Bajans (பஜனை ) Tamil month Margazhi

Now it is mid December and Karthigai deepam celebrated with usual pomp and bright lights. Slowly the chillness creeps in. I have started taking bath in hot water. Morning time there is fog and chill in the air. Woolen sweaters and mufflers stored inside taken out dusted and kept ready for use.

Margazhi month is arriving soon. So also the famous bajans.

What is a Bajan?

According to Wikipedia,

 A Bhajan is any type of Indian devotional song. It has no fixed form: it may be as simple as a mantra or kirtan or as sophisticated as the dhrupad or kriti with music based on classical ragas and talas. It is normally lyrical, expressing love for the Divine. The name, a cognate of bhakti, meaning religious devotion, suggests its importance to the bhakti movement that spread from the south of India throughout the entire subcontinent in the Moghul era.

The first Bajan I heard was during 1950s. Famous Thirupugazhmani, Sri. T.M.Krishnaswami Iyer, used to conduct bajan on every Friday at around 0700 PM. They used to sing various songs and go round Mylapore Mada Streets. That was where I first heard Sri Pithikuli Murugadoss songs. He used to sing in his usual beautiful voice with playing harmonium alongside. Even in those days Murugadoss was famous with his dark glasses and Bandana around his head and orange dress.

Then came the famous Mylapore Margazhi Bajans. Maragzhi, the Tamil month is called சூனிய மாதம் ( Evil month in Tamil ). Tamilians don’t conduct any good functions during the month. No wedding, no house warming, nothing good done. But in actual practice Maragzhi is the month we see so much divotional activities.people take out தேவாரம், திருவாசகம், திருப்பாவை, திருவெம்பாவை ( Devaram, Thiruvasagam, Thiruppavai, Thiruvembavai) from the puja room and there is hectivity pn the roads and side streets of Mylapore. We can see children singing and grown up reciting thiruppavai and thiruvambai, earnestly. Andal (Tamil: ஆண்டாள் Äṇţāḷ, an( 8th century or earlier) is the the only
female Alvar of the 12 Alvar saints of South India, who sang Thiruppavai. Thiruppavai, a collection of thirty verses in which Andal imagines herself to be a Gopi or cowherd girl during the incarnation of Lord Krishna. She yearns to serve Him and achieve happiness not just in this birth, but for all eternity, and describes the religious vows (pavai) that she and her fellow cowherd girls will observe for this purpose.

Most of us go to temple and on the whole there is more religious activity during the month then other months in Tamil calendar.

One of the important activity is BAJAN. Every day during the Margazhi month the bajans around Mylapore temple starts around 0500 am. The singers go round the four mada streets singings hymns. When I was young I used to get up in the morning hearing the songs. First bajan at 0500 am, then comes Srim Annaji Rao Bajan at 0530 and finally Sri Papanasam Sivam group around 0600 am. Each has got its own way of singing. Annaji Rao bajan, loud and vibrating Papanasam Sivan bajan soft melodious. With light glowing on the eastern sky and day becomes brighter the crowd swells and finally around 0700 am there used to be big crowd around each group. People used to hear one bajan and once it is over they move to the next enjoying the songs. So many eminent musicians used to perform. I saw other day in net the history of bajans and a picture of Papanasam Sivam in early 1930s. Seen, Sri.Papanasam Sivam even at his old age used o participate in bajans and atleast sing one or two favourite songs at the end of the rounds. He used to come and sit in a moda provided by some rasika and sing.The tradition started around 1920s, still going on uninterrupted with Papnansam Shivam’s daughter Rukmini and her son Ashok Ramani, following the practice and conduct the bajans.

The above picure was taken from internet from an article written by a sishya of Papanasam Sivam ( Sri Sivam standing second from left ). The following picture taken from the same site shows how Sri Ashok Ramani, follows the tradition

After that they used to distribute hot pongals which are always appreciated by public.

Then of course Music season starts in December. High and mighty of he Music world and also our local big wigs descend in Chennai for music season. When USA and western world shivers under the intense cold, like Europeans go to south of France for some respite from cold, Indians living there comes to India to escape the cold and also get warmth from weather and scintillating sweet music. The people throng the venue of music performances whether it is Music Academy hall or Naradha Gana Sabha, Krishna Gana Sabha. The seats fill up so quick mostly one has to be satisfied if he gets a standing space. Most also fix loud speakers out side, so every one can hear the music even if they cannot have the comfort of a seat.  I remember in 1950s Music academy used to conduct the performance (கச்சேரி) at the vast ground behind P.S.High School ( Where now P.S.Senior Secondary School is situated) under a tatched pandhal.With lot of sand and folding chairs. I remember the camera man used to sit on the top in a cradle like thing and film the performance.

Generally most of the persons start from home in the morning and return home around 1100 pm at night, tired but happy. The canteen in Music academy venue was famous and along with , who the musicians going to perform that day the menu in the canteen is equally given importance and discussed.

The tradition of music  is even now followed. Only difference is now even most of the musicians travels from USA and Europe to perform in this great tradition and make the month margazhi a prosperous one instead of a bad month

Mid 60s saw the emergence of Sai Bakthas and Sai bajans started sounding in lot of houses. With Puttaparthi Sai Baba becoming famous, most of the houses had bajans on Thursdays. In our house I went to first Sai Bajan in 1966 or 67 on Perambur and we also started Sai bajans on Thursdays.

With the advent of TV as an important media we have started hearing Bajans on various channels. In the recent years we are hearing so much bajans in sabhas and Televisions, performed by greats like,  Udayalur Kalyanaraman and Jai Krishna Baghavathar. JKB always remind me of Late Annaji Rao.

I see more and more people performing bajans and happy to see that the tradition of bajans are carried forward.

ஜாக்கிரதை, கண்ணுல கரி விழும்.

Recently I had an opportunity to travel by train from Chennai to Trichirappali, We were sitting in the Air-conditioned Chair Car and except for slight swaying of the train nothing much heard and we were talking in hushed tone since we did not want to disturb other passengers by our usual loud chattering.

Just in 1950s when we were young boys we always travelled this route. We used to go every summer in this route.So excited, we start planning in March itself for journey in mid April.

Ticket to Trichy was just around Rs.6/- (For me half ticket was Rs 3/-) by Third Class compartment. We never know there was some thing called reservation. Never seen so many crowds, like present day and mostly we go sitting in wooden bench. If there is no seat we never bothered, since we sit on biscuit tins brought by my grand mother packed with muruku or seedai or eatables. Mostly I traveled with my grand mother to Dalmiapuram (near Lalgudi) where my mother’s sister lived or toKandanoor where my mother other sister lived.No restriction from my grand mother regarding seating. She only says..

ஜாக்கிரதை, கண்ணுல கரி விழும். The present day people may not know what the meaning for this.

In those days trains were pulled by steam engines and for that they burn lot of coals. So they collect water in junctions and boil it in the engine and use the steam to run the rail engine to pull the train. Mostly in every junction the train engine will collect water from over head pipes and there will be enormouscollection of coal to burn. When the coal is burnt there will be small particles floating in air and will hit the eyes and make our eyes watery. That is why grandma used to warn us..

In acharappakkamthere will be vadai. We reach villupuram around noon and we try to get coffee.There will be a big rush before water tap where we have to collect drinking water. we never bought any meals in train and always pack a big lunch basket and lot of water in கூஜா . It usually took 10 hours to travel from Madras Egmore to reach Dalmiapuram, which was just 180 miles.

we children usuallywrite the names of all railway stations and see one by one going. in fact we know by heart whole list. Olakkur, Panjalam, Dindivanam like that. Middaysambar sadam and th sadam and evening idly. No sleep no rest. Just wondering when we will reach destination.

By the time the train crosses Virudachalam all our enthusiasm gone, tired, dirty, sweatyand some with darkened watery eyes. Finally when we reach the destination ataround 0800 pm we were so tired and sleepy, but happy.

Now we travel by air conditioned compartment, with snacks supplied by some one in train, use bottled water. no sweat, no bleary eyes, no tiredness due to heat, no rush to bring water, and aour seats are reserved and cool.

But with the nostalgic memory, I  long for those carefree days of train travelwith intervening stations with cool air and swaying trees.

My be our grand children may see bullet trains and write like me regarding electric engines and bottled waters.

But i can never forget those days and the slow moving trains and stately railway stations andcourteous railway staff... mmmm

VIPs in India

Recently I was in USAand was in Washington and also travelled to New York. It is always my nature to watch what is there unique and how it differs from India. In what way?

Of course the cleanliness and neat roads, cars following line discipline and absence of police men in every street corner directing traffic, I found one of the most important things the absence of visible VIPs. Except in New York, where United Nations is situated, where heads of States visit and travel along the streets regularly, I never heard a siren or red light mounted vehicle anywhere. Even in Washington DC where the President resides and where all powerful men criss cross the streets every day, I did not see a single police men directing any one or a car with siren going or red light flashing VIP travel. Heard only when President goes they go in convoy that too a part of the street is blocked from one corner to another corner. I just was wondering the way they do things. I was wondering where are all the VIPs?

In India what is a VIP? We say all those ex president, exministers, ex CMs, ex PMS and of course all ex bureaucrats. In other words all consider them self and become VIP. When Rajiv Gandhi was Prime Minister we started seeing long line of white Ambassador cars linign up behind his vehicle and all started buying White Ambassadors, at one ti the car manufacturer had a long wait list. Then the red light culture came and all started using Red revolving lights on the top of their car,whether it is lighted or not, open or covered, just to tell the road users and some innocent over worked policemen that the occupant is a VIP.In spite of various strictures passed by courts we continue to see so many red light mounted cars in the road, every day. Recently I saw news that Government contemplating bringing rules allowing all MPs to sport red light over their cars.

In Tamil there is pun for this word VIP, வேலை இல்லாத பயல். (Velai Illada Payal). That means a man without any work. We know most of us are in this category only. VIP

So when i came back to India i was just thinking. From the time I enter the airport , i saw the VIP. Some one with safari suit comes. immediately he is whisked away his passport stamped and some one carries his luggage. Except this man also wait for his checked baggage. I asked who he is. some one said he is a VIP.

So I came out and saw a car parked in a no parking zone and asked they said it is a VIP car. So I thought. OH. In India, who ever does all those not permitted for general public is a VIP.

The you go to and function, you get VIP Pass. You get VIP lounge.

Recently one of my friends said he wants to take his wife for treatment for some illness to Singapore. I asked why not in Chennai? He asked why Rajnikanth went to Mount Elizebeth, Singapore for treatment. There in Singapore, no VIP treatment to any one however mighty he may be. Once you book your appointment with doctor it goes like that on time with no interference from VIP visitors or no VIP treatment.

Even for cleaning your street of rubbish or filling potholes in roads either you should be a VIP or a VIP should reside in the street.

When we learn or try to learn some thing from west and ape every thing western, is it not prudent to follow the western VIP culture too?

The last I heard was there is a proposal to open a VIP Jail. Already in Bangalore. I heard there is jail with air conditioned cell, where EX CM was kept ( Taking rest, i feel). Now the investigation into 2G scam ceates more and more VIP under trials, I am sure more and more VIP jails will come up

Do we need these VIPS?