There is a raag called Shyam Kalyan. It is supposed to be an evening raag, but I think you can listen to it anytime, as I have, doing some chores in the morning, or traveling through Kanakpura road, or just to fill the silences of the evening when I am alone with my chai. It has a soothing quality, the notes aren't low or melancholy, rather, they are soft, and fall to the floor like petals would, nudged by a moody breeze. It also has a romance to it, the romance of the sea breeze, pigeons flying off like movie extras caught mid-move, and the promise of an ever after, the lilt of hope. That's why Ilayaraja chose it, perhaps, for the song 'Nee oru kaadal sangeedam' from Nayagan.
The Shyam Kalyan I listen to is by Ustaad Rashid Khan. When S. introduced me to this piece, he did so with that knowing assurance; he knew I would be addicted, and I was. Even as I damn that irritating foreknowledge, I am grateful, for this piece of music has become, less a fixture, more a flowing river in my musical sanctuary; it ripples through the day, softening its contours, and somehow, everything becomes a bit more bearable.
How do I express my gratitude to someone who has changed the very shape of my days, and will continue to do so, in such a profound and lyrical way? How do I tell him, I wish I could hear you sing live, not just one more time, but again and again and again? How do I tell him that I heard your Durga in Mumbai almost two decades ago, and even now, that raag inside my head is sung in your voice. How do I tell you that I heard someone describe how the stage was hot, burning hot, after you had finished your performance, and she wasn't sure how the audience would react to her next, and this was just over a year ago, what happened? How do I tell you how my heart breaks now, listening to you sing now, and at the same time, I can't help being moved by the way you caress the notes, the way your voice carries those notes, unafraid, the way your voice melds the music, the moment, and the magic in a way that I understand now is art? How do I tell you that every time I listen to you, I fall in love, with not just the music, but all the possibilities of what can be, like discovering love itself anew?
Soulful tribute. Wishing eternal peace for a master. 🤲