PUNE, March 25: Silence may be golden, but not when it comes to renowned Hindustani vocalist maestro, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. A fracture and two major surgeries that have plagued him since 1996 have seen him out of the live performance circuit for a good three years, including the prestigious annual winter festival, the Sawai Gandharv.But the indomitable Panditji is back again, to regale his audience with his inimitable voice and style, at the Renuka Swarup Girls' High School grounds, this Sunday. And quite aptly, the Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal, which organises the Sawai Gandharv, has hosted this special programme.Says mandal trustee Rambhau Joshi: ``We will felicitate Pandit Bhimsen Joshi for having received the Padmavibhushan award recently. Along with him S P Godrej, recipient of the Padmabhushan award, will also be felicitated. But before he left for Delhi, we requested Panditji to give a public performance in Pune, now that he had recuperated. He agreed much to our delight.''Since the last six months, Joshi says Panditji has been doing his riyaz for three to four hours a day, to get back on the public platform once again. In a touching and noble gesture, the Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal, has organised a special programme of Panditji, who has been an integral part of the organisation since its inception 46 years back.Well-acclaimed and budding artists who swoop down to Pune for the Sawai Gandharv festival make it a point to pay obeisance to Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. Also, until three years back, Panditji who travels widely in the country, for live classical programmes, has been spotting young talent and inviting them for performing at the Sawai Gandharv.For four decades, Bhimsen Joshi's performance has always been the grand finale to the three-day Sawai Gandharv festival. A rich tradition was broken, when in 1996, Bhimsen Joshi was not able to perform due to a fracture.Last year, Panditji underwent two operations - one, for ulcers and another for a brain tumour, reveals Joshi. This had made him very weak. But, quite admirably, he is back again.Sunday's performance, which will begin at 7.30 p m will last for one and a half hour and is open to the public, free of charge. The well known Renuka Swarup Girls' High School grounds is located in the vicinity of S P College, on Tilak Road.When his mellifluous voice resonates the sprawling grounds of the school and the music-loving Puneites reciprocate with wahs and nods, it could well be another episode of mile sur mera tumhara, to sur bane hamara.
