Oh Guruji !!! My Guruji......

A tribute from a humble student Sadanand Naimpalli Oh! Guruji, my Guruji!….. Where does one begin when talking of a personality whose dimensions transcend earthly proportions?Indeed,words fail me and all that I am left with is a big lump in my throat.Try clearing it and the eyes well up, bringing to mind vivid memories of my studentship with Guruji. It was as an impressionable ten year old that I had my first “Darshan”of Pandit Taranathji,then known to me only as “Taar-maam”.It was because of a friend of mine,who had already started taking lessons in Tabla,that I chanced to go to Guruji’s house.From the very first day,he so enamoured me with his genial and affable persona and his paternal way of teaching children, that I began to attend his classes everyday,that too, 3-4 hrs a day.This was the case with most other youngsters who were learning Tabla.It did not cross my mind then what a strain it can be on one’s ears and nerves to have six to seven boys banging away on Tablas,unmindful of the din and chaos they were creating.But,thinking back now,I’m amazed at Guruji’s patience and his instinct in spotting and correcting a wayward student or encouraging one who was laggigng behind.Not only this,he used to sit and play the “Lehra”on his tiny harmonium,literally drawing out the best in all of us.And,I’m sure,as with me,all other students would be thrilled when he uttered “Shabash”. There came a time after about a year or so,when the wonderful game of cricket became an obsession with me,and as with most youngsters of my time,I would participate in friendly matches,which would extend beyond the set time and impinge on my Tabla classes.It came to such a head that I started missing out on my classes,although it was against my conscience.But, kids have their priorities and as with any kid of that age,playing with friends,that too,in the close- knit society of Talmakiwadi , was something I could not resist.Then one day at 9:00pm there was a knock on the door and lo and behold!there was Guruji.I was so taken aback and struck with a guilt complex that I stood staring at him.But when he began speaking and enquiring about me and my unexplained absence from the Tabla classes, I just started crying.It was then that he said in his own inimitable way “ Why have you stopped attending the classes Son? Don’t do that.Who knows,this [Tabla] may be of some help to you in your future.”How prophetic his words sound now! Indeed, what an act of greatness! A Guru going to his Shishya to find out the reasons for his absence! From that day onwards, there was a special bonding between me and Guruji – a higher plane of intellectual rapport which only ended with his demise,or should I say Maha Samadhi. A true artist in every sense of the word, Guruji excelled in every sphere.He had come to Bombay from Mangalore with the intention of joining the J.J.School of Arts . Sketching and painting being his forte then, he did graduate from the Institute with Distinction . However, Tabla fascinated him so much, that, most of his waking hours were spent learning the art from great masters or entertaining and providing princely hospitality to leading musicians.It is a wellknown fact that most of the famous musicians of today have partaken of Guruji’s munificence in his better days . How many of them remember those days is a question best left unasked ! Pt. Dinkar Kaikini was once reminiscing about Guruji—“Whenever something novel appeared in Bombay’s shops, one would at once see it in Taar-maam’s house.The next time you visit him, that thing would be missing! Why? Because Taar-maam had given it away to somebody who took a fancy for it !” Guruji was an excellent technician. It was a wonderful sight to watch him stitching and tacking while making his incomparable “Rings and Covers”, or sawing ,planing and fixing wooden panels while making “Radio-Gram” and huge “speaker” cabinets , or cutting and dicing vegetables while helping dear Maami cook her delectable “Biryanis”! Whenever we mentioned to Maami how good her dishes tasted, she would , in all humility point to the ‘Gourmet’ Guruji , giving him the credit for teaching and inspiring her.It was a lesson to watch him packing loads of clothes and other paraphernalia in valises with meticulous care and precision. It would need a complete volume to enumerate Guruji’s artistic qualities. Guruji was a touchstone who completely transformed the personality of anyone who came into contact with him. Innumerable are his students spread all over the world to whom he not only taught Tabla but also instilled in them the need to become good human beings.It must be seen to be believed , the esteem and regard with which his American and European students hold him.These students whose own parents leave them to fend for themselves, found in Guruji a person who gave them a sense of family and belonging. Guruji and ‘Mommy’, as the American students called her became their foster parents , as it were. Thus it is that all of us Gurubandhus are continuing , each in his own way , to propagate Guruji’s ideals:-- to create and teach good music and above all to become good human beings. It is a proud day for all of us, his students and a legion of admirers and well-wishers that the Kanara Saraswat Association has decided to honour Guruji by displaying his portrait in the hallowed portals of Srimad Anandashram Hall—in the company of other leading personalities who have enriched the Chitrapur Saraswat community in particular and the World community at large. It would be appropriate to recall the immortal words of the great Physicist, Dr. Albert Einstein—“Generations to come will scarcely believe that such a man, in flesh and blood walked the earth!” Saashtang Pranams to you my Guruji, my God! JAI GURU ..