THE CONCEPT of bandish in the Hindustani classical style of music has existed since time immemorial. Its idea is to lay a foundation of sorts for the rhythm, a specific raga and develop a melodic composition around it. The NCPA is going to host a three-day Bandish festival featuring works of legendary poets, such as Tansen, Amir Khusrau, Muthuswamy Dikshitar and Ras Khan. The legacy and works of these poets comprise brilliant glimpses of the deep-rooted Indian culture. Each of the poets had a tremendous amount of influence on the structure of music that has developed over the centuries in Hindustani style. Bombay Jayashree, Shujaat Khan, Gundecha Brothers, Ulhas Kashalkar, Shekhar Sen are some of the noted artists who will be performing at the Bandish festival.
Bandish originates from the word “band” which means to be bound by and composing a song around it to a specific raga and rhythm. It normally is accompanied by the tabla or a pakhavaj to set the rhythm while the essence of it revolves around the lyrics or poetry. Most of the time it concentrates on the nature of the text, which along with music sets the tune. The evolution of bandish can be logically dated to the period where Hindustani music was evolving with the literature element. Bandish was known to be protected by many gharanas of Hindustani music that refrained from allowing it to move out of the family. It is known to have been set in three sets of speeds, which oscillated between slow and medium, finally escalating to the fast tempo.
Tansen is known to be associated with the Dhrupad style of singing and his sheer genius comes across in his compositions that highlight the magnificence of his style. Dhrupad is believed to be the oldest style of classical music in the musical tradition. The word is a conjunction of “dhruva” which means fixed and “pada” that is the words. It is believed that together they resonate the sound of the universe. The origin of Dhrupad traces to age-old texts and the Vedas with the Dhrupad gaining immense popularity and momentum in the 13th century. Towards the beginning of the 18th century, the culture for the Dhrupad started declining and a new concept of Khyal started to emerge during the Mughal era. Another legendary composer, who is known to have mastered the style of musical tradition, is Amir Khusrau. He came very close to the sheer genius of Tansen. He modified the raga Dhrupad and added Persian tunes and beats to it while creating qawalis on the lines of Hindu bhajans.
Dr Suvarnalata Rao, head of programming for music at NCPA, says: “Bandish is not a tradition but a song that is bound by rhythm and it is a predominant concept.” She explains how Bandish has two components, which are melodious and poetic. The works of these poets are readily available even today but it is difficult to trace back the way it was presented. And Hindustani music being an oral tradition, it has passed through word of mouth since centuries. “Bandish has to be looked in totality from its poetic and melodious concept. We need to understand primarily the way it was conceived and that was the inspiration behind this festival,” says Rao.
Shujaat Khan, well-known sitarist, explains the nuances of bandish, which can never be pinpointed and said that it had to be performed in one particular manner. “None of us would know how music was perceived during the era of Khusrau. So it depends on us how we understand and perform our level best,” says Khan. He goes on to explain how these poets had different philosophies and at the end of the day just wanted to portray simple meanings of life. What Khan will be presenting is a version of Sufi in its classical form and he is perhaps one of the few musicians to render such kind of performance. “Sufi has been presented in various forms — either in folk or qawalli. But rarely has it been rendered in its classical form. Sufi and Khusrau stand for simplicity in thought and these are the truths of life,” says Khan.
There are various expressions in bandish, which are so simple, yet, pure and deeply meaningful.