This tiger roared music
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Despite abundant talent, Arjunsa Nakod, the doyen of Gwalior-Kirana gharana, never attained the fame his contemporaries did. But there was never an iota of bitterness in him.
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Even through rough and trying times, Arjunsa Nakod never lost heart. -- Photo: Courtesy M. Sreedhara Murthy
I WAS on a visit to Hubli for my regular lessons with Pandit Arjunsa Nakod. This time I vowed to get this doyen of Gwalior-Kirana gharana, a man of very few words to talk, and so, mentally I framed my questions. I must say I was successful.
Arjunsa is the father of four illustrious sons, each of them a master in his own right; Pandit Raghunath Nakod, Pandit Balachandra Nakod, Vishwanath Nakod, and Rajendra Nakod. Arjunsa was known among the music circles as a `true gentleman' who encouraged youngsters and had great respect for his peers, senior artistes, regardless of their background.
Born in Bettgeri in 1928, he had a brief training from Krishna Buwa. The legendary Panchakshari Gawai heard about the young boy's musical talents, and got Arjunsa to come to Gadag. Reminiscing this turning point in his life, he had said: "When I sang "Neer Bharan" in Tilak-Kamod before Panchakshari ajjaru, he was overwhelmed and said that I had a bright future, and insisted that I should go to him to pursue music. My parents, though reluctant at first, agreed to let go of their ambition to see me as a school teacher and so I was on my journey to become a musician."
Panchakshari Gawai belonged to Gwalior gharana and used to run a musical drama company, Sri Kumareshwara Natya Sangha. He travelled from place to place, putting up his musical shows and was accompanied by young ArjunSa, who learnt music as well as acting. Barely a couple of months into his training, at the Belli Mahotsava of a Dharwad mutt, Arjunsa sang a couple of vachanas and immediately shot into fame for his eloquent rendition. There was no looking back since. He became an extremely popular singer-actor, and came to be addressed by the role he played, Mallikarjuna. His wife Anusuya joked about the female characters he played saying: "All my good saris were used up by him more than me!"
Camp life was gruelling as the shows ran late into the night and days began early; music lessons would start only late in the afternoon. Arjunsa affectionately recalled: "Panchakshari Gawai was a fatherly figure, he always taught while tabla was being played alongside so that students could master the laya aspects too."
Having had an extensive training from Panchakshari Gawai, Arjunsa started learning from Pandit Puttaraj Gawai, after the death of Panchakshari Buva, a renowned musician and also the spiritual head of the Veereshwara Punyashrama for blind children at Gadag. Soon Arjunsa was running his own Vasant Kala Natya Sangha, staging plays all over the state, while he continued giving classical recitals all over the country. Being the sole breadwinner, he had to forego many a concert, because of conflicting schedules. His wife puts it humbly: "He never had to much fame or wealth; he earned just enough to run his family and the drama troupe. While he ran the show, I would work behind the scenes, preparing meals for the troupe and looking after the kids."
Great performer
Arjunsa enthralled his audiences wherever he performed and had earned the name huli (tiger) by his fans for his reverberant voice and powerful rendition. He was at the peak of his career, when one fine day, he realised that a drink offered to him had caused problems for his voice. Slowly his voice began to fail and he was forced to cut down on his performances. He searched high and low for a remedy and after multiple surgeries, he realised that the cyst in his voice box was not getting cured. Through such rough and trying times, Arjunsa did not lose heart; he put all his attention on teaching, and went on to start the Renuka Sangeet Vidyalaya in 1965.
He believed in sincerely imparting knowledge to anyone who knocked on his door, never once expecting that it would be remunerative. Resident disciples would stay with him in the true guru-shishya tradition, and those who could not afford to pay in cash, did offer some service as gurudakshina.
In the nineties, he started visiting Bangalore and taught a number of local students. More than his own, Arjunsa had now begun to draw satisfaction from performances of disciples. Prominent among them are Pandit Balachandra Nakod, Hanumanth Rao Gonwar, Sadashiv Aiholi, D.S. Siddaramu (clarionet), Jayateerth Mevundi, Ravindra Sogavi, and many others.
He was greatly impressed by Pandit Basavaraj Rajguru, Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur and Ustad Amir Khan for their unique styles. Arjunsa always maintained that good music deserves appreciation, and one should be open to pickup good aspects from others' music. Truly untouched by artistic rivalry or by competition, this Sangeeta Ratna was a sensitive, scholarly and well-respected musician among peers, music lovers and critics alike. Among the many awards that he has won, the Sangeet Natak Academy award, the Karnataka State Rajyotsava award, Sangeeta Sudhakara award are a few. As Arjunsa poured out that fortunate day, it seemed like the motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar's lessons on positive attitude were there in front of me in flesh and blood. Even after all the hardships, loss of voice, there was not an iota of bitterness, and the radiant smile on his lips never faded. He was marked by an inner peace and tranquillity.
High Note is a fortnightly column that features musicians of the State. Send in responses to Friday Review,
The Hindu, 19&21,
Bhagwan Mahaveer Road,
Bangalore 560001.
SMITA BELLUR
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