Good vibes & great music from a master

PUNE: A chat with the

Kirana gharana

exponent Anand Bhate makes it evident how much of an influence his guru, the late Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, has had on Bhate’s life.


“Bhimsenji spoke through his personality. When he would teach me and the others, he would not speak much about his music. But he would sometimes have a few one-liners, which had a lot of meaning, and have stayed with me ever since. He told everyone of us that we should give more than 100% in every mehfil, and his honesty is his music is something I also found while accompanying him on the tanpura,” a soft-spoken Bhate, who will perform at Times Celebrate Pune festival on Wednesday, told TOI.

As an example, he goes back to his performance on the final day of the 2017

Sawai Gandharva

Bhimsen Mahotsav, where his scintillating performance had the audience clamouring for more, past his allotted time.

Those requests reached a fever pitch after his rendition of Bhagyada Laxmi Baramma, a bhajan in Kannada, which Joshi had made popular during his days.

Politely declining the requests, he cited his guru and told the audience, “Panditji always told me that you must give a great presentation within your allotted time, and the content should be such that both you and the audience should be satisfied.”

On Wednesday, Bhate will present a set titled Swara Ananda, which will feature an eclectic selection of bhajans, abhangas, natya sangeet, as well as classical music. He will also interact with the audience, speaking about music and his journey, and he will conduct it in Hindi, anticipating a diverse audience.

Till about six years ago, Bhate juggled between his career as a software engineer, working with a city-based firm, and his music. But even there, he spoke fondly of how his guru encouraged him to continue on both fronts.

“It was a bit tricky sometimes. Time management was always an issue. I would have to do concerts only on weekends. But when I was pursuing my MTech, Panditji would encourage me to pursue academics along with music. He would proudly proclaim to people that I was studying to be software engineer. Thankfully, the company I worked for supported me,” Bhate said.

A prodigy by the age of 10, Bhate, was conferred the title of Anand Gandharva.

He drew inspiration from Bhate Buva, and is also a National Awardee honoured for his playback singing in the 2011 film Balgandharva. Ever the humble artist, he credited his musical upbringing, as well as the cast and crew, for his award.

“I have been listening to the songs of Balgandharva since childhood and sung it at mehfils. But singing in concerts is one thing, and playback singing is another. But hats off to Subodh (Bhave), who played the part, and consequently, many people got to know natyasangeet. The National Award was the icing on the cake,” he said.

For the up-and-coming artists and music students, he has one piece of advice- patience.

“Classical music is something you have to practice for years. One has to be fortunate to have good guru. You cannot learn classical music using books or on the internet. You need to have patience for hours and hours of riyaaz. That is what you need to provide joy to yourself and your audience,” Bhate said.

Entry to the event is free and on a first-come first-seat basis.


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