Commonalities And Diversity
Sarangi performers from Nepal and India show how commonalities bind them together
By A CORRESPONDENT
Divided by the political boundaries, there are many commonalities in culture, music and other social aspects between Nepal and India. Organized by Embassy of India and B.P. Koirala India-Nepal Foundation, the performers of special Sarangi concert showed the harmony between the two countries in music.
Performed by Hari Sharan Nepali and Shyam Sharan Nepali from Nepal and India’s renowned Sarangi performer Ghulam Waris, the two hour show performed in Hotel Yak and Yeti was extraordinary.
Waris has long relations with Sarangi as he is the 7 th generation scion of Sainia Gharana of Rampur India which traces the tradition of its music back to Mian Tansen, the legendary vocalist in the court of Mughal Emperor Akbar in the 16 th century. Apart from rendering innumerable solo performance at a young age, Ghulam Waris also performs in India and abroad.
Veteran Nepali Sarangi player, Hari Sharan Nepali has spent almost all his life learning and playing Sarangi, the only string instrument of Nepal, creating music, producing new varieties of the instrument and carrying out research. Thanks to his contribution, Sarangi is in forefront of Nepali music.
In contemporary modern music, Shyam Sharan Nepali has established Sarangi as an important component of Nepali music. When he performed at the show, he proved that Nepali Sarangi has capability to lure audiences. The sound of Sarangi is very compatible with other modern musical instruments also.
Along with performing at Hotel Yak and Yeti, they also performed concert in Bandipur Bazaar, Pokhara and Bhaktapur. At a time when modern musical instruments are gradually disappearing, this kind of show helps to revive the traditional music of Nepal and India.
The performance displayed at the exhibition showed that Sarangi has a unique quality to lure minds and hearts of music lovers. Although Sarangi is one of the oldest musical instruments of Nepal constantly touching the heart of rural folks, it is now coming to compete with commercialized market.
The musicians showed that there are no boundaries between them and they shared almost everything. In the last few years, B.P. Koirala India-Nepal Foundation has made very important contributions by inviting musicians from both the countries to remind cultural similarities between the two countries.
At the recital program inaugurated by Indian Ambassador to Nepal Shiv Shanker Mukherjee, Nepalese team led by Shyam Sharan Nepali performed some interesting Nepalese folk tunes Sarangi. Hari Shanker Nepali started the performance depicting the power of Nepali Sarangi.
High class and professionals, India’s team led by Ghulam Waris captivated the crowd sending them into a lull when he played with the strings of Sarangi. His colleagues backed him demonstrating the perfect Tabala play.
Sarangi is famous as a string instrument whose sound resembles human voice most closely. It is a traditional musical instrument common to both Nepal and India and has grown in each of the countries both independently and through constant interactions. Having roots in folk tradition, Sarangi has been featuring in music and dance performance in an accompanying role since centuries.
“This is my first performance in Nepal. I was really impressed by the response given by the crowd in different parts of Nepal. I found that Sarangi’s music penetrated the heart and mind of people,” said Waris.
Political relations between the two countries have seen many ups and downs but the commonalities of culture are always major assets to bring people of Nepal and India together. One cannot ignore these commonalities of culture.
