My tiny estate

I often think that this species of bipedal creatures called Humans is an intriguing one. It puts on a piece of cotton and compliments a mate on it, it is the human species alone which resorts to songs and stories to achieve a sense of belongingness. 

As it might be with many, there are particular tunes, couplets, images, smells which are so deeply impressed upon our hearts that a faint reference to a miniscule of that song or poem pulls us into that domain which the human calls Nostalgia. 

It was during the testing times of pandemic and subsequent lockdown that I had the chance to glance into arenas hitherto non existent to me. भारतीय अभिजात संगीत was one of them. 

As Mallikarjun Mansur precisely pinned down that this genre of Music gets onto one's nerves like a snake's venom.. 

~'हे गाणं चढ़तं'

. 

Just as we came to the closure of Jyesth Purnima, the banyan city woke up to thundering blues and refreshing breezes.

 Came down a magnificent बरखा washing away all melancholy the scorching Sun had brought to us.

 And inevitably, my eyes ran into that very corner in my now - left, previous residence which was my tiny estate, filled with books, sketches, papers, and of course a bluetooth speaker which relayed Hindustani and Carnatic one after another.

 

It was sitting in that estate of mine that I had the chance to study Sanskrit, Calculus and other Indic Knowledge systems all by myself. It was on that very wooden table that I penned down my takeaways from Vivekanand's teachings. It was that very corner which used to light up seeing a smiling Arun Govil and a cheerful Nitish Bhardwaj on the television every morning. 

And it was in this very corner that Surashri Kesarbai Kerkar (of course among many many others) entered my life and filled it with something unfathomable. 

Her प्रीतम सैया can swell up the most ruthless eyes, her नेवर बाजू रे actually tickles you to stand up and dance a few steps.

 But one such rendition exists, which makes you halt, it makes you smile and giggle endlessly with a contented heart and shining eyes.

 

That 4 minute piece holds the power to stir you up. It reminds you of the childhood scents and at times of the beloved's call. Kesarbai unveiled such an endearing facet of Maru Bihag that mortals like me can just sit there and get immersed in all that is being given. Here the speaker amplifies रसिया हो न जाओ and there I gasp, for I see Kesarbai smiling down on us, all of us, showering us with a treasure trove of nectar, sweet as honey and rich as a bronze bell. 

Ultimately, the voice grows fainter and fainter as the recording ends and I roll back, to switch roles and get into a life, material.