Vasudha Ravi and Vidya Kalyanaraman’s Gokulasthami concert highlighted the myriad facets of Krishna

Vidya Kalyanaraman and Vasudha Ravi with Violinist Bombay Madhavan, B. Ganapathyraman on the mridangam and N. Sundar on the morsing and tabla.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Vasudha Ravi and Vidya Kalyanaraman collaborated recently for their Gokulashtami special thematic concert, ‘Colours of Krishna’, hosted by Hamsadhwani. Their musical offering was a blend of conceptual depth, narrative clarity, and melodic excellence, painting a vivid and alluring picture of Krishna’s multifaceted persona.

The chemistry between Krishna and colours is a captivating one, beginning with His name, which means black or dark blue. The golden crown, peacock feather, jewels and gems adorning him , Vanamala, flute, and the yellow attire are just a few examples of his flamboyant physical attributes.

‘Vanna maadangal’ (colourful mansions) is how Periyazhwar begins the chapter describing Krishna’s birth, which, he says, triggered in the neighbourhood, wild celebrations like spilling oil and turmeric powder on one another. This, perhaps, is the origin of Holi, the festival of colours.

Vasudha and Vidya presented 12 songs in eight languages — Sanskrit and Tamil (three each), Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Brij and Malayalam. The first part showcased Krishna’s myriad traits such as sweetness, naughtiness, leaving gopikas longing for his love, tackling Radha’s fake anger and being a garland of radiant gems. The second half highlighted his roles such as the saviour, flautist, majestic bridegroom, charmer, omnipresent being and the heartthrob.

Steeped in bhakti

The recital opened with ‘Madhurashtakam’ in which Vallabhacharya extols Krishna as the embodiment of sweetness. The singers rendered the hymn with devotional fervour and serenity. However, it is worth noting that while many versions have it as ‘Madhuradhipathe’ in the fourth line, the correct phrasing should be ‘Mathuradhipathe’ (the chief of Mathura, the city).

Oothukadu Venkata Kavi is an automatic choice for the theme and his ‘Neethaan mechikolla venum’ in Sriranjani describes Yasodha’s exasperation in dealing with Krishna’s mischiefs. The author quotes the foster mother as saying that one minute of Krishna’s pranks seemed like an aeon. The lively swara exchanges at the pallavi line were in tune with the tone of the song.

Shift in mood

The Meera Bhajan ‘Saadho saadho’ in Ahirbhairav brought out the cowherd girls’ craving for Krishna. An evocative shloka in Mukhari came up next as a prelude to the Ashtapadi ‘Vadasi yadi kinchidapi’ in the same raga. Krishna coaxes a sullen Radha by addressing her ‘Priye, charuseele’ (O my love! O my virtuous one) and attempts to patch up with her. The lilting Annamacharya kriti in Chenjurutti ‘Muddugare yasodha’, which compares Krishna’s acts to an array of gems of varied hues, provided a contrasting mood.

Vidya and Vasudha shared a brief alapana of Subhapantuvarali before rendering Purandaradasa’s ‘Neene anadhabandhu’. It was a poignant exploration of Krishna’s stature as the ultimate refuge, echoing the message of surrender from the Bhagavad Gita. (‘Maam ekam saranam vraja’ — surrender unto me only). The niraval and swara exchanges at ‘Gati neene Krishna’ underlined the raga’s emotional depth, further enriching the presentation.

The duo then captured Krishna’s mesmerising ways with the bamboo, presenting Bhanu Dasa’s gavlan abhang ‘Vrindavani venu’ in raag Bhimplasi, with verve.

Vibrant tani

After alternately delineating another raga, this time Kamboji, the artistes sang a shloka as a prelude to Narayana Tirtha’s Kalyana Tarangam ‘Alokaye rukmini kalyana gopalam’. It depicts Krishna as a bridegroom in all his splendour. A crisp swaraprastaram in two kalam at ‘Dwarakapura mandape’ was followed by an energetic thani by B. Ganapathyraman on the mridangam and N. Sundar on the morsing, with the latter donning a double role (tabla) in the concert.

Violinist Bombay Madhavan consistently matched the vocalists with mellifluous notes, while the percussion partners’ rhythmic strokes enhanced the concert overall.

A Surdas bhajan on rasleela in Brij ‘Gopi gopala bala’ in Gamanasrama; ‘Kaakkai siraginile’ by Bharatiyar in Brindavana Saranga (expressing Krishna’s omnipresence); Lalgudi Jayaraman’s Madhuvanthi thillana; and ‘Krishna krishna mukunda janardhana’ by Poonthanam Nambudiri in Yamuna Kalyani offered further variety at the back end of a memorable concert.