येसूदास

सहज सुचले म्हणून...

What a legend Yesudas is! Pure & Divine!  ज्या सुवर्णकाळात येसूदास गायले त्या काळाची विशेषता म्हणजे तेव्हाच्या प्रत्येक कलाकाराची स्वतःच्या मालकीची, हक्काची अशी एक सोनेरी चौकट होती. कलाकुसरीची महिरप असलेली. त्या चौकटीत त्या कलाकाराच्या कलेचे सौष्ठव सर्वाधिक उठून दिसत असे. तशी एक सुंदर चौकट येसूदास यांना पण लाभली. एका शांत, सौम्य, समजूतदार प्रियकराची चौकट!

His songs have epitomised a cherishing, unconditional kind of love that is transcendental in it's core. His soft yet soothing voice has given a new meaning to the emotion called love. His version of love is more grounded, mature and stable;  different than the feel-good, slightly flighty romance. His is a calm and reassuring love that doesn't have to use fancy words, and aggressive and toxic emotions to assert his feelings. Safe love for the safe era when uncomplicated but touching stories were narrated through movies. We used to spend Sunday evenings watching such movies on DD like Swami, Chitchor, apne paraye, Nadiya ke paar etc. His songs felt very simple or flat then. But today at this age and perhaps because of the age, those very songs and their underlying deeper emotions are felt strongly by me.

A simple happy-go-lucky boatman while expressing his joy of having his dream girl on his boat, suddenly touches a different chord when he sings

सब को किनारे पहुँचायेगा
माँझी तो किनारा तभी पायेगा
गहरी नदी का ओर न छोर
लहरों से ज्यादा मनवा में शोर
And takes us on a alltogether different journey

When a lovelorn man calls out to his muse saying

जाने न तू ग़म की गहराइयाँ
आजा कट जायें मेरी तनहाइयाँ -
आ भी जा; बरसा दे प्रीत का सावन
बरसों के जलते मन की, बुझ जाये अगन;
His voice exhibits the pain of unrequited love

When he gently persuades his lady love to meet him as promised,

जहां पहली बार मिले थे हम
जिस जगह से संग चले थे हम
नदिया के किनारे आज उसी
अमवा के तले आना
जब दीप जले आना ...
He takes us right at the banks of a river where it all started

When he fills the emptiness of his sweetheart's life, with these words,

ऊँचे महल के झरोखों से तुम
अम्बर की शोभा निहारो ज़रा
रंगों से रंगों का ये मेल तुम
आँखों से मन में उतारो ज़रा
सुनयना, दूर आसमानों को तुम देखो,
और मैं तुम्हें देखते हुए देखूँ
He shows that any incompleteness of this life can be filled with pure, unconditional love.

When he tries to stop his beloved from leaving him, he sings

सजदा करूं पूजा करूं
तू ही बता क्या करूं
लगता है ये तेरी नजर मेरा धरम ले जाएगी
जिद ना करो अब तो रुको ये रात नहीं आएगी
And one wonders again over the tranquility reflecting even in his longing.

Countless other and more famous songs have ruled my favorite playlists. He peps me up when he croons 'आज से पहले आज से ज्यादा खुशी आजतक नहीं मिली' or makes me go weak in knees at his baritone in 'माना हो तुम बेहद हसीं'. He snatches me away to that utopic land where 'रंग-बिरंगे फूल खिले हैं, लोग भी फूलों जैसे' and he fills me with gratitude when I remember all those who have touched my life when he sings 'मधुबन खुशबू देता है'. He switches sides, and gives us the most poignant rendition from the perspective of a pining lady in 'का करू सजनी आये ना बालम'; helps the heartbroken girl to release her pain through 'कहा से आये बदरा'..

All his songs were carefully crafted to suit his dreamy, caring, sincere voice. Those songs will always reverberate in my memory. His is a voice can that can still make me cry and want to go back to those golden times! But it also gives me immense happiness to see that there was an equal space in those times, for all artists where they could perform their best. Probably this is the best gift bestowed upon us by the golden era.

Wrote this just like that..alternating between marathi and english, because thats how I encountered thoughts and feelings while relishing his songs yesterday.

अपना तो नित यही काम है
आने जाने वालों को सलाम है
कभी कभी आना इस नाव में
इक घर तेरा है मेरे गाँव में.....

एखादा अंधारलेला, झाकोळलेला कोपरा जसा शांत तेवणाऱ्या समईच्या प्रकाशाने उजळून निघावा तसा स्वतःच्या शुद्ध, आश्वासक गायकीने ह्या बेभरवश्याच्या जगात शाश्वत, चिरंतन प्रेमाची ग्वाही देणारा हा गायक अजरामर होवो..