Karnataka artistes remember maestro Rajan Mishra

He treated harmonium and tabla accompanists with the same respect he accorded to main artistes, they say

Popular musicians from Karnataka reminisced about time spent with Pandit Rajan Mishra.

Vyasmurti Katti, the well-known harmonium player, describes him as a ‘pure personality’. "I was his accompanist whenever he came to South India. I also accompanied Rajan ji and Sajan ji for a three-month long concert tour in the US and Canada," Katti tells Showtime.

He points out how Rajan Mishra respected the art of accompaniment. "They treated accompanists as a family on and off the stage. He would share the joy of subtle nuances in raga presentation with me on stage and encouraged me to play them. In this process, I learnt a lot," he says.

Rajan Mishra's gurus were Pandit Hanuman Prasad Mishra and Pandit Gopal Mishra. Pt. Gopal Mishra, being a great Sarangi player, accompanied stalwarts in his times. For someone who was a student of an acclaimed Sarangiya, it came naturally for Rajan Mishra to have an affectionate relationship with his accompanists.

"Perhaps that's why I was at ease while performing with him," says Katti, who calls Rajan Mishra one of his favourite singers.

"During the performances, he would remember compositions one after the other and the ragas would flow very smoothly. He was a repository of innumerable compositions," notes Katti. Rajan Mishra is known to have never referred to any texts on the stage.

Ravindra Katoti, another experienced harmonium player, grew up listening to Rajan and his younger brother Sajan’s jugalbandis. “I haven’t seen such a successful, long-standing pair in Indian music,” he tells Showtime.

Katoti, who performed with Rajan-Sajan Mishra 10 times, says their music appealed to the masses. “Usually the legends sing only to one class of audience. They cater to the pundits. The masses find their works heavy, but Rajan Mishra was a hit with the general public,” he says.

In a jugalbandi, there is not much space for accompanists but he would create space for table and harmonium players. “With him, there was always a feeling of oneness,” says Katoti.