’s disciple. Since she trained under Kishori-tai for several years, I acquired that training through her,” she had said and added, “My insight into the systematic unfolding of the raga, of exploring every single strand in the warp and weft of its fabric, is a Kirshori-tai contribution that has come to me as a legacy.”

The legend’s mortal remains were shifted in a casket to the Ravindra Natya Mandir auditorium not far from her residence early morning and kept for final darshan from 11 am. The who’s who of the music and film industry came to offer their respects. Actress Neena Kulkarni broke down while speaking to DNA. “This is the music I was raised on. I can’t begin to fathom that she has left us for good.” The last rites were performed in the evening at the Shivaji Park crematorium.

Though she trained under Kishori- tai only briefly, a distraught classical vocalist, Aarti Ankalikar, was having trouble battling emotions when she spoke. “While training with her, she taught me how one needs to become the raga that one is singing. I will never forget the heavenly Yaman that I learnt from her. We can’t imagine the sadhana and thought gone into creating a legend like her.”

Speaking about her, tabla maestro Ustad Zakir Hussain said, “Her music will live long after her because she treated every day like another raga. Instead of simply presenting what she had learnt, she took it beyond and made it her own.”

Others like flute maestro Pt Hariprasad Chaurasia expressed sadness about how some criticised her temperament. “She was exactly like my guru Annapoorna Devi ji, like a coconut, hard from outside but really sweet within. There is so much she had to offer as a musician, teacher and also a human being. Truly, in her going an era has come to an end.”

A GIFTED REBEL

  • At 20, Kishori Amonkar had defied her mother and guru Moghubbai Kurdikar to sing for V Shantaram’s movie Geet Gaye Pathharon Ne.
     
  • Roshan Ara Begum, who had sung another duet and solo for the same film, couldn’t stop singing praises of Amonkar’s prowess as a singer.
     
  • In an interview to historian Mukul Joshi, Amonkar told that her mother had rebuked her and asked her not to touch her tanpuras if she continued to sing for films.
Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement