2 rupayya ka note...Aur Raag Bairaag..

2 rupayya ka note...Aur Raag Bairaag..

Was peering through my diary .. Came to the section where I found lot of adhanni's and one rupee notes pasted in my diary with dates jotted on top of it..there is a raag name written on top of each coin or note..and then suddenly that 2 rupee note stood out to me with Raag Bairaag ( raag of separation) written on top of it... I smiled invariably drifted back to the day I was rewarded with this note..

I think it was a day during my summer vacations I was just out of school ..Just joined college .....My Hindustani Classical music Guru( from Atrauli Gharana) was sitting in front of me.. We were all set to begin our daily  riyaaz for the day.. He was on Tabla and I was on Harmonium that day.. The Raag chosen that day was Kedara.. We began.. Few mins into it.. Ustad who used to usually close his eyes while I used to do alaap or kharaj for him..I always felt this was his way to concentrate on my performance so to judge my pakad on the Raag..if anything was amiss eyes will suddenly blink open and he will interrupt me in midway to express his corrective opinion..he then used to sing along with me to show me where he thinks I needed improvement...

That day again the eyes opened up suddenly.. I was in midway of Kedara.. He peered at me looking closely.. " Sab dheek hai beta?" He queried.. Defiantly I responded " Ji Ustad Sab dheek hai".. He then came back " Par awaz kuch aur Bol Rahi hai.. Dum nahi hai.. Maza Nahin aaya".. He was always brutal with his assessments.. I kept quite.. Looked down.. Actually there was indeed something troubling me that day.. It was a sad day for me.. But I will not go into those details.. Coming back to Kedara.. He continued to look at my bent head thoughtfully for some more seconds .. And then he suddenly came up " kedara ko aaj rehne dete hain.. Chalo hum aaj Raag Bairaag par based Ek bhajan dohrate hain.. U know it.. It's based on Meera 's devotion and longing for Krishna.. "... It was a sudden change of gears.. Raag Bairaag is a deeper Raag and its notes are more full of pathos.. It's a more difficult Raag too.. But nevertheless I gathered myself and we set in the mode of that Bairaag based piece.. And then the eyes closed again.,. And then they were shut for full 15 mins till I finished my recitation .. Even when I stopped eyes were still closed for a min or so.. And then they opened.. I looked up apprehensively.. Ustad had pride in his eyes.. Maybe tears too.. Not sure..He just smiled and took out a 2 rupee note from his pocket .. Put it in my hand.. Aur bole " shabaash beta yeh hui na baat.. Dil khush kar diya ...U have dard in your voice today and u did wonders with Bairaag".. Since then that 2 rupee note and Bairaag became inseparable.. They are both sitting in my Diary side by side complementing  each other..