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‘Baithak to Bollywood’ with Shankar Mahadevan and Group

Raga, tala and bandish are the three pillars of Indian music. Of these, bandish is a comprehensive facet, encompassing not only elements of raga and tala but also lyrics. The aspect of lyrics sets apart vocal music from instrumental music, and due to the literal meaning attached to text, bandish plays an important role in a musical exposition. Furthermore, bandish innately incorporates within itself, elements that can be improvised upon. Thus, outwardly what could be seen as a mere song, transforms into a full-fledged musical story.

The contours of bandish vary with genres. From pure classical (art music) and semi-classical music to devotional, light and popular music, the form, idiom and treatment of bandish differs on account of varying emphasis placed on raga, tala and lyrics in each of these music forms. Added to this is the element of aesthetics that governs the individual genre. The genre specific exploration of bandish requires a performer to have an in-depth training and understanding of its aesthetics.

‘Baithak to Bollywood’ is a collage of genres comprising those associated with intimate small gathering of connoisseurs (baithak or mehfil) as well as popular forms favoured by masses at large. Endowed with an exceptionally versatile background in music, Shankar Mahadevan takes us on a delightful journey from ‘Baithak to Bollywood’, essentially exploring the beauty of bandish in numerous forms from kriti, padam, bhavgeet, abhang, ghazal to sufi, folk and film song.