With two popular Bollywood songs in their kitty, the band has just come up with its second album, “Kabir Café Live” – a compilation of their popular numbers. The band, which includes MukundRamaswamy on violin, Raman Iyer on mandolin and Viren Solanki on drums, performed in the city over the weekend at the Kabir Bhajan Sandhya in Central Park of Connaught Place. Here, lead vocalist, Neeraj Arya, tells us what makes them tick.
How is Kabir relevant for young people today?
Kabir is as relevant today as he was when he wrote in the 15th century. I feel Kabir should also be taught as a separate subject in schools. Children should know what he stood for. When I was young, I was told that I should not play with kids of a certain community. From a very young age, a child is exposed to the social divisions that exist in our society. If they read Kabir, children will be able to counter divisive thoughts.
What is your process?
We play a mix of Indian and western instruments. As for the verse, we remain true to the voice of the saint. Our guru is acclaimed folk singer Prahlad Singh Tipaniya. He has a mine of folk tunes which have been passed down through the oral tradition. We draw from them and with a little tweaking try to make them appealing to the youth of the metros. We call it folk fusion. Like we had made certain changes to the traditional ‘Amrit vaani’ and now call it ‘Kabir rock Amrit vaani’: popular couplets such as ‘Saain itna dijiye jaame kutumb samaye, main bhi bhooka na rahoon, sadhu bhi bhooka na jaye’ have been adapted to contemporary tastes.
How do urban audiences react?
People often say they have found the real meaning of what they mugged up in class for marks. In between, I make an attempt to translate the lines written in Avadhi and Brij to bring out the essence. It works really well. Students find our songs, particularly ‘Mohe kahan dhoonde re bande, main to tere paas hoon’, helpful in overcoming depression. In fact, this song has become our signature. The last line is ‘Kahat Kabir suno bhai saadho, main toh hoon vishwas main’. I think it strikes a spiritual chord with the materialistic generation.
Tell us about the experience of playing at different events
You would be surprised to know that we are called for childbirth celebrations and weddings. We have played at 200-odd weddings. Apparently, they find our music soothing. Recently, we played at a high-profile wedding in Bangkok. You might find it strange that during the marriage rituals I was singing the folk song “Zara Halke Gaadi Haanko” the last line of which goes “Bilakh bilakh kar triya(woman) rove, bichhad gayi meri jodi, Kahat Kabir sun bhai saadho jin jodi un todi.” It talks about the impermanence of human bonds. People danced to it! It is an important reminder that nothing lasts forever.
The album is available on songdew.com