Thumri

                                               Thumri

 

 

first traces of thumri go back to the 15th century, known to have likenesses with the dance form Kathak. Thumri is a lively musical style, evoking a sense of sensuality and amorousness, aimed at the subtle feelings of the heart. However, historical records speak of a different version of thumri during the 19th century, bearing similarity with khayal and depending on the elaboration of ragas. Many are of the view that thumri is a derivation of the madhura bhakti treatises of the Mathura-Vrindavan, concerning about the love intrigues of Krishna and Radha. Yet again, facts speak about Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh and his court musician, Sadiq Ali Khan, to have a significant hand in the evolving of this form of classical music. They are responsible for thumri being what it is today, due to their soulful compositions, along with several other musicians of their time. They had the power to assimilate their acquired legacy and render it masterfully.

Thumri, undoubtedly, is one of the most important forms of North Indian music after khayal. Its exact origins are not very clear, given that there are no historical references to such a form until the 15th century. Etymologically, the word thumri comes from thumka which means a nimble beat of the foot or walking with a dancing pace. The word connotes a form that is associated with choreographic movements, drama, all functioning under the canopy of romantic eroticism. The famous music treatise of the 15th century, Sangita Damodara, makes mention of a form called jhumri, which is `replete with love-sentiments, not bound by the constraints of prosodic rules, sweet as wine, the rhythm-oriented jhumri is sung by dancing females`.

Some hold that thumri has its genesis in the madhura bhakti compositions that originated in the Mathura-Vrindavan area, dealing with the amatory frolics of Krishna and Radha. As with most compositions that are labeled under the category of madhura bhakti, a poignant rendition was priviledged over adherence to formal rules, pertaining to raga development. Similarly, the folk melodies and evocative love songs associated with Braj (Agra-Mathura area) too are said to have been proto-forms of the modern thumri. In all, folk music, madhura bhakti, conventions, dance and dramatic traditions contributed to its origins. In fact, the thumri of the 19th century offered accompaniment to Kathak. In form, it bore a close resemblance to chhota khayal and was often set to spacious ragas like Yaman, Darbari and Malkauns. It was even customary for singers of the Benaras and Lucknow traditions, until some time back, to dance and even enact certain portions of the composition.

Though thumri is believed to have its roots in certain early genres of music, it is not until the middle of the 19th century that one notices it becoming enshrined as a form of classical music. The modern thumri is believed to be a `creation` of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh (1822-87) and his court musician, Sadiq Ali Khan. Wajid Ali Shah also composed outstanding thumris under the pen name, `Akhtar Piya` which are widely sung in repertoires. Yet historical evidence would have one to believe that Wajid Ali Shah and Sadiq Ali Khan along with several composers and musicians, who lived during the latter part of the 19th century, enhanced and amended the acquired legacy and gave it the discernible structure seen today. Importantly, Wajid Ali Shah`s role as a composer, practitioner, patron and connoisseur of thumri was to have a far-reaching impact on its development and maturation during the 19th century.

A musician, dancer, actor, a poet of great talent and, above all, a patron of arts on a massive scale, Wajid Ali became more and more absorbed in the world of music, dance and drama at the cost of state affairs. He was, possibly, one of the most colourful aesthetes to adorn a throne. Wajid Ali was, going by certain historical accounts, a `misfit` as a ruler, given his exquisitely cultured and refined sensibilities. Soon enough, he became victim to the cunning intrigues of the British, who annexed the state of Awadh and pensioned him off to Kolkata in 1856. The wrenching thumri, Babul mora naihar chooto hi jae, in Bhairavi, is supposed to have been composed by Wajid Ali on the eve of his departure to Kolkata. It was his farewell oration to Lucknow - his song of farewell to that city of love and song and its haunting romantic ambience, which he loved above all other things. Sanad Piya of Rampur court and Kadar Piya, who lived in the 19th century, also composed a number of thumris known for their poetic delicacy and deep sentiment. These doyens were able to coalesce poetry and music, lyricism and expressivity, form and feeling in aesthetically pleasing ways to give one the form, as one understands it today.

Unlike the khayal, which pays meticulous attention to unfolding a raga, thumri restricts itself to expressing the countless hues of shringar by combining melody and words. The contours of a khayal are most definitely broader and fluid. Thus, a khayal singer is capable of encompassing and expressing a wide range of complex emotions. A thumri singer goes straight to the emotional core of a composition and evokes each yarn of amorous feeling, each strand of sensuous sentiment, with great discretion. Khayal aims at achieving poise and splendour; thumri is quicksilver in tone and ardently romantic in spirit. It needs a delicate heart, and a supple and soulful voice capable of expressing several shadings and colours of tones to bring out its beauty. To draw an analogy from the world of painting, khayal is closer, in form and spirit, to the unrestrained and energetic world of Renaissance masters like Michelangelo, Raphael and Titian - forcefully executed brush strokes are seen on a broad canvas; whereas thumri, with its affinity for finer points and shades of feeling, emotion and mood, is closer to the finely-detailed still-life paintings of the Dutch masters of the 17th century.