Malini Awasthi
Malini Awasthi

The folk rockstar

Malini Awasthi has a special affinity to Varanasi. Its culture and people, she says, have helped her shape her ideas and philosophy towards music.
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This rockstar wears ghagra-choli, nath and maang tika to set the stage on fire. Touted as the folk queen of India, Malini Awasthi closed the debut edition of the Jaigarh Heritage Festival with a bang. Ten minutes into her performance, and the crowd was on its feet dancing and singing. Awasthi sang folk songs in Rajasthani, Bhojpuri and Braj.

A few celebrated the bride and groom. Others spoke of the joys of a new birth in the family. There were also ghoomar, bhakti and Sufi numbers, along with bhajans. It didn’t end there. She also performed maand, thumri and chaiti. “I don’t plan my performance,” says Awasthi, adding, “A place and its people determine what you are going to sing next. The music has to come from the heart. It has to flow.”

And flow it did. The 57-year-old, Padma Shri awardee transitions from semi-classical to folk and even a few Bollywood numbers with ease and precision. Taught by different gurus, while growing up and moving homes with her bureaucrat husband—she has lived in Lucknow, Bundelkhand, Rohilkhand, Jaunpur, Azamgarh, Faizabad, Varanasi and Meerut—she learnt from Ustad Shujaat Hussain Khan of Rampur gharana, Ustad Rahat Ali Khan of Patiala gharana and Girija Devi of the Banaras gharana. By the time Awasthi was 19, she had learnt ghazal, thumri, dadra, naad and hamad. Her longest tutelage was under Girija Devi. “I was with her for more than 20 years, until her last breath,” says Awasthi.

The fact that she experienced living in various cities, contributed to her picking up cultural and linguistic nuances, adding character to her songs. “I am a seeker. I am always observing and learning and trying to integrate life and culture in my songs,” says Awasthi. So, she has the phakadpan (spontaneity) of Varanasi, tehzeeb (grace and discipline) of Lucknow and bhakti (devotion) of Braj.

Though Awasthi has a special affinity to Varanasi. Its culture and people, she says, have helped her shape her ideas and philosophy towards music. “Banaras is within me,” she says. “Wahan shunya mein bhi utsav ko dekhte hain aur utsav mein bhi shunya ko dekhte hain (In Varanasi, people find celebrations in nothing, and nothingness in celebrations),” she adds. That said, Lucknow, her home town, has also played a big role in her music. “I am a mix of Banaras and Awadh,” says Awasthi.

As old music traditions are fast being forgotten, she believes artistes need to adapt as well. “Along with entertainment, we have to provide infotainment as well,” she says, adding that it’s an artist’s duty to educate the audiences about what is the essence of a particular raag and why is it sung at a certain time. “It’s the only way to turn them into music appreciators,” she smiles.

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The New Indian Express
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