Gandhian devotion

Usha Gokani (in the picture),granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi,was five when she began listening to the melodious bhajans at the Sabarmati Ashram. She could never forget the dulcet deliveries. Gandhi,who was a stickler for time and loved order in his life,would have these devotional songs sung at five sharp,both in the morning and evening,everyday. “These bhajans have stayed with me. There was something about the way they were sung. I’ve never come across bhajans which sounded quite like that again. It was deeply spiritual,” says Gokani,who is the daughter of Ramdas and Nirmala.With the launch of Sabarmati Ke Sur this week,Gokani is attempting to recreate the bhajans she heard as a child. The bhajans in the album have been selected from the Ashram Bhajanavali,a book compiled by singer Narayan Moreshwar Khare,which essentially are songs by great saints from Kabir to Meera. Khare was the designated singer during prayer time at the ashram,and also accompanied Gandhi on the historical Dandi march. “The bhajans were always secular. Gandhi believed in ‘Sarva Dharma Sambhava’,” she says.

Though Gokani has always wanted to do something about preserving the bhajans,her biggest hurdle was that she could not find anyone who could match the voice of Khare. Recently,singer Madhavi Nanal dropped by for a performance at Mani Bhavan and Gokani was blown away by her voice and roped her in. The CD comes with a booklet which gives a chronological break-up of key moments in Gandhi’s life,as well as English translations of the bhajans. Sabarmati Ke Sur will be launched today .