CHENNAI: A la puerta del cielo, Venden zapatos
Para los angelitos, Que andan descalzos
Duérmete niño, Duérmete niño
Duérmete niño, Arrú arrú
As musician Vedanth Bharadwaj croons this lullaby while softly strumming his guitar, I am transported back to the comfort of childhood, despite knowing no Spanish. The lullaby, a universal concept that transcends language, culture, caste and nationality is often overlooked by the music industry. But with their ‘Sing a Lullaby’ workshops, musicians Vedanth Bharadwaj and Gurupriya Atreya celebrate these songs. In anticipation of the upcoming 40th week of their year-long project, the artists detail their journey on a Facebook Live hosted by Aalaap, a boutique arts management company, in conversation with founder Akhila Krishnamurthy.
An idea on standstill for six-seven years, the workshop finally became a reality in October 2020 to an overwhelming response. “We expected only 10-15 people, but received nearly 150-160 responses!” recounts Vedanth. Now, they have a loyal community of “lullaby-ers” who log in from across the world every week. “It’s amazing to see people from various time zones join regularly. People often stay back after the workshop to just talk and share stories. The viewers have now become acquainted, even asking about other members when they don’t show up. There is just so much warmth and love,” says Gurupriya. For their 26th week — the halfway mark — their listeners were dressed up, with candles to celebrate with the artists, she adds.
Gurupriya and Vedanth have explored lullabies in 34 languages, regional and foreign, sometimes taught to them by guest artists or viewer emails. These include a Bidari lullaby, a Trinidadian scary lullaby, and a lullament — a lullaby which is also a lament. “No matter where the lullabies are from, the message is usually the same. And it is not just for a child but a parent as well,” shares Gurupriya, to which Vedanth adds, “The root of the songs we sing otherwise is love.
Not Bhakti or Sufi, but if you look beyond it, it is love for God or Nirgun. It is the same with lullabies. It is all about love and the relationship between parent and child. There may be different kinds of lullabies, but they all fall under the blanket of love.”
While the workshop closes in on its finale, Gurupriya and Vedanth are keen to keep their relationship with the lullabies going by releasing albums of the same within the next year.
To register, email singalullabyworkshop@gmail.com.