Jayateerth Mevundi/ online concert

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR 

Jayateerth Mevundi/ online concert organised by Sajda Festival UK

Date: October 16

Rating: ****

Keeping in mind the fact that it would be afternoon in London, vocalist Pt Jayateerth Mevundi began the Sajda Festival UK online concert on Saturday with raag Bhimpalasi. What was interesting that he chose to sing the vilambit cheez 'Ab Toh Badi Ber' in the lesser-played nine-beat Matta taal.

The unfolding of the raag was smooth, with Mevundi displaying the grace and maturity that has come with nearly two decades of concert performance. Even his transition to the faster teentaal part 'Ja Ja Re Apni Mandirwa' was so natural, that it just flowed without jarring.

The concert was a tribute to Kirana gharana maestro and Bharat Ratna Pt Bhimsen Joshi, whose birth centenary is on February 4. As such, Mevundi's choice of repertoire was appropriate and varied, moving from khayal and thumri-dadra to Hindustani bhajans, Marathi abhang, natya sangeet and Kannada devotional, before providing a complete twist with his Bhairavi conclusion.

Mevundi never overdid anything, and there wasn't the slightest hint of gimmicky or singing to the gallery. There were no taar saptak acrobatics just to prove a deftness at high notes, and there were no endless volleys of taans or gamaks to show off technical finesse. The singing was pure and honest, aimed primarily at touching the listener's soul.

For the light classical and spiritual pieces, Mevundi used two tabla players in Keshav Joshi and Srihari Diggavi. Their synchronisation was amazing, with Bharat Hegde's harmonium notes completing the accompaniment. Here again, they didn't play a beat or note less, or a beat or note more than required.

The Bhimpalasi khayal made way for the light classical 'Naina Raseele' in Gara, a Bhimsen Joshi favourite. The second half began with a Saraswati bhajan, followed by the Sant Sena abhang 'Jata Pandharisi Sukh Vaate Jeeva' and a different rendition of the natya geet composition 'Chandrika Hi Janu'.

The Kannada devotional 'Kaaye Karunaambudhiye', written by Vijaya Dasaru, provided a welcome change, though one missed the regular 'Bhagyada Lakshmi Baaramma'. But the biggest surprise came in the form of a medley in Bhairavi. Instead of sticking to a single composition, Mevundi began with the popular 'Bhavani Dayani' before moving into 'Manniso Shree Venkatesha' in Kannada and an excerpt from Bhimsenji's immortal 'Jo Bhaje Hari Ko Sada', ending with the 'Vitthal Pandurang Hari' chant.

The whole sequence left one with gooseflesh, and was done so effortlessly and naturally. One has heard many tributes to Bhimsenji, and many more will be in store to mark the centenary. But this one was special, like a celestial journey.

A disciple of Kirana gharana exponent Pt Shripad Padigar, who studied from the legend himself, Mevundi again proved why he's one of the most admired vocalists of his generation. One remembers seeing an early concert of his at the Tata Theatre, Mumbai, in 2003. He had dazzled the audience with his Puriya, though some also felt at that point that he copied Bhimsenji consciously or sub-consciously.

With experience and maturity, he has developed his own style, and along with Anand Bhate, Kaivalya Kumar Gurav and Srinivas Joshi, is one of the torchbearers of Kirana gayaki. His tweaks to the regular presentation format, as seen on Saturday, were welcome. One must thus laud Sajda's efforts in making his wide repertoire accessible to a larger diaspora audience. Earlier in the day he had given an interview to the InSync channel. Both that and the concert are available on the respective social media platforms (Sajda Festival UK concert on Facebook and InSync interview on Instagram). Worth a visit.