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BHAJAN SAMRATS IN MUMBAI - 2 (Thodupuzha K. Shankar Mumbai)

Published on 27 March, 2018
BHAJAN   SAMRATS   IN   MUMBAI - 2 (Thodupuzha K. Shankar Mumbai)
 In this Kaliyuga, Vedas have prescribed three most essential requisites to develop devotion. They are Satsangam, Saranagati and Namasankeerthanam. Satsangam is the quality of  righteous devotees to mingle rapturously, rather elatedly,with similar -minded people.  In fact, out of the four Yugas in order, it is firmly believed bythe vedic erudite school of thought that Kaliyuga is the best yuga for practising boundless devotion. Devotion, done with utmost selfless passion can strike the divine chords of all deities and move them to shower blessings to the salvation- seekers. Then, Saranagati is the final stage of absolute unconditional surrender to the Almighty Lord or to reach the ultimate destination. Salvation!Prahlada and Markandeya are classic examples of selfless devotion. Ultimately, we come to the conclusion that Bhakti or devotion to the Almighty God demands ChithaSudhi or purity of mind, a sine qua non for spiritual uplift.

  As the devotee progressively moves ahead, he finds that besides Satsangamand Saranagati, there is another potential sphere of devotion by name Namasankeertanam which can stir any mind to dance in spiritual inebriation. We have heard that Sant Tukaram, Namdeo andJanabhai who, with their intense devotion and unconditional dedication, have experienced the manifestation of God's presence in every object they behold. They relinquished all material pleasures in the world and knew only devotion and dedication for the pursuit of spiritual activities. Devotion is, therefore, the only option for spiritual uplift and attainment of salvation. The very purpose of human birth and the very purpose of life is to achieve this objectoffulfilment or accomplishment of life. Then only, the very purpose of mission on earth will be complete. Only a peaceful, contented and dedicated person with no expectation of fruit of his action in return, can be successful in spiritual life.

Of all spiritual methods, therefore,Namasankeertanam, the art of singing and praising the Lord's grace and resplendence, in group, is emerging as the most powerful and important way to propitiate the deities and therefore, bhajan is gaining remarkable momentum in this Kali yuga! Now it has become an integral part of our culture and is practised so vigorously in all temples, social circles and spiritual centres.  In this pursuit of Namasankeertanam, many vocalists and classical songsters emerged and thus the culture of group- singing in praise of the Lord has become an integral part of our social life. This particular genre or art has generated more enthusiasm among the people of all ages. In our daily life, every material activity or experience, whatever it be, one easily loses interest in everything after a particular stage andeverything becomes humdrum, when the initial enthusiasm slowly withers away. But, the only activity which every normal individual would never get tired of, but aspires for incessant involvement, is DEVOTION, which he cherishes with unremitting passion and dedication, while treading the path of God- realisation. Devotion and dedication are, therefore, the true blessings of God and not anybody's choice.

In these series of Feature Articles, I wish to analyse comprehensively, the spiritual services being rendered by the several Bhajan Samrats of Mumbai. There are hundreds of Bhajan groups here, functioning in their areas and presenting their soulful performances in various languages in their respective areas with elan and éclair and the devotees listening and singing in tune with the singers rhythmically. Here, my humble attempt is to pick up some of ourfamiliar Tamil Bhajan Samrats from various parts of Mumbai, who have specialised in this genre with rich classical background and are presenting their sterling performances not only in India, but also abroad. Now let us peep into theirchallenging music journey and much celebrated performances one by one.

SRI SRIDHAR    CHARI     MUMBAI
The Samrat with a Charismatic Smile

A thumbnail sketch of his music career and performance.

Now, as regards Mumbai, there are several Bhajan groups, practising and performing Bhajans in temples and during religious festivals everywhere. It generates more fervour and religious passion and upholds devotion among the people. In GARODIA NAGAR also, we have a very competent Bhajan group,  under the auspices of Ghatkopar Bhajan Samaj, headed by Sri Sridhar Chari, an agile youngster who has learned and specialised in the genre of classical music for seventeen years,  under the able tutelage of renowned veteran classical maestro Sri Bombay Hari(D H Viswanathan) who has performed umpteen number of Bhajans and classical and vocal concerts all over Mumbai  and other states, as well as in many other countries also.  Sri Bombay Hari has churned out and presented to us this young perfect classical and Bhajan singer who has been endowed with a loud and melodious voice.  His striking features or qualities in this rare form of fine arts, are worth mentioning here. His in -depth knowledge in this art, perfect control over thevoice during the rhythmic sequences(cadence) and suitable expressions in tandem with the keertan, inborn expertise in take- off and are the noticeable qualities of this upcoming songster. The success of a seasoned singer is to take the voice to high pitch un- stammered or to the crest and effortless return to the relative tune at the conclusion of thesong.

Born to Sri. K S V Chari and Smt. K. Chudamani as their third son, Sri Chari began his Carnatic Music lessons right from the age of 5 under Guru Smt. Parvathi Gopalakrishnan and the renowned Flutist Guru Sri Balachandar'. Barring a small interlude owing to his pursuance of studies, there was a brief break in his tutelage during which period he continued his music learning under his mother Smt.Chudamani and maternal grandmother Smt. P B Seetha, a learned Carnatic Vocalist aged 95 years with no impairment in her quality of voice due to advanced old age. She still continues to sing as usual!

Sri Chari remembers with great pleasure that he pursued his learning of music and still continues learning of semi- classical music with the renowned Vidwan, Sri D H Viswanathan, popularly known as Bombay Hari, as mentioned earlier, and also under another  veteran vocalist, Guru Smt.LalithaIyer privileged with the honour of being  a teaching faculty at the ShanmukhanandaSchool and Fine Arts Mumbai. 

His father, though he is a business man by occupation, is a great lover of music and he ensured Sridhar attended a number of Bhajans and concerts of leading musicians and maestros of our country. He fondly garnered all the latest collections of musical recording in the form of C Ds and Music Albums of all leading Carnatic and Hindustani vocalists as well as eminent instrumentalists across the country for him. Prima facie, his father had a farther vision that his son listens these sonorous musical renditions at home and instinctively imbibes the relative Bhava or expression belonging to each Keertana, in its inherent or designed style.  Especially, behind every classical bravura performance, the songster must have put in tremendous labour to attain utmost perfection.  Only practice makes a man perfect in his profession and when something, be it anything, is done with the application of involvement and professionalism, it shines with outstanding  perfection. And this is what stands behind Sri Chari, who has already gained popularity and earned a good name among the Music lovers of Mumbai.

In consonance with the Telugu saying, the art of listening, Sri Sridhar got the opportunity to listen to lots of live Concerts and renderings or recordings of many leading legendary vocalists. In short, he had all the time been not only a passionate singer but, an enthusiastic listener also. In his eventful music career hitherto, an unforgettable incident had happened during a family get together at his residence. Late R V Sridhar, the main architect and founder of Ghatkopar Bhajan Samaj, chanced to identify his latent talent and verve and passion in the genre of classical music and thereafter, started promoting him by arranging public performances. The first performance, he was initiated into, was at the Ghatkopar Bhajan Samaj itself during the Ram Navami celebrations. And it became a practice to actively participate in the Saturday Bhajans used to be held at devotees' houses in rotation which enabled him to gain extra mileage in musical extravaganza besides, classical exposures on usual as well as festive occasions. Sri Sridhar had the privilege to present his public performances in various Sabhas and organisations which marked the beginning of his uninterrupted journey in music with particular emphasis on solo classical or others designed in thesemi classical format or in the group of leading Bhagavathars(classical maestros) in the Bhajan format or configuration. Some of the organizations are Ghatkopar Bhajan Smaj, Matunga Bhajan Samaj, Thirumala TirupatiDevasthanam Sion Mumbai, SHRI Shanmukhananda Fine Arts and Sangeeta Sabha, (at the Jasubhai Auditorium), Sri Sringeri Saradambal Temple, Chembur, Vasantha Memorial Foundation programs, Chinmaya Mission Powai, Sri Tara Ma Trust Thane, Powai Ayyappa Vishnu Temple, I I T Powai Bhajanotsavam, AsthikaSamaj - Matunga, Rasika Ranjani Sabha Ghatkopar and Mauritius Hindu Religious Centre Mauritius.

At most of the venues, he is invited invariably every year to perform before an elite audience.

At Chinmaya Mission Powai, he has been privileged to perform on the New Year's Day for the past seven years, where he presents Hindustani Bhajans with the active participation of the devotees simultaneously. It is apt to mention here that the late C E O of the Chinmaya Mission was an ardent fan of Sri Sridhar and in all his Bhajan concerts, he wanted him to conclude the program with Hanuman Chalisa without fail. It is also pleasing to know that Sri Sridhar is also a regular invitee to perform Hindustani Bhajans and Abhangs as a part of the Geeta Yagna organized every year by the Powai Chapter of Chinmaya Mission.

Blessed by the Goddess of music, Sri Sridhar Chari is marching ahead with his performances, shedding the brilliance around him. When done something with utmost attention and devotion, Nomatter it is spiritual or otherwise, if it is based upon the principles of ethics and common weal, God also extends His share of support. Here,we can see that Sri Chari has been conducting the AndalKalyanam for the last 18 years in the musical style at Ghatkopar Balaji Mandir which is attended by hundreds of devotees. Apart from this, Sridhar Chari has done his rendition for Bharat NatyamRecitals and arangetrams-(debut)for dance gurus like Smt. Madhuri Pratap and guru Smt.Sachika Almeidaof Goa, at Ravindra Bhavan, Goa, under the able guidance of Vidwan B.Anantharaman(Ravi).   Sri. Sridhar conceptualized themes and song for a few dance ballets viz, SriKrishnaSamarpanam, Parvati Kalyanam, Guruvayurappan and AyyappaMahimai along with Smt. Madhuri Pratap. Sridhar is also a regular invitee as judge for Bhagavad Gita competitions heldin various schools in and out of Powai and Andheri regions in Mumbai,organized by the Chinmaya Mission Powai Chapter. He also sings during wedding functions, the songs selected being fusion of Carnatic and Classical film songs. He creates a story on the couple and conceptualises songs along with a power point slide show that runs parallel during his singing which clearly describes the story in the pictorial form very elegantly.

 Sri Sridhar Chari recalls with pride that he is the founder of the N G O that he floated over a span of 11 years by name "HARI MUSIC FOUNDATION", (H M F) extending financial assistance to economicallybackward children to pursue their education uninterruptedly. Meanwhile, this newly constituted N G O, operates in collaboration with some other N G Os in their humanitarian projects by engaging themselves in fund collection being the lifeblood of any project.

 As regards his academics, he graduated in science from Mumbai University and he did his studies in Somaiya College Ghatkopar Mumbai. Later, he pursued his M B A - in NarseeMonjee Institute of Management Studies(N M I M S), affiliated to Mumbai University.Of course, being the son of a businessman, he has always been actively involved in the business.

The spontaneous involvement in spiritual activities shows vividly the depth of devotion of an ardent devotee.An intense urge coupled with incessant efforts to achieve something prodigious always throws wide range of opportunities before theSadhaka or seeker. Be whatever the genre, music, dance, versification or sculpture, the boon and benevolence of the Almighty are essential requisites. Fervent desire to develop the God- given-gift of verve in music opens gorgeous vistas before every artiste.

  As regards his family life, he lives in a joint family with his parents, two elder brothers and their families,wife- Kalpanaand two children - a son and a daughter. Living together in a joint family, in spite of everyone having his family and own interests and aptitudes, timber and temperament, the whole Chari family living under one roof, has proved beyond doubt, that living together with mutual understanding, spirit of cooperation, give and takeattitude, holding on to  the principle of one for all and all for one, shedding all egos and differences and giving due respect to and taking care of parents, allowing the children to live and grow in a free atmosphere, with perfect unity in diversity, unanimity in tastes and appetites, a joint family can ensure harmony, mutual protection and farsightedness! A down to earth Chari is a synonym of humility, a reservoir of knowledge and mastery over classical, Carnatic and Hindustani music, blessed with a mellifluous voice, aesthetic qualities, amiable nature and a pleasing personality.  By dint of regular practice and perseverance, strict regimen and exercises, Sri Chari has been able to maintain well, his God-gifted voice quality.

 With all his achievements, Sri Chari is optimistic that he can reach still greater heights and carve a niche in the Carnatic music world! Let us give him a big hand and wish him every success in his music career, which he has been taking along with him without any impairment, in spite of all his busy day- to -day household chores and business schedule!

May God bless him with more and more public performances and shower more honours, laurels and accolades in the years to come!
                                                J A I H I N D


Thodupuzha K. Shankar Mumbai
(Poet and Journalist)



BHAJAN   SAMRATS   IN   MUMBAI - 2 (Thodupuzha K. Shankar Mumbai)
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Sumathi 2018-03-29 00:44:58
He is a good singer, better person, best friend. Extremely humble, helpful and happy go lucky... A casual meeting will feel like a party when he is around... Miss you Anna
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