Carnatic Music-2 - Bantu Reeti Koluvu
SAINT Tyagaraja (1767-1847), one of the musical trinities, poured his heart out to his ishta devata, viz., Rama via Bantu Reeti Koluvu in his mother tongue: Telugu.
Sheikh Chinna Moulana, one of the greatest nadaswaram vidwans in India (this wind instrument is rarely played outside the southern states), brought back memories of my mother. He was playing exclusively for me via YouTube in volume three a week ago during my morning walking regimen.
The nation was burning with the Hindu-Muslim communal disturbance, and here, a devout Muslim was playing a Ram dhun. What a contrast!
That's where my Bantu Reeti Koluvu trip commenced. K J Yesudas, the renowned classical singer tutored under the guidance of late Sembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar, was my first halt. As his name indicates, Yesudas is a Christian. He again sings paeans to the Hindu god: Rama. Another coincidence.
His version was short and sweet: 5 minutes.
A listener's comment about Yesudas's rendition drew my attention. "Great song and equally good rendition. In diction, I have a confusion on "Banduriti koluvu" or kolu and also on "Niya vaiya" Rama or Viya vaiya Rama," writes he.
This kolu vs koluvu debate leads to the linguistic arena.
According to him, it depends on the singer: Tamil or Telugu speaker.
In Telugu, koluvu means home. So, singers with Telugu as their mother tongue would sing "Bantu reetu Koluvu," whereas non-Telugu singers would wrongly interpret it as "Kolu."
Yesudas, for information, is Kerala-born with Malayalam as his mother tongue, not Telugu. Unsurprisingly, most of the Carnatic singers' repertoire for any conventional kutcheri (concert) would consist of several Tyararaja kritis: yes, in Telugu.
Since I began with the singer from God's Own Country, I scrambled to find another singer from the same landscape. Luckily, I landed up with a young singer: Uthara Unnikrishnan.
At one end, a 1940-born Yesudas, and at the other end of the spectrum, a 2004-born baby. Uthara is the daughter of classical singer P Unnikrishnan and a trained classical singer. She is a playback singer too, like her dad.
What about her rendition of "Bantu reeti"? You've guessed it correctly: She also sings "Bantu reeti Kolu." Not "Koluvu!"
Not unexpected, going by Dhushyant Sridhar's assessment.
A million views since posted in May 2020. Both these singers consumed 5 minutes each. Yesudas recording was a stage recital while the little "Gandharvani," as one commentator titled her after listening to this beautiful devotional song, did it in natural sylvan surroundings.
Pardon me if your tears well up after listening. My tear ducts worked overtime. You don't need any linguistic caliber to rejoice in this bhakti sangeet. Not knowing Telugu does not rob you of sheer delight. Shut your eyes, and you can swim in the ocean of melodious voices.
(To Continue)
Comments
Post a Comment