That is Govindu, the travelling singer! Perhaps he is descended from those wandering bards of bygone days! Or maybe he is from the family of minstrels coming to the city in search of a better livelihood! He is from Andhra, staying in 'Urapakkam' a southern suburb, away from the hustle-bustle of metropolitan Chennai. Does he belong to the Chenchu tribe; or is he from Jangama tribe or Dasari tribe?
With the harmonium hanging from his shoulder, he moves along these residential streets of this part of the city once in a month, perhaps. (It may be more than a month also many times.)
A voice that needs no mic, resonating with devotion(Bhakthi) and gently sails with the wind to reach my ears in the morning.
He came this morning , after about a month and half; a lazy and quiet morning just before the usual vendors would fill the air with their sing song calls. Here I was contemplating on the design of the 'kolam' the kolam powder leaving my fingers in flashes of white lines and curves; the rich timbre of that voice calling 'Vittala' from the other end of the street, moving the length of the street to gently nudge me!
I paused my kolam; hurried down the steps to see him in front of our apartment. With just a slight flicker of his eye balls and a subtle lift to face me, he was able to communicate the message that he knew me. Who? The person as the one connected to his last trip here or the person from that particular balcony or another soul who loved the sounds, the music? Later he told me that he remembered my daughter talking with him.
He played the harmonium for a few minutes and turned towards the opposite house. That is when I asked a meaningless question, " Why don't you sing?" Once again with the turn of his head and a quick glance, he conveyed something! Was he trying to point out the meaninglessness of my question? He was singing and moving from the other corner of the street and the street was reverberating with his music for the last 15 minutes. He would continue with his songs anyway. So why did I need to ask him? He has been handed down this music from some distant past and the only way he knows is to share it with other beings and communicate with them through that music. You see the way he shows up for this activity. With the dhoti tied in a particular way, his forehead adorned with Vibhuti (the sacred ash) head held high and with complete dedication he sings.
The music, unrestrained by any grammar, the Bhakthi flowing out in bhajans and Abhang is not his alone. He carries within his voice and music, generations of such music; the sounds fill the air and the ears receive them. All the beings, are in sync with the flow.
I got back to my routines? Did I really? I was immersed in the experience of the music, the tradition of wandering minstrels and Govindu's voice for more than half of the day. I was once again in the Global summit session with my mentor, Bhavana. Brimming with passion, her voice was asking me to observe the continuously repeating patterns ; to stay in the territory, explore and ponder.
I am contemplating on 'SANKOFA' (Go way back and get) .
From where have we modelled the notes(swaras ) that combine to create beautiful sound? All the sounds in nature - the gentle rustle of leaves, the slow waking up of different birds with their calls, the still hot day, the hungry calls of the fledglings and many more - create a symphony. The silence in the open space, the underlying shruti binding all sounds - isn't that the beginning of all music!
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