Pune : Mesmerising Evening of ‘Malavrang’ Concludes Soor Mahatee Mohotsav

Soulful renditions based on Raag Malav by eminent vocalist Vidhushi Kalapini Komkali, disciple and daughter of veteran classical vocalist Pt. Kumar Gandharva and her nephew Pt. Bhuvanesh Komkali ,grandson of Pt. Kumar Gandharva

Pune, 6th September 2023 : Eminent vocalist Vidhushi Kalapini Komkali, disciple and daughter of veteran classical vocalist Pt. Kumar Gandharva and her nephew Pt. Bhuvanesh Komkali, grandson of Pt. Kumar Gandharva concluded the second day of ‘Soor Mahatee Mohotsav’ by paying tribute to the legendary singer Dr. Veena Sahastrabuddhe during her 75th birth anniversary celebration. The aunt-nephew duo enthralled the audience with ‘Malavrang’, a program with songs based on Raag Malav.

The evening saw soulful Indian classical renditions along with melodious folk and devotional songs based on Raag Malav, Raag Shree, Raag Kamod, Raag Marawa, Raag Dhan Basanti, Raag Savani and Raag Kedar. Along with the musical presentation, the audience was taken through the rich culture and zealous lives of people from the historic Malwa region of India. Visudhi Kalapani Komkali and Pt. Bhuvanesh Komkali was accompanied by Suyog Kundalkar on the harmonium, Prashant Pandav on tabla, Rajgopal Gosavi on dholak woven together by Neerja Apte with her anchoring.  

The two-day ‘Soor Mahatee Mohotsav’ was organized to mark the 75th birth anniversary of legendary vocalist Dr. Veena Sahastrabuddhe at Yashwantrao Chavan Auditorium recently. It was organized by well-known classical vocalist Atul Khandekar, a disciple of Dr. Veena Sahastrabuddhe as his tribute to his guru’s immense contribution to Indian Classical music. The two-day program included classical and devotional renditions composed by Dr. Veena Sahastrabuddhe and her guru & elder brother Pt. Kashinath Bodus.

The Mohotsav was inaugurated by Dandi Sanyasi Narshin Ashram Swami in the August presence of Dipti Bhogale, Dr. Sanjeev Abhyankar, Vidushi Kalapini Komkali, Dr, Sunil Kale, Dr. Hari Sahastrabuddhe, Manasi Khandekar, Ravindra Khandekar, Bhakti Khandekar along with Atul Khandekar and Savani Shende.

The evening also saw Pt. Vinayak Phatak, a crafted tabla player decorated with a special award for his contribution to the music fraternity. He had accompanied Dr. Veena Sahastrabuddhe in her journey from 1984 to 1991. The second award was bestowed upon Dr. Dileep Deodhar, a family physician and philanthropist. He was recognized for his exemplary work for underprivileged patients. Both awards were presented at the hands of Vidhushi Kalapini Komkali.
The first day’s program began with ‘Naad Ninaad’, an alluring performance by Savani Shende and Atul Khandekar, renowned vocalists and disciples of Dr.Veena Sahastrabuddhe. Savani Shende paid her homage with bandishes from Raag Megh and Raag Bageshri while Atul Khandekar paid his tribute with compositions based on Raag Multani and Raag Bageshri.

The evening concluded with an enchanting performance by well-known singer Pt. Raghunandan Panshikar, a disciple of illustrious vocalist Gaanasaraswati Kishori Amonkar. He presented a bandish composed by Mogubai Kurdikar, a devotional song written by Shri. Gurunanak and Kishori Amonkar’s all time hit “Awagha rang ek zala” on public demand. He was accompanied by Bharat Kamat on tabla, and Suyog Kundalkar on harmonium with anchoring by Mangesh Waghmare.

The admirers of Dr. Veena Sahastrabuddhe were overwhelmed watching ‘Veenecha Cheeranjeev Jhankar’, a biopic on her life and musical journey. The biopic has been conceptualized and directed by Atul Khandekar and Bhakti Khandekar and scripted by Anjali Malkar