Begum Parveen Sultana continues to be the diva she was. Her voice and passion remain undiminished, finds DEEPA GANESH

The huge auditorium was packed and overflowing. Old, middle-aged and the young had thronged the hall. When the diva of Hindustani classical music, the stunning Parveen Sultana occupied the stage, there was a thunderous clap. For the older crowd, they went a long way back with this musician who, with her remarkable voice and rendition, had etched a permanent place in their hearts. The young had heard many a story about how she drew thousands to her concert – she was not merely a breathtaking beauty but a musician who could make four octaves submit to her. After the first few minutes of rag Madhuvanti, the audience exchanged reassured looks, but after a few more minutes they just looked at each other, amazed. Into her sixties, the power of Parveen Sultana’s voice remains the same and her musical exuberance intact. That evening, as she sang Rageshri, Bhavani Dayani (supported by dazzling artistry of Vyasamurti Katti and Vishwanath Nakod) and others for the 60th anniversary of Shri Rama Lalitha Kala Mandira, she took the listeners into the world of nada .

A picture of simplicity, poise and grace, Parveen Sultana spoke at length about her childhood and musical journey from a remote village in Assam to centrestage in Bombay. Excerpts from the interview:

You had very unusual parents who not only recognized your talent, but also wanted you to pursue it. In the later years, when they learnt that music was going to be your life, how did they react, coming from an orthodox Muslim background?

My father Ikramul Mazid was a musician himself. Our house was filled with music 24 hours in a day – my father’s riyaz, fellow musicians coming to our house, so on and so forth. So in that sense, it was difficult to ignore music in our household.

I think being born in Assam also made a difference. The atmosphere in our village Nagaon was syncretic. There were no caste barriers, and people of all the religions stayed together. I remember my aunts used to wear the bindi and never found it interfering with the religion they practiced. They were sure about its aesthetic value and the same passed on to me as well.

When I was a little girl, my father used to take great pains to inculcate seriousness in me. He would wake me up at 5 a.m., carry me and give me a wash, make ovaltin for me and would sit down for riyaz with me. But as the years went by, I began to love music so much that I needed no one to tell me to dedicate time to it. When I was 11 years old, I started giving small concerts, won several prizes, and step by step, with my parents standing firmly beside me, I moved on. In fact, when I decided to pursue music seriously, my mother Maroofa told my father, “I will take care of the household, you take care of her.” They started looking for a guru, and finally it was decided that I was going to learn from the scholar Chinmoy Lahiri in Kolkata who was known to my father. Every Friday I used to go from Nagaon to Kolkata for my lessons. The only advice my parents gave me was this, ‘Dress well, speak well. Mistakes are human, be brave to admit it and don’t lie to us. We are here to help you in everything.’ I was fortunate to have such parents, they were wonderful. Their engagement with me was complete.

In those days, Kolkata had many an Ustad. Why did you choose to go to Chinmoy Lahiriji?

I was too young to decide who my guru had to be. My father was of the opinion that I should learn from a scholar, and not a professional, performing musician. ‘He is a man who has made many musicians. You learn from him,’ my father said. However, my father had to deal with Muslim orthodoxy. ‘Why are you teaching her music?’, ‘ Don’t give daughters so much importance. Just get her married’, ‘Why are you taking her to a Pandit being a Muslim?’ and more. But my father was a very progressive person. He brushed everything aside firmly and left me in my guru’s care.

My guru took me into his fold like I were his daughter. I used to stay at his house, eat and rest there. He had immense patience and explained everything in great detail. This would not have been possible if I went to an Ustad. I could speak only Assamese and knew no Hindi. I studied in a missionary school so I knew English. How would I communicate with an Ustad? And I was someone who asked a thousand questions. I was fortunate to learn from my guru.

Your first full-fledged performance was at the age of 12 in Kolkata…

That concert was organized by my Guruji at the Sadarang Sangeet Sammelan. Kolkata, as you said, was full of top class musicians in those days. My guruji was a revered scholar in the music circles, and on his word Pandit Ravi Shankar, Salamat Ali Khan saab, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan saab, Samta Prasad and a whole lot of luminaries had turned up. I hadn’t the slightest clue about their greatness. Before I went on to the stage, my father said, ‘Sing like you are the Maharani of music. Nothing but your music should matter to you.’ I was a daredevil and knew no fear. After the concert, each of them came and blessed me, and my concert became the talk of the town. The happiness of my guru and my parents knew no bounds. But today, when I think of that concert my feet go cold and I feel nervous. Even Bharat Ratna cannot match what I got from all those greats of music that day.

What I miss immensely now is that atmosphere. Young or veteran, every musician and organizer deemed it as his duty to be present, listen and encourage them. But today, everyone is after stars. You have to encourage youngsters. I too was young and inexperienced at one point. But my gurus, parents, fellow musicians, and listeners have made me what I am. They say that you have to take a thousand births before you are born as a musician. I am very fortunate. God has showed me this path. Every day I pray to him, ‘Don’t take music away from me…’

(This is the first part of a two-part interview with Begum Parveen Sultana.)

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Friday Review / by Deepa Ganesh / September 19th, 2014