Pandit Kedar Narayan Bodas , the renowned Gwalior Gharana Hindustani Classical vocalist who was in Bangalore recently for the Dhwani Music Festival spoke of his musical education, lineage and gharanedar gayaki, formative influences and crucial turning points in his life. He was conferred the Mallikarjun Mansur award on the occasion.
Your father Pandit Narayan Bodas was a well-known vocalist, teacher and exponent of the Gwalior gharana as well as a professional actor-singer on the Marathi stage . Your grandfather Pandit Lakshmanrao Bodas was the direct disciple of Pandit Paluskar. He was one among the ‘missionaries’ that Pandit Paluskar sent out to propagate Khayal music in Karachi during the early decades of the twentieth century and executed his mission with inimitable zeal. What are your memories of your grandfather?
In fact, my grandfather Pandit Lakshmanrao Bodas taught in the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Karachi from 1925 to 1949 and returned to Maharashtra after the Partition. I was initiated into music by him, who imparted the subtleties and nuances of his Gayaki. It was an enriching, unbroken musical association for 28 years! My grandfather had many Muslim musician friends in Karachi. Foremost among them was Ustad Mubarak Ali Khan. Formidable bonds of friendship were forged during those decades and my grandfather would often tell me that this musical fellowship and camaraderie transcended all barriers of caste, class and religion. Their Khayal music, very aptly became a site of inter-cultural grafting and blending, a veritable amalgamation of two cultures, a synthesis of Hindu and Muslim imagination.
You have sung with your father Pandit Narayan Bodas on many occasions. Besides your grandfather, your father was also your guru. What was it like ? Being his son and disciple?
My father has been my guru and mentor all through my life. He was with me for 55 years to be precise. He was a versatile artiste par excellence. In all of his renditions, be it Marati Natyasangeet or Khayal music, ‘raga’ became his script. He was also an exemplary ‘Sahitya Premi’ and emphasized fidelity to the compositional form which is a vanishing quality among the younger generation of musicians today. He taught me that patience and perseverance are the two vital pre-requisites for absorbing a gharanedar gayaki aesthetic. He felt that gimmickry was ephemeral, and ultimately the real beauty resides only in the traditional style which is serene and tranquil. He taught me how to delineate a ‘raga’ by working with the ‘bandish’ whose import too has to be respected . He would often exhort me to take up apprenticeship under the tutelage of other Gurus, reiterating the hackneyed adage “ghar ki murgi dal barabar” saying that I would not be able to acquire a sense of gravity in my musical education if I did not go to other gurus. It was he who encouraged me and gave me the courage and inspired to me play the role of Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar when I was wondering if I should accept the role of Pandit Paluskar, in the film produced by Anjali Kirtan. I am deeply indebted to my father and grandfather for the inexhaustible repertoire of musical knowledge and legacy that they have bequeathed to me.
What about your other gurus? Your style of presentation and improvisation is a complex mélange of several elements that contribute to a distinctively idiosyncratic style .
As a child I was very fond of tabla and studied under Pandit Pandurang Salunke and Pandit Shreedhar Padhye. It was when I was studying in the middle school in the seventh grade that I started gravitating towards vocal music. In 1979, I became a student of Dr. Ashok Ranade . I participated in many musical presentations of my guru, which opened up another dimension of musical experience to me. I acquired insights into the intricacies of “Sur” under the guidance of Pandit C.P Rele. Pandit Janorikar , the last surviving doyen of Bhendibazar gharana initiated me into the aesthetics of Merukhand technique and shaped my musical ideas . Therefore my gayaki today has been shaped by diverse traditions and I have evolved an eclectic style. I unhesistantly acknowledge the pluralist edifice of my musical education .
I have heard that you are also a linguist and have studied the Russian language.
I was greatly influenced by the Russian Orchestra and pursued a four year advanced course in Russian under Dr Kulbalkin and Dr Mayevsky. It gave me exposure to Russian folk music and classical music. I have sung Russian classical and folk songs on the stage in some of the one-act plays in Russian. I have also composed music for some documentary films.
What is the greatest challenge for you as a musician vocalist? Is there any particular feature of your singing that you believe you need to pass on to your students?.
As a musician I have deeply felt that an artiste must not violate the sanctity of a Raga . A musician must adopt an attitude of total unconditional surrender . When I think of Ragas and Raginis as my parents, I can establish a unique dialogue with them. Then they will be kind enough to vouchsafe me glimpses of their myriad alluring forms . As a guru, I have always believed in sharing the best of my musical acquisitions with my students by not withholding anything from them. Being a teacher has perennially been a learning experience .
