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HomeThePrint ProfilePandit Jasraj—modern-era Tansen who even hypnotised deer with his music

Pandit Jasraj—modern-era Tansen who even hypnotised deer with his music

From Maharaja Jaswant Singh of Gujarat’s Sanand to King Tribhuwan Bir Bikram Shah of Nepal, Pandit Jasraj performed for many royal patrons of his time.

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Classical music can be an intimidating space, dominated by narratives of ‘purity’, ancient learning practices and the ‘guru-shishya’ tradition. So, when a stalwart talks about embracing change, it feels like a breath of fresh air. Indian classical vocalist Pandit Jasraj did just that.

In 2020, at the age of 90, he was taking classes on Skype. He said he didn’t think older times were better, in a world that tends to thrive on the romanticisation of the old. Jasraj’s last musical performance before his demise in August 2020 was also online.

“I believe the current phase is good. One should not compare it with the past – good or bad. One has to walk with time, and only then you will like the current time,” said the ‘Mewati Gharana’ doyen in an interview with The Hindustan Times.


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A musical genius

Born on 28 January 1930 in Pili Mandori in Haryana, Jasraj grew up with classical music. His father, Pandit Motiram, was a vocalist, and his two older brothers were accomplished musicians as well.

The famous Begum Akhtar ghazal, Deewana Banana Hai Toh Deewana Bana De,  struck a deeply personal chord with then-six-year-old Jasraj. He would spend most of his school days listening to songs on the gramophone at the teashop on the way to his school.

Jasraj’s father was supposed to join the court of the seventh Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan, and even relocated his family to the city for this purpose. But as fate would have it, Motiram died on the day of his joining.

After his demise, Motiram’s family shifted to Nampally, known then for Hyderabad’s central railway station. From here, Jasraj would travel to Sanand in Gujarat to learn from musicians of the Mewati Gharana. He even performed for renowned musical patron Maharaj Jaywant Singh Waghela of Sanand and received training from him.

Jasraj started his career as an accompanying tabla artist. “After a brief initiation into vocal music by my father, I decided to opt for the tabla under the training of Pandit Pratap Narayan. That decision was taken to shoulder the family responsibilities, for the additional income, due to the sudden demise of my father,” he said in an interview.

At 14, he “rebelled against the strange attitude meted out to accompanying artistes” and vowed to become “a full-fledged vocalist.”

Recalling one of his earliest concerts, Jasraj said he performed in front of Nepal’s King Tribhuwan Bir Bikram Shah in Kathmandu in 1952.

“The king told his men to announce that he has awarded me 5,000 gold coins. I was shocked. I couldn’t believe it. I was sweating, and I almost fainted. I was maybe 22 years old then,” he said.


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When Jasraj hypnotised a deer

For Pandit Jasraj, music and spirituality were intertwined. From Madhurashtak to Om Namoh Bhagwate Vasudevaaye, the kirtan style of his music travelled far and wide. He popularised Haveli Sangeet, a form of devotional music dedicated to the Hindu god Krishna and traditionally sung in temples.

He would do riyaaz (practice) for almost 14 hours every day without fail. Jasraj started getting recognised through his radio performances and gradually made a name for himself through stage shows in India and abroad.

According to a famous anecdote, Jasraj “transfixed a deer” during a performance in the Sankat Mochan temple in Benares (now Varanasi) in 1996.  When he was performing ‘Raga Todi’, a deer ran past the audience and stopped next to the stage, seemingly mesmerised by the music, according to attendees.

Interestingly, the incident was similar to an older 16th-century legend: Singers Tansen and Baiju Bawra were performing the same raga when a herd of deer, captivated by their voice, joined the audience. It’s why traditionally, in Ragmala miniature paintings, the visual of a woman playing Raga Todi while surrounded by deer is a common optic.

Former MP and classical music connoisseur N.K. Singh writes about the futuristic vision of Pandit Jasraj while calling him the ‘Tansen of our times’.

“As an exponent of the Mewati Gharana, he sought to blend various musical styles, not confined to Khayal alone. In this sense, he had a futuristic vision. He recognised that the classical tradition, without losing its purity of form and content, must evolve. That is why, while learning from the Mewati Gharana, he improvised on his musical styles, particularly kirtan”.

While the tradition of jugalbandi (musical duets) was a well-known practice, it was rare to see a male and a female artist performing the same raga together. Jasraj came up with a new concept of jugalbandi called ‘Jasrangi’,  where a male and a female vocalist sing two different ragas simultaneously in two different scales.

Though the country bestowed on him its most honorific titles—such as the Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and even named a minor planet called Panditjasraj after hiim –- he felt most loved when the residents from his native village in Haryana’s Hisar district named a park and a library after him. “He wanted to see the village youth build a culture of education and also learn classical singing. He particularly encouraged higher education for girls and [stood for] women’s empowerment,” wrote Colonel RD Singh in a 2020 article for The Times of India.

(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)

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