Distant Memories

During our childhood, summer vacations were always spent with my paternal grandparents in our ancestral home in Burdwan. Every evening, as the sun went down casting a rosy hue around, the birds would come back to the trees which dotted our pond, the Hatipukur (Elephant pond). That is where they lived.

 We could hear them from our balcony overlooking Hatipukur. “Kichirmichir…kichirmichir” we would mimic them.

 And then everything would go quiet. Tranquillity would descend on the still waters of Hatipukur. Ma would hurriedly feed us milk and biscuits and gently shove us towards our grandfather’s chamber. He was a strict man, but gentle. Punctual and a man of few words, Dadubhai was revered by all. Deeply spiritual, our evening prayers were a daily ritual.

 I along with my cousins would sit in a semi-circle chanting and singing Bhajans. They were all taught by my grandfather. Ma and my aunts would join us as well. You seem nobody could say a NO to Dadubhai. The sessions were also enriching as Dadubhai would explain every sentence and word to us.

 It was during our prayer sessions that Mangala Di, our house help would light the Dhuno and carry the burning embers to every room, waving away the fragrant fumes.

Those sessions are all memories. The house stands as a mute spectator to all the disputes and differences. What Dadubhai had built with great love and care stands in ruins today! But the fragrance of the dhuna and the beats of the khonjoni (cymbals) have stayed back.

 It was Dadubhai, my paternal grandfather who introduced cymbals to us. Perhaps the oldest percussion instrument, it plays an important role in keertan.

Keertan or devotional songs in praise of the Lord is common in most parts of Bengal and Orissa and especially amongst the Vaishnavas.

The most common sightings of groups of Keertoniyas (people who sing keertans) are during the holy month of Kartik, when we see groups of singers at daybreak, singing in praise of Krishna and beating Khol, khortals and khanjanis. These groups move from neighbourhood to neighbourhood singing and dancing and collecting contributions donated voluntarily. Women and children are also a part of the group.

The instruments carried by them have a place in history and can be traced to the medieval age. Most of them carry a Khonjoni, which is a pair of concave plates made of an alloy (bell metal or brass). These plates clash against each other to produce a beautiful sound, used as an accent along with other instruments. It comes in various sizes. The smallest and lightest are meant for children.

Huge sized khonjonis can be seen in the Jagannath Mandir, Puri and in most temples in Orissa. They produce a deafening sound and can be heard from a distance.

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