Begum Akhtar: Notes for audio tracks by Shubha Mudgal

Tracks available on: https://soundcloud.com/indianmusic-2/sets/

The genius and distinctive artistry of celebrated musicians is best experienced through

their work. Music speaks for itself, touching and moving the hearts of listeners in ways that

sound trite if verbalized, but for the student of music, not only is the genius of an artiste to

be experienced and enjoyed but also studied, examined and re-examined in minute detail.

It is with the dual purpose of providing the opportunity to both experience and study the

magic of Begum Akhtars unique voice and singing style that the National Center for the

Performing Arts makes available eighteen compositions recorded during a private concert

hosted by businessman and patron Khatau Vallabhdas at his residence in Walkeshwar,

Mumbai, in the year 1957. Although Begum Akhtar recorded prolifically and her studio

recordings are valuable documents of her inimitable artistry, a recording made in the

intimate setting of a chamber concert performed at the home of a connoisseur and patron,

Figure 1: Entrance to Khatau Vallabhdas's residence at Walkeshwar, Mumbai

Photo Courtesy: Kishore Merchant

provides an invaluable glimpse into the ambience in which music was made and heard

some sixty-three years ago. In 1957, when this recording was captured on tape during a

live concert, Begum Akhtar (1914-1974) would have been thirty-eight years old, highly

acclaimed and sought after as the reigning queen of ghazal, and also considered a leading

exponent of thumri and dadra. Performing for an adoring audience, as is evident from the

abundantly audible appreciation, the great singer offers a rich repertoire of bol-banao

thumri, dadra, hori, chaiti and several ghazals by master poets in the course of the

evening. The recording of this mehfil which continued for more than three hours, is replete

with many invaluable gems from Begum Akhtars repertoire, her girlish giggle, her waah for

her accompanying musicians, the smile in her voice as she receives fulsome praise, and

of course, the rousing appreciation she receives from her fascinated listeners throughout

the concert.

Although Begum Akhtar was an outstanding exponent of the thumri-dadra and ghazal

forms, she is best remembered for her unique rendering of ghazals in a musical style that

relied heavily on her training in Hindustani classical music from ustads including Abdul

Wahid Khan of the Kirana gharana, and Ata Mohammad Khan of the Patiala gharana.

Contemporary ghazal gayaki has undoubtedly distanced itself from classical music and

leans more towards melodies based on chordal structures and movements. But in the past

the rendering of Urdu poetry either relied on the tarannum style, or on raag-based

melodies. The inclusion of the notation of a ghazal (jo ke naam haq na liya bhala, vo jiya to

kya, na jiya to kya) in raag Des and taal Pashto by Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande in his

mammoth compendium of Hindustani classical compositions titled Kramik Pustak Malikaa

(first published in the early part of the twentieth century) suggests that ghazals formed part

of raagdari sangeet repertoire. Begum Akhtars rendering of ghazal too rested on a

foundation that was steeped in raagdari music on the one hand, and a deeply intrinsic

understanding of Urdu shayari. In the seven ghazals that form part of this collection, her

classic raag-based style of ghazal gayaki is amply evident, as is her consummate intimacy

with the literary form of ghazal.

Har jafa har sitam gavara hai, Itna keh do ke tu hamara haicomes from the pen of

Shakeel Badayuni (1916-1970), a poet whose ghazals (including her signature Ae

mohabbat tere anjam pe rona aya) Begum Akhtar immortalised. This particular ghazal is

rendered in a style that was favoured by hereditary women performers who sometimes

danced and performed abhinaya to ghazals. The first line of the couplet is sung loosely

over the rhythm maintained on the tabla with an eight matra span of the Keherwa taal.

Pitched near the taar shadja, Begum Akhtars achingly beautiful voice with its expressive

yearning, lays out the words of the first line of each couplet without pinning them to the

theka. But the second line of the sher releases the tension created in the previous line with

its return to the melodic refrain, further heightened by the tabla playing the theka in double

time, with variations and patterns appropriate for accompaniment to dance.

In this mehfil Begum Akhtar presented as many as three ghazals written by Shakeel

Badayuni. Her rendering of Shakeels Ankhon se dur subah ke taare chale gaye, neend

aa gayi to gham ke nazare chale gaye in a Mishra Gara based melody set to the six matra

Dadra taal, receives a tremendous response from the audience. The 17 minute long

rendition provides several pointers for aspiring ghazal singers. Maintaining the dignified

restraint typical of both Urdu poetry and her style of presentation, Begum Akhtar never lets

the element of elaboration come in the way of the prosodic scheme of the poetry. Each

misraa is presented only as many times and with just enough subtle variations as to make

the listener wait in eager anticipation for the next misraa. Occasionally, fleeting insertions

of phrases from other raags like Kafi, Patdeep, and Khamaj are ushered in tantalisingly

and aesthetically for brief moments. Before revealing the misraa-o-oolaa and the misraa-o-

saanii Begum Akhtar sings quicksilver phrases in aakaar that create a lovely aamad for

each misraa. Tabla and sarangi accompaniment for this ghazal is exemplary, brilliant, brief

and restrained. The swaying gait of the theka enhances the beher of the poetry creating a

superb backdrop on which the singer places each misraa. Unfortunately, no information is

available regarding the accompanists for this mehfil.

Ghame-e-ashiqui se kehdo rah-e-aam tak na pahunche, mujhe khauf hai ye tohmat mere

naam tak na pahunche is composed in a text book interpretation of raag Kedar replete with

the characteristic meend from dhaivat and pancham to shuddha madhyam. Once again,

the accompanying musicians skillfully steal opportunities between couplets to embellish

both melody and rhythm, and are rewarded with appreciation from Begum Akhtar herself

as well as from members of the audience.

The two ghazals by Jigar Moradabadi (1890 -1961) included in this collection are woh

ada-e-dilbari ho, ke nawa-e-ashiqana, jo dilon ko fateh kar le, wohi fateh-e-zamana and

Is ishq ke hathon se hargiz na mafar dekha, utani hi badi hasrat jitana hi udhar dekha.

The former is loosely based on the melodic foundation of the Kanhada family of raags and

set to the Keherwa taal. Skilfully enhancing Jigar sahabs words with the added dimension

of music, Begum Akhtar judiciously selects specific words for elaboration. For example, in

the couplet teri doori-o-huzoori se hai kuch ajeeb aalam, abhi zindagi haqeeqat, abhi

zindagi fasaana she elaborates on the word doori, in a manner that leaves the listener

experiencing distance and space, as well as the sense of being far away and yet so near,

stated in the couplet.

Begum Akhtar presents the second Jigar Moradabadi ghazal Is ishq ke hathon se hargiz

na mafar dekha.. in raag Mishra Tilang with traces of its parent raag Khamaj in Keherwa

taal. The tabla accompaniment once again complements the singers artistry beautifully, at

times enhancing the excitement, at other times creating a sense of anticipation, and even

falling silent on occasion when the singer presents the first line only to join in seamlessly

with the taal as the second line of the couplet is introduced by the singer. Sounds of the

singers laughter, the audiences appreciation and even snatches of conversation, possibly

between the singer and members of the audience can be heard, presenting an aural

picture of the leisurely, informal and yet intensely charged ambience of the chamber

concert or mehfil.

Ghazal, thumri, dadra and allied forms are often described as being shabda-pradhaan

forms which accord primacy to song text. To adorn song text with music and more

specifically, the art of complex elaboration typical of raagdari music must then pose a

challenge for singers of these lyric-driven forms. Begum Akhtars rendition of Faiz Ahmad

Faizs Dono jahan teri mohabbat mein haar ke, wo jaa raha hai koi shab-e-gham guzaar

ke set against the warp and weft of Mishra Bhiaravi and the six matra Dadra, can only be

described appropriately by quoting Agha Shahid Ali when he says unlike other ghazal

singers, who clothed words till they can't be seen, she stripped them to a resplendent

nudity. If she clothes them at all, it was in transparent muslins, like the Dacca gauzes:

woven air, running water, evening dew. Each syllable and every word of the ghazal

remains burnished by her voice, never muddied or smudged by excessive use of musical

devices.

Wo dil mein hain magar dil ki pareeshani nahin jati.. in Mishra Bhairavi set to the

Keherwa taal shares some common elements with the six other ghazals included in this

collection. Each of the ghazals is loosely based on a raag, but the singer prevaricates

towards other raags with the ease that only an artiste well versed and trained in the

raagdari system can accomplish. All the ghazal compositions follow a sthayi-antara

pattern, with the first and second lines of the opening couplet usually sharing identical

melodies and forming the sthayi. The first line of each of the subsequent couplets forms

the antara, and is often rendered floating over the rhythm, while the second line of the

couplets repeats the melody in the sthayi. The use of laggi is frequently employed in

between couplets, and towards the end of each ghazal presentation.

Of the two bol banao thumri compositions presented in the concert, Dekhe bina naheen

chain suratiya is a familiar and often-rendered thumri composition in raag Khamaj. But the

other, Tosay laagi preet is rendered in Mishra Chandrakauns, an unusual choice of raag

for a thumri composition since most bol banao thumri compositions are based on raags

such as Khamaj, Kafi, Des, Tilang, Bhairavi, Pilu and Gara. The occasional use of

pancham and komal nishad, strongly reminiscent of the characteristic phrase employed in

Jogkauns, (a raag from the Kauns family introduced by Jagannathbuwa Purohit Gunidas

sometime around the 1940s) may suggest to some listeners that the composition is based

on Jogkauns. But the total omission of shuddha gandhaar and the infrequent but musically

significant insertion of shudhha rishabh if considered in conjunction with the previously

mentioned use of pancham and komal nishad would point to an interpretation of

Chandrakauns (http://www.parrikar.org/music/malkauns/lhk_chandrakauns.mp3) favoured

by some exponents of the Agra gharana. Given the fact that one does not usually hear bol

banaao thumri compositions in Chandrakauns, could this perhaps be a more recent

composition, or an experiment by Begum Akhtar herself in attempting to present a thumri

in an unconventional raag like Chandrakauns? She focuses most of the elaboration in this

thumri on the bol laagi and the elaboration is more reminiscent of the khayal style than

on the bol banana or play of words from the song text considered characteristic of thumri

gayaki.

Displaying yet another departure from convention, she presents the familiar Dekhe bina

naheen chain suratiya, with distinct traits of raag Gara, instead of the classic Khamaj

thumri mode followed by other performers. Khamaj reappears in the bol banao around the

pancham, but only fleetingly and not before she inserts several flourishes with the distinct

flavour of raag Rageshri. The well-known Khamaj thumri rendered in the sixteen matra Jat

taal, is reincarnated as a Gara thumri possibly early on in the performance, but remains

replete with the expressive longing and yearning that the song text demands. With the

mukhda pinned up high at taar shadja and beyond in the characteristic dha ni Sa, dha ni re

phrase of Gara, this interpretation of the thumri could well leave a singer out of breath, but

reaching up to komal gandhar in the taar saptak, the artiste is able to hold her own. With

the mukhda itself placed so high in the octave, she does not spare much time for the

antara, stating the lyrics of the antara only once before returning to the mukhda and

moving on to the laggi section of the presentation.

Begum Akhtar presented some of her signature pieces at this concert, and among them is

her popular dadra Chha rahi kali ghata. There is a delicious languor in the pace she sets

for the dadra, and the lilting gait established by the tabla complements the song text Jiya

mora lehraye hai, reminding one of the swaying movement of the jhoola traditionally

installed during the monsoon in North India. Since this is a dadra inextricably associated

with Begum Akhtar, there are several renditions of it that have been recorded in her voice.

In many of these renditions the antara is sung in the upper octave and usually in the

classic ma pa ni Sa movement towards taar shadja typical of raag Des. However, in this

rendition, she situates much of the elaboration in the lower and middle parts of the octave,

possibly because she chose a key that was higher than the one she usually selected for

this composition. This by no means takes away from the rendition, which is as expressive

and poignant as any of the other versions.

Piya ke awan ki laagi beriya is a charming dadra in the Purabi dialect rendered in the

fourteen matra Deepchandi taal. Abandoning the raag-based elaboration utilised in her

thumri and ghazal renditions, Begum Akhtar adopts a kehen or utterance that borrows

from folk music. The insertion of an Urdu verse to complement the simple but charming

song-text was conventional practice among thumri singers of the past, but this practice is

rarely followed by present day thumri exponents. This rendition provides an example of

this practice.

Another delightful dadra borrowing from folk music of Uttar Pradesh is the popular Sundar

sari mori maike mein mayl bhayi in Dadra taal. In a brief and attractive rendition,

expressively rendered, Begum Akhtar provides a glimpse into her familiarity with the folk

traditions of the Gangetic plains. She abstains from any complex raag-based elaboration in

this rendition, but states the song text with a flair that delights her listeners immensely.

In yet another simple dadra adapted from folk music Mori o preet lagi ehi raat, Hum

gawanwa naheen jaab, she gives voice to a young bride reluctant to leave her maternal

home, who refuses to go to her husbands home for the gauna ritual that marks the

consummation of marriage once a child bride comes of age. Shades of raag Shivaranjani

add an element of poignance in the rendition, and once again, the device of inserting Urdu

couplets to complement the song-text is employed.

Another dadra Pat raakho na raakho tohaar marji, is similarly rendered in Keherwa taal,

but with ample traces of raag Shivaranjani, this time without the inclusion of any Urdu

couplets or Brajbhasha dohas. Aaye balam karam more jaage also favours folk music

and is rendered as a relatively faster paced Dadra. The famous catch in Begum Akhtars

voice that stole many hearts is clearly evident in this rendition, especially as she lets her

voice soar high. The playful Hamaar kahi maano Raja ji also points to the association

between thumri and the folk music of Uttar Pradesh. Accompaniment on the tabla enlivens

the short rendition by shifting between Dadra and Keherwa taals.

Seasonal song forms such as hori and chaiti form an integral part of Purab ang thumri

repertoire. Begum Akhtar provides her audience with an example of chaiti by very briefly

presenting Sovat nindiya jagaaye ho Rama based on raag Jogiya and in the sixteen

matra Addha taal. The three and a half minute rendition provides a sampling that briefly

states the sthayi and antara, but does not include any substantial elaboration. The hori

Kesariya angiya rang daaro in Keherwa taal is presented with all the playful

coquettishness appropriate for such a celebratory piece. And yet the singer creates ample

space for elaboration, both melodic and rhythmic.

These eighteen tracks extracted from the recording of a longer mehfil provide a

magnificent glimpse into the world of Begum Akhtar, her charismatic personality and

inimitable music to which homage is being paid by her many admirers and followers on the

occasion of her centenary.

Glossary (inputs from Aneesh Pradhan):

aakaar lit. the vowel aa. In musical parlance, it refers to the use of the vowel aa for melodic improvisation and elaboration.

aamad - point of entry

abhinaya - mime dance

ang - In Hindustani music, this refers to type.

antara the second part of a melodic composition in Hindustani vocal or instrumental music beher - meter

bol - word

bol-banao thumri - a subcategory of the thumri form that is sung at a slow speed, allowing for melodic elaboration that is not strictly bound to the taal framework chaiti a seasonal song form sung during Chaitra, the first month of the Hindu calendar

dadra - a form of vocal music from the Hindustani system, closely associated with thumri, but it is distinct from the latter in its pace, longer song-text and manner of elaboration. Like thumri, dadras are composed in particular raags, but performers can exercise liberty in moving out of the original raag without compromising the aesthetic of the composition.

dhaivat - the sixth swar of the octave

doha - couplet

gandhaar the third swar of the octave

gayaki - vocal style

gharana - literally household, but in musical parlance signifies individual musical styles pursued by hereditary musicians, their progeny and disciples

ghazal - a poetic form, originally in Persian and Urdu, but presently seen in many languages like Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati. It is also considered as a form of vocal music from the Hindustani system, when composed to raag and taal.

hori - a song-form describing Holi, the festival of colours, and the exploits of the mythological figure Krishna, his friends and consorts. Also called holi, this song-form is found in folk music of northern India, but variants exist in Hindustani classical music repertoire that include similar imagery in the song-text, but are elaborated upon according to the parameters of raag and taal.

jhoola - rope swing

kehen - utterance

khayal - a form of Hindustani vocal music composed in a particular raag and taal. The song-text has two parts called sthayi and antara.

komal When used as a prefix to the name of a swar, it refers to the flattened version of that swar.

laggi - rhythmic section in tabla accompaniment to thumri, dadra and allied forms

madhyam - fourth swar in the octave

matra - lit. amount. A count or unit of time in a taal ordinarily considered synonymous with the English term beat. However, matra refers not just to the beat but also the space between the two beats. It is the duration of space between consecutive matras that determines the tempo.

meend - gradual unbroken glide from one to the other swar

mehfil - performance, normally used in the context of a chamber concert

misraa - individual line of the couplet

misraa-o-oolaa - first line of the couplet

misraa-o-saanii - second line of the couplet

mukhda - literally translated to mean face or countenance. In musical parlance, it refers to the first line of the composition. nishad - seventh swar of the octave. pancham - fifth swar of the octave

raag - term denoting the melodic framework of art music in In- dia. Briefly, every raag is said to create a mood with the help of specific swars that are used in a predetermined manner but are open to elaboration and spontaneous improvisation, provided the ground rules of the raag are not broken. Forms of music have evolved over centuries to encapsulate the seed-idea of every raag, and each of these forms has its grammar, rules and conventions, which allow or restrict the freedom of interpreting the raag.

raagdari sangeet - system of music based on the principles of raag

rishabh the second swar of the octave

saptak scale of seven swars

sarangi - a fretless bowed instrument with a skin-top sound board, used to accompany vocal music but also featured as a solo instrument

shayari - poetry

shadja - the first swar of the octave

sher - couplet

shuddha - pure or perfect. When used as a prefix to the name of a swar, it refers to the natural swar. sthayi the first part of a melodic composition in Hindustani vocal music

taal - term denoting the cyclical pattern of rhythm in Indian music represented by

mnemonic syllables that can be reproduced on various drums

swar - refers to a note

taar - upper octave

tabla - a pair of upright twin hand drums primarily used in northern India to accompany vocal and instrumental music and Kathak performances. It also possesses a rich solo repertoire.

tarannum a melodic template for reciting Urdu poetry

theka - universally accepted sequence of strokes that demarcate the framework of the taal

thumri - a form of vocal music that originally incorporated dance and gesture. Thumri song-texts speak of romance, union and separation of lovers, and also incorporate the sensuous and erotic.

ustad - teacher

waah word used to express appreciation

References:

Qureshi, Regula Burckhardt. "In Search of Begum Akhtar: Patriarchy, Poetry, and Twentieth-century Indian Music." The World of Music (2001): 97-137

Ollikkala, Robert Charles. Concerning Begum Akhtar:''Queen of Ghazal''. University of

Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1996. Kidwai, Saleem. Zikr us Parivash Ka': Begum Akhtar in Oldenburg Veena (ed.). Shaam e

Awadh: Writings on Awadh. Penguin Books. Gurgaon. 2007. Hiranand, Shanti. Begum Akhtar: the story of my ammi. Viva Books. New Delhi. 2005.

Ganguly, Rita. AE MOHABBAT... Reminiscing Begum Akhtar. Stellar Publishers Pvt

Ltd. Delhi. 2013. Mukherjee, Sutapa. Begum Akhtar: The Queen of Ghazal (Rupa Charitavali). 2005 Manuel, Peter. "Ii. The Popularization and Transformation of the Light-Classical Urdu

Ghazal-Song." Gender, genre, and power in South Asian expressive traditions (1994) Manuel, Peter Lamarche. "The Light-Classical Urdu Ghazal-Song." University of California,

1979 Shahid Ali, Agha. The Rebels Silhouette: Translating Faiz Ahmed Faiz Copyright for notes on tracks - Shubha Mudgal, Copyright for glossary - Aneesh Pradhan