A tribute to the mAster and His mAsterpiece

In the morning of 10^th day of October, India lost one of its priceless gems in the world of music. His  sonorous voice not only enthralled the hearts of many, but also ushered in a sea of changes in the then Indian Gazal world. The gazal maestro Jagjit Singh, the voice behind the all-time hit melodies like “hothon se chulo tum”, “tum itna jo muskura rahe ho”, “kal chaudvi ki chand thi”, “aisi ankhen nahin dekhi”, “yaad aaonga” merged in eternal peace for ever. His sudden demise has left many awestruck and it was hard to believe as he was popularly known as a very strong willed person.

His soulful offerings like “baat niklegi toh”, “kiska chehra ab mein dekhoon”, “chitthi na koi san desh” , “hoshwalon ko khabar kya” are still hummed by many. He has sung so many soul-stirring melodies with his beautiful wife Chitra. He revived the era of Ghazal during the 80s, when the western music started to enter into Indian music. So qualitative music had faced a lot of struggle to come out ot the purview of public. People started to realize that untill unless the Gazal is subjected to certain changes, it will be hard to retain the its existence among the listeners. But Jagjitji, with all his sadhna and deep bond with music could bring in subtle changes, exactly what listeners wanted. He could blend the modern beats with traditional indian instruments and vice versa. For all his renderings, he was awarded the third highest civilian award the Padma Bhusan in 2003.

Someone has rightly said that it is really indeed difficult to pay tribute to a great personality. They have so many divine attributes that even if we try our best possible way, we are likely to leave some of them in addressing our gratitude. This holy soul came to bollywood like an angel and changed the lives of many. Kumar Sanu was one of them. Jagjitji trusted in his voice and gave a break to this novice singer in his album and gifted him a token of Rs 1500, which the later preserves till the date.

I was quite fortunate to witness one of his live performances at Sirifort Auditorium near AIIMS, Delhi. Before that, I had never been to any of his live shows. Frankly speaking, I had never been to any of the Gazal shows. But the Gazal of Jagjitji really enticed me a lot due to his streaks of blending the new music with the older tunes and vice versa. So it was obvious that I was quite excited to see him singing. Then appeared the divine musician, clad in black dhoti and kurta, on the stage, which was also very much eager to welcome him. The Veena, the tabla, the flute, the guitar and synthesizer were in full mood to be blended into the mellifluous voice of Jagjitji. Then all my wishes were just getting fulfilled just in front of eyes just as the box of Pandora was getting opened up. All his songs were like magic tricks, being cast in front of us. The tunes of “tum itna jo muskura rahe ho”, “mitti da bawa”, “larri lappa”, “chiithi na koi sandesh”,”hoshwalon ko khabar kya”, “kal chaudvi kii raat”, were greeted with whistles and claps. Moreover, the “Khamoshhhhh” man Shatrughan Sinha was also present among the audience. The show, as usual in India, started half an hour late at 7.30 in the evening. But, this music mogul went on and on with his love once he got started. The jugal-bandi between different instruments was so lovely as if each of the instrument was saying something to the other and the other one reverting back. I was having a feeling of tipsy just like I am sitting in the durbar of some ancient King with each of his tune and this feeling was never getting down. I wished like this ecstatic feeling should continue forever and the last number should never come. The melody was so stimulating. When I looked at my watch, I soon realized that even the smallest hand of my watch also does not want to go fast and all it wants is to preserve such a golden moment and to live in that euphoria forever. Everyone was so spellbound by that time that no one could realize that we were all advancing towards midnight with such ease. But the reality soon drew curtains on my hope and I had to return to my place in spite of my unquenched thirst.

I really feel privileged to witness his ‘streak of 70s’. This streak of 70s is synonymous for his tuning 70 this year, all his 70 live shows that he wanted to do this year and his magic spell of 70s. After this live show, I promised never to leave a single show of this great soul. It did not even take much time for me to realize that I took the pledge very late. By that time, the fate had already decided something else for this revered soul. I know the moment, it is going to be published, will be late. I was listening to the “mitti da bawa” and “jaane woh kawnsa desh” from my playlist while writing this conclusion. It was like the nature could also listen to my wishes and soon my tears knew no limits. May be he has left his earthly abode for the better but he could never leave the hearts of millions, who still believe that he will soon appear in some other form and fill the voids in their lives.