At times when I read novels and stories that are set in the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century, I would be thinking as to how Life would have been after sunset, not least because of lines like ‘It was dark and he lit the lamp’.
Are you able to make the
connection now?
Oh yes, even the word
‘connection’ is connected to what I am talking about! It is electricity, a.k.a.
‘power’. I wonder as to how people would have reacted everyday as dusk
approached. Would they have started feeling dull, negative, and even scared?
It is tough to say because
only when humans get used to something do they start wanting that. For example,
when I grew up, there was no internet, no cell phone, and even TV
was a luxury. In fact, we did not have even a landline connection until much
later. So, did I feel deprived? Not really!
But what I am going to say, is
something different and I am sure people in that place would have felt deprived
of something, which has become an ‘essential commodity’ in every household in
the world.
Buriga and China Konela are two villages- which would
hardly find a place in any normal Indian Map- in ASR district in
the state of AP. These two villages were without power( I mean
‘electricity’ and not any other power!) until Feb 2025. The villages
were finally electrified on the 13th of Feb 2025, after 77 and
half years of Independence!
Tough to believe, but it is
true.
The people in these villages-
mainly tribals- celebrated the electrification by performing a tribal dance.
Freedom from darkness!
If this information about
villages not having the privilege of being electrified for so many years,
surprised you, read on and you will be in with more surprises.
There is a village called Kurma
– again in AP- where people have opted for ‘no electricity’. People here
believe in using ancient methods. Houses are constructed with lime and mud with
the floors being plastered with a mixture of mud and cow dung. Even the
cabinets (wardrobes) in the bed rooms are made of mud. And yes, wood-fire
stoves are used for cooking.
Sounds interesting?
Well, that is the beauty of
contrasts!
The song of the day, Punnagaiyil
Minsaaram from Bharathan (1992), also is pregnant with
contrasts. And yes, it has ‘electricity’ as well.
Why do I say ‘contrasts’?
Listen to the vocals carefully and you will know the reason. The female voice (Janaki)
sounds sober throughout while the male voice (the Master himself) sounds
as if he is intoxicated or even inebriated. Isn’t it tough to believe that it
is the same voice that rendered ‘Janani Janani’ and ‘Idayam
oru Kovil’?
But if you are a follower of
this great genius, probably you may not be surprised.
The icing on the cake is the
ending of the song where he does a ‘SPB’ albeit in his own style!
Let us look at the beginning
first, though the end is always the beginning when it comes to great artistic
works.
The bass guitar sounds 1
2 3/ 1 2 3/ 1 2/ 1 2 3 4/ 1 2 3 4, with the different sets of percussion
backing it. If I do not mention the pattern of one of the sets, which goes by
the name ‘drums’, I will be cursed by the electricity to be without
power for the next 2 days and since I do not want to face the wrath of
that essential commodity, let me explain that.
The drums appear only
in the last ‘1 2 3 4’. These sound with vigour playing only the ‘1’
and ‘3’. In the next cycle, these sound ‘1 - 3 4’ but with less
intensity. This may not be a contrast in the literal sense, but the fact that
two different sets play differently makes it an eligible candidate for
‘contrast’.
After the strings and
the guitar family indulge in a friendly banter, the Prelude gives
way to the Pallavi where the same pattern is followed. The ending is
rather interesting with the winding up of the drums.
The keys play a melody
in the beginning of the first interlude, but a trained ear would listen
to the bass guitar playing the same pattern repeatedly with a sense of
purpose. It changes the pattern the moment the strings join. The acoustic
guitar sounds as if it is bound by a spell!
The bass guitar
continues its journey in the CharaNams as well with the drums
following the same pattern as that of the prelude.
The guitar plays a
melody in the beginning of the second interlude. The bass guitar
listens to it with utmost attention. Now, it recites the same melody subtly as
the small group of violins take over. It goes on and on with the same
lines even as the violins expand their melody. In between, the ‘teacher’
guitar appears again playing that original melody as if to monitor its
student (bass guitar) and then moves away. Just towards the end, the guitars
play. It seems as if these are jumping and dancing.
Is Electricity good or bad? Do
we need it or not?
But do we have to care as long
as we listen to such electrifying songs?
No comments:
Post a Comment