“A monumental raga,
unmatched in Hindustani raga space for its gravitas, difficult in its
swara-lagav, and profound for its emotional impact on the innocent and the
illuminati alike.”
– Rajan Parrikar
Kuch Ajab Khel Kartar ke- sings Shafqat Amanat Ali in this
track from his album, Tabeer. It is, according
to him, his own interpretation of the age old Darbari bandish that has been passed on from generation to generation of
the Patiala Gharana.
The original bandish is in fact said to have been one of the
over 5000 bandishes that were passed on to the Patiala Gharana founders, Ali
Baksh and Fateh Ali Khan by the great Ustad Tanras Khan of the Dilli Gharana-
the very well known musician in the court of Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last
Mughal King. He is the one who is said to have polished the Khayal singing of
the two cousins to such an extent that they became the most formidable names in
the whole of Northern India at that point in time
( Read in more detail about Ali Baksh, Fateh Ali Khan and
how the Patiala Gharana came into being in this article
Another very famous bandish in Darbari which is attributed
to Ustad Tanras Khan is based on the very famous tarana by Amir Khusro called “Yaar-e
Mann beya” - Sung here by Ustads Salamat and Nazakat Ali of the Sham Chaurasi Gharana.
A popular version by the Mekaal Hassan band of Pakistan
The
most stately and distinguished of the Raagas, Darbari is said to have been created
by none other than Mian Tansen, the legendary musician at King Akbar’s court. A
Raaga performed at late hours of night, belonging to the Asavari thaat of the
Bhatkande system of classification, Darbari is considered a difficult Raga to
master. It is considered a gambhir Raga.
The majesty and somber nature of this raga mandates its
singing in the mandr saptak or lower
octaves and in a slow tempo or the vilambit
laya. The swaras Ga, Dha and Ni are komal or flat. In fact it is believed
that the Dha and Ga swaras are not just komal but ati komal in Darbari. Another striking feature of the Raga is the
use of andolan - the oscillation or
swinging of the komal Ga and Dha which adds to its beauty and this is
demonstrated in this short clip that demonstrates the aaroh and avroh of the
Raga
But coming back to the Patiala Gharana and Kuch Ajab Khel ,
here is the bandish in its classical form being rendered by Ustad Amanat Ali and
Ustad Fateh Ali Khan
Some More Darbari by the Patiala Gharana
First a short clip by Ustad Ashiq Ali- the son of Fateh Ali
Khan one of the founders of the Patiala Gharana., who was “widely regarded as
the ultimate statement of ‘tayyari’and
‘layakari’ by most of the vocalists
of the Punjab region.” (read more about him here) http://www.sadarang.com/Ustad%20Ashiq%20Ali%20Khan%20-%20Saqib%20Razaq.htm
Next the very famous- Anokha
Ladla, khelan ko maange chaand by Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, who also happened
to be Ustad Ashiq Ali’s disciple
A beautiful ghazal by Ustad Amanat Ali Khan
And this superb rendition by Ustad Fateh Ali Khan
Ustad Fateh Ali Khan along with Zahida Parveen in this
Darbari composition for a film
And the very popular duo of Asad Amanat Ali and Hamid Ali sing a tarana in Darbari
An interesting anecdote related to the raga is about Ustad
Hafiz Ali Khan- the great Sarod maestro and father of Ustad Amjad Ali Khan.
Apparently when he was at Rashtrapati Bhavan to receive his Padma award, the
then president, Dr. Rajendra Prasad
asked if there was anything he could do for him. The only request the latter had was that the
President do something to save the Raga Darbari as he felt that people were
taking too many liberties while performing it and since it was a precious
creation of Tansen, he wanted it to be preserved in its purest forms for
generations to come. The President was at a loss of words, recalls Amjad Ali
Khan, who had accompanied his father for the function, but promised to look
into the matter. A triumphant Hafiz Khan returned home to declare to his wife
that the President would now be taking steps to save the great Raga!
NoorJehan, who is fondly remembered as Mallika- e – Tarannum;
the Queen of Melody, also owes this title to Darbari it seems. Here in this
video she recalls how it was singing the song Bulbulo mat ro yahan, based on Darbari for the film Zeenat in 1944 that earned her the title
that stayed with her throughout her life and even after.
Talking of Darbari in Hindi films, there are scores of songs
composed in the Raga
One top of the mind song is O duniya ke rakhwaale from Baiju Bawara. And here is the beautiful rendition of the sargam of the
Raga by Ustad Amir Khan from the movie
And if there is one artist who has brought out the beauty of
this Raaga in various moods in Bollywood
music ever so beautifully through his songs it is Manna Dey
He brings out the beauty of the shringar rasa in this Shankar- Jaikishen composition
Bhakti/ Vairagya in this very beautiful one created by SM Tripathi..
Ud ja bhanvar Manna Dey, which is supposed to be classic demonstration of the -'ati
komal andolit gandhar'- a hallmark of Darbari
And surprisingly the raaga known for its serious demeanor
used so beautifully for comic / humorous mood in these two songs
Pyaar ki aag mein by SD burman
Lapak Jhapak from Boot Polish, composer: Shankar- Jaikishen
The Darbari has been beautifully used by AR Rahman for a couple
of his projects:
Acid Darbari , 127 hours
Raaga’s dance : This one was composed by ARR for Vanessa
Mae’s album Choreography
Passion from The Last temptation of Christ , composed by
Peter Gabriel, has Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan rendering some heartfelt Darbari
And lastly Shafqat’s most recent Bollywood song, Ras ke bhare tore main based on
Darbari for the movie Satyagraha, though perhaps not quite as impactful as the other Darbari that
he sung.
Kuch Ajab Khel Ke Katar ke, Shafqat says, is a kind of a
complaint or a shiqwa to the Almighty for His ways which are seemingly
unfair… and it is the Raag Darbari that
makes sure that this plaintive, disconsolate plea reaches right up to Him in
the heavens
