Grooming kirtankars

In the melee of a slew of courses and activities that are on offer for the young and old, a Kirtan Mahavidyalya too is flourishing in Khare Town area of the city. The 27 students presently enrolled here are doing graduation and post graduation in the art of singing kirtans.
Formed in 2001 and affiliated to Kavi Kulguru Kalidas Sanskrit Mahavidyalay at Ramtek, the school has a faculty of six who initiate the students into the intricacies of voice culture and modulation, diction and a bit of singing.The annual fee charged is Rs 5000.
Kirtans are an integral part of the Maharashtrian ethos. Beginning from the Hindu month of Ashad till Hanuman Jayanti, which falls on Chaitra purnima in the month of April, kirtans are sung at different temples of the city. Depending upon the season, kirtan utsavs are held on the occasions of Ashadi Ekadashi, guru purnima, in the month of Shravan, during the Ganapati utsav, Navratri, khojagiri, in the Hindu month of Kartik on Ekadashi, Dutt Jayanti, and the 13-day festivities which mark Shivaratri.
Kirtans are different from the regular singing of Bhajans, explains Dilip Dabir, the principal of Kirtan Mahavidyalya. Describing this genre as a mix of spiritual knowledge and entertainment, he says that kirtans were popularized by Sant Namdev in the 12{+t}{+h} century. "Kirtans are philosophy laced with devotion and can only be sung and presented by those who have had some sort of spiritual encounters with the almighty," he adds.
Dabir informs that the school was set up under the chairmanship of the late Ram Shewalkar, the well-known Marathi literary giant. "The board of studies formulated a syllabus prescribing a three-year graduation course and a two-year post graduation course."
Dabir says that almost every aspect of kirtan is taught at this institution. "A kirtankar should have philosophical knowledge, should know music of all types, and should have studied literature, scriptures, mythology, Vedas and puranas. We teach all this along with all forms of music from an abhang to light classical and all kinds of literature too which includes knowledge of the Vedas and also modern literature," he says.
There are different styles in which kirtan is presented. The varkari style does not have a story but is only a discussion about principles and good conduct. It is the form started by varkari saint Namdev. In this type there is only one singer. The rashtriya kirtan was popularized by Balgangadhar Tilak and narrates the lives of patriots. "What we teach is the Naridya kirtan. Here the kirtankar represents Narad muni. He keeps standing and is accompanied by two musicians." The content for this course is drawn from Bhagwad Gita, Haripaath, shat shlokas of Shankaracharya, Raja Bhartu Hari Maharaj's Neeti Shatak and Vairagya Shatak.
Explaining the significance of kirtans in modern society, Dabir says, "Values, culture good behaviour, importance of relationships and principles of humanity are all learnt through kirtans. It also deals with the vices of society."
There are 21-year-olds as well as those in their 60s who have enrolled in this school to learn the art of singing kirtans. Dabir says that he wants to groom kirtankars whose kirtans would have good music, quality sermon, a bit of theatrics and would be a mix of philosophy and international study. "It is said that when sant Namdev sang kirtans, God would dance. I dream of that quality of kirtankars emerging from this institution."
Mastering the art of singing kirtan equips a person in many respects. But the process of becoming a kirtankaar is a wee bit long drawn. It is perhaps for this reason that there is increasingly an effort to initiate young kids into the chanting of Ram Raksha Stotra. Mrunmayee Kulkarni, who is a teacher at Kirtan Mahavidyalay, says that now collective chanting of Ram Raksha Stotra is being practised in many temples and even schools to make children learn it. "It is a sidha mantra and continuous chanting of the shlokas improves the diction and phonetics. There is a cadence to these shlokas which is followed while chanting the stotra. This aids memorizing and improves the voice quality. It also inculcates the right sanskars in a child, and introduces him to our rich spiritual heritage."