Where a baby says ‘sa’ before ‘ma’

AZAMGARH: In the village of Hariharpur, children learn ‘Saregama…’ before even knowing the alphabet. Musical instruments become their toys as well as their teachers. The little ones accompany their elders when they are doing ‘riyaaz’ (practice), and a child below the age of 5 years is familiar with ‘sur’ and ‘raaga.’
Proficiency in folk music comes naturally to children of this hamlet.Every household has musical instruments like harmonium, sarangi, tabla, sitar, dholak and mridang.
About 5km from Azamgarh city, Hariharpur is a village with a difference. Its centuries-old legacy of music is maintained till today by 60 Mishra families living in this village. The day begins with the beats of dholak and tabla, and the melody of sarangi joins in. The music is coupled with vocals of the finest folk bhajans or classical compositions. Before daybreak, all residents, young and old, are ready with instruments of their choice to practice music. Some would be found adjacent to the temple of Shitla Mata under a peepal tree at the village entrance while others would be practicing at home. The session of riyaz continues for two-four hours.
The ancestral home of noted vocalist Pt Chhannulal Mishra and tabla maestro late Pt Shamta Prasad Mishra — popularly known as ‘Gudai Maharaj’— Hariharpur is the only village of its kind where every house of the Mishra community reverberates with music.
“Our village has a long and rich history of music,” says Padma Bhushan Pt Chhannulal Mishra — he is also a recipient of the Yash Bharti Award — who presently lives in Varanasi.
“We are musicians maintaining the legacy brought here by our ancestors over three centuries ago,” said Pt Mohan Mishra, a tabla artist associated with Kathak Kendra in New Delhi. He has a master’s degree in music from Banaras Hindu University.
Hariharpur is inhabited by 60 Brahmin families, who are descendants of court musicians of the Mughal era. “Our ancestors (two brothers) from Handiya village in Allahabad district came to the durbar of Raja Azam Shah, the king of Azamgarh, to show their musical talent. Impressed by their musical feat, the king gave them 989 bighas of land in Hariharpur to settle here,” says Mishra, adding that today there are 60 Mishra families practicing music.
Being deeply involved in music, these villagers find little time for farming. They have given their land to people of other communities for farming, and the revenue is shared.
A number of musicians have migrated to metros and other cities to show their talents and earn a living. “Many of us are music teachers in different institutions while several others perform at concerts in cities,” says Mishra, adding that some of them have also set up music schools to train children.
It is rare to find a Mishra from Hariharpur who is engaged in another profession. Ghanshyam Mishra, for example, runs a general store in his village, but he has not left his riyaz. One can see him practicing on the harmonium under a shed before his shop whenever he gets time.
“Tere dar pe o meri maiyya, tere diwane aye hain...”, a chorus by children was heard when the TOI team visited the village. Adarsh (5), Aman (6), and several others were singing while Ashish, Diwakar, Vikash and Chandan were accompanying them on various instruments.
“It is the grace of God that the children of this village are born musicians and they learn basics of music in their childhood from the elders of the family,” says Mishra.
“It is great that these people have maintained the tradition of music even in adverse situations,” says Ranjit Singh, a native of neigbhouring Lachhirampur village. Fond of music, Singh is always ready to support this community of musicians. A Delhi-based organization, Indian Trust for Rural Heritage Development, has also opened a school in the village to conserve the tradition.