This interview was first published in December 2017. It is being republished in view of Pandit Birju Maharaj's death on 17 January, 2022.
*
Whenever Kathak is talked about, the first name that comes to the mind is that of Pandit Birju Maharaj. With a lineage of seven generations (known) and many awards, titles, and accolades honouring the Kathak maestro, Brijmohan Nath Mishra (shortened to Birju) continues to be one of the brightest beacons of the Indian classical dance form.
The 79-year-old Padma Vibhushan was in Mumbai recently for the finale of the dance competition, Kalashram Kathak Contest 2017, held on 21 December at the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA). Firstpost caught up with Birju during the rehearsals for the event.
Birju was born in 1938 to a family of Kathak devotees and performers. He belongs to the iconic Kalka-Bindadin gharana of Lucknow. His uncles — Lachchu Maharaj and Shambhu Maharaj — were stalwarts of Kathak in India then, and were part of many Bollywood films of that era.
Kathak literally translates into 'the one who tells kathas (stories),' and hence a lot of emphasis is given to the lyrical scale of the composition — which can be a thumri, bhajan or bol. About his lineage, Birju says, "My grandfather, Bindadin Maharaj, had written and composed around 5000 thumris, bhajans. He would set the song to a tune as and when he wrote it. All his compositions bore his signature trademark 'bindadin' as a reference akin to the dohas of Kabir. Earlier, we used to have those compositions, but with time termites infested (the papers) and we had to throw them in the Gomti river with a sad heart. But since my amma remembered the verses, as did some students, I learnt them and wrote down whatever I heard from them. So far, I have been able to document around 300 of those compositions."
And so he carried on the legacy. "I grasped the beauty of the katha (the internal story of the composition). Both my uncles were gifted; my father (Acchan Maharaj) was also immensely talented. He was the emperor of rhythms, so I learnt the nuanced rhythmic patterns from him. From Lachchu Maharaj and Shambhu Maharaj, I received the bhaav ki taaleem (tutelage of expression)," Birju says.
Birju lost his father at a very young age (when he was just nine), but his dedication towards the arts remained intact, for that he credits his mother, who was a pillar of support. "My mother's biggest contribution was that she never let me get distracted. Those days, Lachchu Maharaj used to tell me, 'Come to Bombay (sic), you could work as an assistant director. You will have many houses, cars etc.' But my amma remained unswayed by any of these materialistic aspirations. She always said, 'See if you go, there then you will become a Bambaiyya. People will say he dances Bambaiyya kathak'," he recalls, of what kept him grounded, adding, "I teach everyone whole heartedly and with sincerity, even today. I haven't changed myself as per public demand. I follow the same track, and I devise new things along this track."
Birju explained to us what the journey of the dance form has been, from being performed at temples, to mehfils, to modern-day concerts. Like many art forms in which access is confined to males, Kathak too was forbidden for women (at least in his household).
"Most of our ancestors, as a matter of fact, used to dance in temples. On occasions like Diwali, Dussehra, they were called to perform; that time there was no concept of a stage at all. The zamindars would call us on any happy occasion or ceremonial gatherings — the birth of a baby, nose-ring ceremony, sacred-thread ceremony, mundan etc. Mostly, they lived in villages, and hence there were limited modes of transport apart from horse carts, bullock carts etc. That is also a reason why women never got an opportunity to learn how to dance as it would be very difficult for them to travel on foot, the way men did. My sisters were very keen on learning dance, but then my uncles would say, 'Don't even dare to think about it. You shouldn't learn how to dance.' Instead, they were pushed back to purdah, worshipping the in-laws."
Birju broke the mould, and provided equal opportunities to his children as well as his students, without any gender bias. "I opened the doors. My daughter Mamta Maharaj is a good performer, so are my sons Jaikishan and Dipak. All I say to my students is, 'Don't perform anywhere, especially where there is no value for the art. Be selective, and perform only at appropriate places.'
See there's a thing with the arts: A human can ditch (you) but your art will never betray you. If you keep it with you and own it, it will leave you only at the time of your death."
Saswati Sen, one of Maharaj's oldest students, and senior faculty member at Kalashram, says, "He lives, breathes, eats, and drinks art. He is always thinking of getting it greater appreciation and easily understood by masses. He has been able to create this canvas where he has proven that Kathak is not just about a rhythmic interplay but also being in nature with everything around (sic). The way he has numbered the bols, that also has a reflection of nature and one's surroundings. Today, every musician has followed Maharajji's rhythmic sensibility. They have started seeing visuals in music."
Elucidating this sense of rhythm, its application and effect, Birju says, "The padhants, the bols, the sounds are all kathas — kathas of rhythm. It isn't necessary that a katha has to be made of words or phrases, that is there in the literature. But normally, when we do a padhant, it is always katha first and then action. So with katha comes the rhythmic pattern, and based on that, we use legs, hands, face, eyes etc to amplify and give dimension to that katha, that we know as tukda, padhant or tiyahi.
He continues, "By the grace of the Almighty, now there is a thing called as the Birju Maharaj style of kathak that has seeped into many dance schools and other gharanas. I have had the influence of three gurus — my two uncles and then my father, so it became something new. We have always given predominance to beauty and grace over speed, rapid movements etc. Therefore, we put a lot of stress on the eye movements: The eyes must travel with the rhythm as it takes its course through the performance. We show the whole essence of rhythm through our legs and bols. I can easily construct a whole house through my bols but obviously can't live there. I can do a whole cricket commentary through my bols: I will show you the ball, running, fielding, everything."
The whole world follows a certain rhythm, smallest of the activities like speaking, walking etc all have a certain rhythm. With a dance form like kathak, you slowly move towards worshiping that rhythm, which gives rise to bhakti. Then abhinaya or acting is the devi. and taal or rhythm is the devta; so we worship them.
With music playing such an integral role in Indian classical dance, is it mandatory to first learn music and then step into learning a dance form like Kathak? Birju responds, "Yes. I mean even if one doesn't sing/play any instrument oneself, one should be able to appreciate it. Hence not being able to sing is okay but one should have the right aptitude and attitude to watch, listen, and observe."
Apart from being at the centre stage of Kathak in the national and global platform, Birju has made some sporadic forays into Bollywood. He choreographed songs for Satyajit Ray's 1977 film Shatranj Ke Khilari. The 2002 film Devdas [Director: Sanjay Leeela Bhansali] had a whole song, 'Kaahe Chhed Mohe,' choreographed by Birju. This song featured Madhuri Dixit, who again collaborated with Birju in the 2014 film Dedh Ishqiya [Director: Abhishek Chaubey] for the song 'Jagaave Saari Raina.' His most recent project was again with Bhansali in Bajirao Mastani [2015]; he had choreographed the song 'Mohe Rang Do Lal,' that featured Deepika Padukone.
When asked about his views on the changing trends in Bollywood, Birju quickly says, "There's a lack of grace these days. Earlier, a mere glance of Madhubala, Meenakumari could make the whole country go mad. See Waheeda Rehman in 'Chaudhvin Ka Chand,' she just slowly opens her eyes and you are left spellbound. Madhuri is the best dancer, and she is really gifted. She is immensely respectful of me, and treats me like a guru."
As for all the budding dance students across the globe, Birju says: "Don't do it in haste. Don't go for an item [dance number]. It hurts the complete emotion of doing. Items will happen, applause will come in too; instead, go steady, let the art mature."
source https://www.firstpost.com/art-and-culture/pt-birju-maharaj-on-living-breathing-and-dreaming-kathak-art-will-never-betray-you-4273153.html
