Journalism of Courage
During the two decades that he sang Urdu ghazals,Pandit Ramesh Narayan tried hard to figure out ways to come up with a soulful ghazal in the Malayalam language. After much research and experimentation,he hit bull’s eye by composing Parayan maranna,the ghazal sung by Hariharan in the 1996 Malayalam blockbuster Garshom. And that’s how Malayalam ghazals came into being. “Ghazals were always popular in Kerala but people would sing only Urdu or Hindi ghazals. No one tried singing them in Malayalam because of the technical difficulties. The language has its roots in Sanskrit and this makes it very difficult for lyricists to compose love ballads that fall within the genre of ghazals,” says Narayan,who will perform in Pune on July 21 at Acharya Atre Auditorium,Vallabhnagar.
Once the genre was developed and presented to the audience in South India,it received a great response. It is still a rage out there, adds the multi-talented musician who doubles as a composer and a vocalist. I have been a fan of Pakistani ghazal singer Mehdi Hassan. It was after listening to his soothing ghazals that I decided to sing something as soulful in my mother tongue. Then I started working on Malayalam ghazals with the help of friend and lyricist Vijay Sursen, he says.
Born into a family of Carnatic singers and musicians in Kuthuparambu near Kannur,Narayan got his basic training in Carnatic music. Soon after,his interest veered towards Hindustani classical music and this was when he was trained by Pandit Jasraj of the Mewati Gharana.
Encouraged with the success of his first attempt at Malayalam ghazals,Narayan further explored this genre. I have worked on similar songs with singers such as Shreya Ghoshal,Hariharan and Chitra,among others, he says. Apart from this,he even released an album of Malayalam ghazals titled Mridu Malhar in Abu Dhabi last year.
Narayan also stresses that in a Malayalam ghazal,the most important role is that of a lyricist. The words in this language are too big and the choice of the right words is very necessary, says Narayan,adding that many upcoming musicians in the South are adopting this style.
(Pandit Ramesh Narayan will be performing in Pune on July 21 at Acharya Atre Auditorium,Vallabhnagar)
