Monsoon yearning

June 17, 2010 at 12:49 pm (hindustani classical music)
Tags: ashwini bhide deshpande, begum akhtar, monsoon, munawar ali khan, shobha gurtu

Anyone who has endured the unrelenting heat of the Indian summer will appreciate the relief that the Monsoon brings to the Indo-Gangetic plains. Cleansed of the heat and the dust, all nature seems to wear a new shiny robe. Suddenly the air is laden with the smell of damp earth and the gathering clouds cover the scorching sun with the promise of showers. The men and the boys are on rooftops flying kites of a hundred colors, while women and children swing from the branches of lofty trees. Peacocks fan out their long incandescent tails and the Papiha bird sings its love songs. The whole atmosphere is loaded with the symbology of love and yearning.

The ancient Vedic culture of India believed in the invocation of the rain Gods to bring life to the parched plains of India. Ragas were sung in scientifically worked out lengths and recited with specific musical notes to initiate the onset of rains each year before the season. Musical geniuses in ancient India believed that specific notes, sung in certain phrases, could darken the skies and bring a downpour of rains. In fact, this practice of invoking the rain Gods continues even in modern India whenever there is fear of a delayed Monsoon.

Begum Akhtar – Chha Rahi Kali Ghata :  

Munawar Ali Khan – Kari Ghata Ghir Aayi Ri Sajani :  

Shobha Gurtu – Chhai Ghata Ghan Ghor :  

Ashwini Bhide – Chha Rahi Kari Ghata :  

.. more songs of the Monsoon »

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