For
the longest time, I belonged to the group of elitists
who derided and mocked Mukesh for his plain singing. In mehfils and guppa
sessions in my college hostel, I was among those who
pointed out the obvious limitations in his singing. Yet, when I had to choose a song for a college event, I instinctively
veered to a Mukesh song. A supporter of Mukesh asked me
after I finished, “If you don't like his singing so much, why did you pick one
of his songs to sing for the function?” Read
more…
It
is typical to know little prior to attending an Indian classical music concert.
The flyer we receive for our Ragamala concerts in
When
it was time for me to ride a bicycle, my Dad bought me
a green monster -- a giant bicycle. This bike seemed 5 feet tall, dark green
and heavy to me. When my
friends were exulting in their light and trendy BSAs, my Dad chose to get me a
large and clunky bike. He wanted me to have a bike
that I would never outgrow. I also suspect that he
felt that the BSAs were not built from a heavy enough gauge of steel -- as
bikes ought to be. That is the only bike I owned in my
childhood and teen years. Read more…
I
visited