Vocalist Balwant Singh Namdhari on the healing power of music and the legacy of a small village in Punjab
Written by Sameer Manekar
Like every other child in the small village of Bhaini Sahib in Punjab, Balwant Singh Namdhari began learning music at a young age. He attributes his attraction towards music to the rich legacy of his family and the encouragement of Satguru Jagjit Singh, the legendary vocalist and dilruba player of the Namdhari gharana. He performed at the 66th Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav in Pune on December 14. Namdhari says, “It is one of the biggest music festivals in the country. We have been hearing of it since our childhood, and it is a privilege and a dream come true to perform at the festival. Also, I feel very honoured and fortunate to perform on the same day as Pandit Kashalkarji, one of the greatest vocalists whom I admire very much. It is my great fortune to play on the same stage as him.”
Bhaini Sahib is the centre of the Namdhari sect. Everyday, the village, located in the district of Ludhiana, wakes up to the melody of gurbani kirtan at 4 am, sung by children and adults to the strings of dilruba, sitar, and the beats of pakhawaj. Every child learns to play classical instruments or undergoes vocal training.
“I began learning under the mentorship of Ustad Mohan Singhji and Bibi Narinder Kaurji. After that Satguruji saw something in me, and began teaching me bandishes of Talwandi gharana which he himself had learnt from his mentor, Ustad Udho Khanji and Ustad Rahim Bakhshji,” says Namdhari. After learning compositions of the Talwandi gharanas, Namdhari learnt many traditional gurbani compositions from Ustad Harbhajan Singh of Jaipur gharana, disciple of late Pandit Mahadev Prasad, as well as sitar from the maestro Ustad Vilayat
Hussain Khan and santoor from Ustad Harjinderpal Singh.
This process of learning from different classical gharanas was Satguruji’s attempt to reinvigorate the gharanas that were losing their prominence after the bloody partition of India in 1947. “The best students to the stalwarts of other gharanas, like Ustad Vilayat Khan, Ustad Allah Rakha Khan, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Pandit Rajan Mishra, Pandit Ram Mishra, and many others,” says Namdhari.
While the issue of drug addiction vexes Punjab, Namdhari, being a teacher, believes in the magic of music. “There is a saying in our sect that music is the food of God. If music becomes your food, you will never be distracted in life. Music is the best medicine of all. We believe that music along with sports can play an important role in shaping a person. If you come to Bhaini Sahib, you will find big stadiums, tennis courts, sports academies; sports and music give peace to mind and body. If you focus on any of these two, you would not move towards anything bad in life, you just cannot,” he adds.
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