Niranjan Dindodi wove a rich tapestry of ragas

Niranjan Dindodi with Rohit Prasad (mridangam), Keshav Mohankumar (violin) and Sai Bharath (ganjira). , Photo Credit: Courtesy: Mudhra

Niranjan Dindodi ushered in both halves of his concert with interesting preludes that had a similar pattern. The young vocalist went for two fillers just ahead of his centrepiece. Thus, an unhurried Devagandhari and a breezy Saranga Malhar led up to the main suite in Bhairavi. As for the start, Bengaluru-based Niranjan chose a Sanskrit shloka in sedate Nilambari, which dovetailed into its parental Sankarabharanam and gained vitality.

The 150-minute kutcheri at Mudhra’s ongoing 30th festival kicked off on a peppy note. Darbar was a pleasant inception, with Niranjan’s nasal timbre adding to the raga’s bubbliness. Thiruvottiyur Tyagayyar’s‘Chalamela’ unfolded at standard speed after a brief alapana. The varnam unwittingly gained extra tempo, prompting mridangist Rohit Prasad to subtly rein in at the penultimate passage of the set notes. The intervention won appreciation from Keshav Mohankumar (violin) and Sai Bharath (ganjira) as well.

Muthuswami Dikshitar’s ‘Sankaramabhirami’was the second item. Disputes persist over the veracity of the less-heard raga, but Niranjan confidently coasted on to an array of kalpanaswaras with excellent support from the violinist.

An elaborate Anandabhairavi

A fairly detailed alapana welcomed Anandabhairavi. Punctuating the essay with soothing frills, quick-cut phrases and long-drawn notes, Niranjan emulated the aesthetics of his guru RK Shriramkumar. Like the Chennai-based senior instrumentalist, Niranjan traces his ancestry to the heritage village of Rudrapatna on the banks of the Cauvery in Hassan, Karnataka.

The meditative ‘O Jagadamba’ by Syama Sastri earned special enrichment through a detailed niraval around ‘Anni bhuvanambulu’ of the first charanam. Keshav’s responses tuned well with the vocalist’s sobriety. Together, they wove a cadent rally of six minutes. The subsequent swaraprastra reinforced teenaged Sai’s talent along with his ability to follow the lead percussionist.

Taking cue was a bold Kalyani alapana that warmed up to reciting ‘Pankaja lochana’ (in seven-beat mishra chapu). If apt emphasis on the keynotes defined the vocalist’s portrayal of the flowery raga, the rendition of the Swati Tirunal composition was suitably textbook-precise. A niraval at ‘Vrindavanada krita’ and the swaraprastra were flawless and made no attempt at flamboyance.

After Gopalakrishna Bharati’s ‘Enneramum’ in Devagandhari and ‘Srimahabala’ (Muthiah Bhagavatar) in Saranga Malhar, Niranjan rolled out a broad canvas to paint Bhairavi. Brigas rushed out effortlessly, gaining more vigor towards the top registers. In ‘Upacharamu’ (Tyagaraja), he skipped the niraval; instead, the vocal-violin combo generated a lengthy line-up of swaras. This climaxed with a fine tapestry steeped in sarvalaghu, setting the stage for the tani avarthanam — the percussive segment spanned 15 minutes.

Winding up, Niranjan decorated Purandaradasa’s ‘Venkatesha’ with a garland of melodies — Hamirkalyani and Kapi backed up the initial Khamas. Introducing the ragamalika was a six-line Kannada stanza in Mayamalavagowla, Shahana and Sindhubhairavi. A tastefully rendered lone tukkada sparkled.