An anecdote about my father

 

Tusar Kanti Mozumder

Being the eldest among five brothers & one sister (and several cousins in a joint family), my father, during his teenage years, was entrusted with the responsibility of purchasing one 78 rpm record, every month (from the famous music store named 'The Melody' at Rashbehari Junction in South Calcutta).

The monthly choices had to be judicious as funds were tight during those stark days of the mid 40-s. The safe staples were Bengali songs of Pankaj Mullick, K L Saigal, Sachin Dev Burman & Kanan Devi.

One particular month, as he stepped inside 'The Melody', he heard a 'different type of a song'. It sounded riveting enough... and he purchased that Columbia label disc on an impulse.

At home, after the record was played, the entire family of seniors, peers & juniors berated him for wasting money on a record where the singer 'sang unintelligible words in a wailingly high-pitched voice'.

By then, my father was completely smitten by the emotive impact of the voice & the flawless application of notes, replete with beautiful vocal ornamentation.

Also, the raag being the 'easy to enjoy' Bhairavi, made a telling impact.

Jamuna Ke Teer, by that high priest of Kirana Gharana... Abdul Karim Khan, transformed my father into a first-generation lover of Hindustani classical music, in his extended family (with absolutely no previous listening initiation from his elders or peers or his teachers). This serendipitous experience also enabled him to appreciate other classical artists, across Gharana-s, without any agenda or bias.

Correction... He had an unabashed bias towards Abdul Karim Khan.

Just a first few seconds of the recordings of Abhogi, Shudhh Kalyan, Sindhi Kafi, Devgandhar, Jhinjhoti, Basant, Gara Shuddh Pilu or Anand Bhairavi made him drop everything & listen with undivided attention.

Since Sept 6th, 2022, my father now has the special privilege of hearing Abdul Karim Khan, live, in a celestial, music-laden land.

(Here is the timeless Bhairavi of Abdul Karim Khan, recorded in 1934.)