Away from the arc lights

Singer Hariharan on his journey with the Ghazal

Singer Hariharan

Our collective tastes are often a function of the influence of media. The art we appreciate and the styles we emulate are frequently those relayed by our films and television channels. So it is something of a mystery that even though ghazals have all but disappeared from the media landscape, they continue to command an audience.

“Media doesn’t consider anything other than Bollywood as art. Ghazal is not in fashion anymore. It doesn’t have that glamour now, but a lot of people still turn up and enjoy themselves,” says Hariharan, who will perform next week at Bazm, an annual/biannual event held to preserve and promote the pure form of the Ghazal.

“The term ‘pure’ refers to some of the features of Ghazal gayaki, which traditionally defined what ghazal ought to be, two primary features being raga-based composition and the accompanying instruments being sarangi, tabla and harmonium,” says Ameeta Parsuram, who has been organising Bazm since 2009.

Accounting for the enduring popularity of the form, Hariharan suggests there is something almost primal about it. “Of course there is a control of the media on the opinion of general masses, but

jo Hindustani hai rooh me woh to aayenge na ,” he says.

There is an age factor too, the singer explains. “After 30-35 years you like to go into the nuances of poetry, the nuances of life. And there is a need for corresponding forms of art.”

Hariharan’s initiation into ghazals was an offshoot of his training in Hindustani music with Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan of the Rampur Sahaswan gharana. His first film song, “Ajeeb saaneha mujh par”, from

Gaman in 1978, was also a ghazal. Since then, despite having expanded to other genres with equal felicity, the singer has produced a ghazal album nearly every year. His latest album,

Hazir 2 , in collaboration with Ustad Zakir Hussain, was released in February this year, two decades after the duo collaborated on

Hazir .

Citing Mehdi Hassan as his inspiration, Hariharan says, “Ghazal is the most beautiful middle-of-the-road music which I found could take in any kind of music into it — be it classical, Qawwali or Geet.” In fact the singer has also explored the similarity between ghazals and the blues, in the album Kaash .

Apart from the diversity of styles the ghazal form can accommodate, there is a wide range of expressions it lends itself to as well. “When you say ghazal, it is a form of poetry, not a form of music. It is a conversation with the beloved. And the beloved can be anything in this universe — it can be the universe, it can be your mother, your motherland, your job, your child. The word beloved is so vast. That’s the reason we have so many topics in ghazal. There are social problems, romance, viraha , karunya …so it’s a whole gamut of ideas and expressions.”

Hariharan hopes more youngsters take up the art form, even though it is difficult and “doesn’t pay in the first so many years”.

“It’s a beautiful art, it’s very Indian. It’s got all the rasas and it’s very, very precious,” he signs off.

(Bazm with Hariharan will be held at Kamani auditorium on October 12 at 7 p.m. Entry by invitation only)