Pandit Jasraj will turn 86 in a few days from now. But, age seems to be just a number for this living legend of Hindustani music, as he proved at his concert before a full house at the Tagore Centenary Hall here on Friday night.
He charmed the audience – which probably must have been the largest in the city ever for a Hindustani classical concert – with his mesmerising voice and mastery over the art.
Begins with Raag Jog
The legendary singer began his show in Raag Jog ( Piya ghar na …) and captured the imagination of the listener straightaway.
“I continue to sing because of my passion,” he said in an interview with The Hindu . “You enjoy doing something that you love; that is what keeps me going.”
He said he enjoyed both singing as well as composing. Among his finest compositions are Kanh Kahani , some 22 melodious songs he tuned for a dance production of his wife Madhura (daughter of legendary filmmaker V. Shantaram).
“They were originally sung by [playback singers] Anuradha Paudwal and Kavita Krishnamurthy,” he says. “Now, my disciple, Tripti Mukherjee, has revived them; she has sung very beautifully.”
He is also proud about his disciple from Kerala, Ramesh Narayan. “Ramesh has contributed a lot towards promoting Hindustani music in Kerala,” he said. I also like the tunes he has composed for Malayalam films; he has done an excellent job as a composer.” Jasraj said he enjoyed listening to masters of Hindustani music like Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Amir Khan and Omkarnath Thakur. “I also like to listen to contemporary musicians,” he said.
“And I enjoy Carnatic music, as well.” The earliest singer he could recall listening to, apart from his father Motiram, is Begum Akhtar. “I remember listening to the records of her ghazals, from a hotel, while going to school as a young boy,” he recalled. “I would often miss the school, as I forgot myself listening to her voice.”
