From the founder of a hit percussion band to a music composer in films, tabla maestro Bickram Ghosh wears many hats. As he puts it himself, “I am like the elephant in the fable of six blind men and an elephant – everyone has a different perception of what I am.” With an enviable musical pedigree, being the son of tabla legend Pandit Shankar Ghosh, Bickram is articulate, with a mastery over turn of phrase and an enviable vocabulary. Bickram did his Masters in English from Jadavpur University and his bookshelf has varied literature ranging from P G Wodehouse to Deepak Chopra.
Edited excerpts:
So, how the journey started?
My career in music started around 1984, when I was only a tabla player. Up until 1998, I was playing extensively for many years with Pandit Ravi Shankar. Around 1997, Tanmoy (Tanmoy Bose) joined me with accompanying Panditji. So I was really at top of my career as an accompanist – it couldn’t get better than playing with Pandit Ravi Shankar. I accompanied all the top artists of the time.
Gradually, I began to realise there was a composer inside me; I felt I could do more musically but I didn’t quite know what or how. Also by then, the hierarchy in classical music had begun to bother me. The tabla player is always side lined, and this is detrimental overall to music as a whole. My educational background was different – I went to La Martiniere School, St. Xavier’s College, and did masters in English literature from Jadavpur University – the best institutions. I even dabbled with the idea of having a parallel career, maybe in writing or journalism.
When my music career took off, I realised there were discrepancies in the music world. Of course, I had seen this world through my father but when you are in it yourself, in the fire so to speak, I found it difficult. As a tabla player, I was secondary, the number two guy – in terms of fees, travel and even in the way my name was written or rather not written on the invite! There are differences between you and the main artist. So yes, I was starting to get dissatisfied.
Is that when your fusion band RhythmScape was founded?
Yes. Like I said, I did feel there was more I could do with music, and I gradually harnessed my ideas to create a new sound. Then RhythmScape, the band I founded happened. The album was released in January 2002. We had already started doing shows from 2000. By the middle of 2002, six months into its release, it had became a runaway hit; Navras Records took it up abroad, and till today it’s perhaps one of the biggest fusion hits. Ashish Khan sahib had also started Shanti in the 1960s, Zakir bhai had Shakti in the early 1970s, my own father with Ali Akbar Khan sahib had dabbled in fusion. But for quite some time, the fusion scene had been somewhat quiet, so we came at the right time. Like Zakir bhai’s band, I wanted tabla to be the centrepiece.
I was able to do two things with RhythmScape – bring tabla into the forefront, and make listening to classical music cool. I belonged to a generation that grew up listening to classical music; but the next generation grew up with cable TV and hardly heard classical music. To them it was some faraway esoteric thing that you needed to know to enjoy. That’s not so – you can have fun with classical music without knowing or having learnt it and that’s what I wanted to show.
I have some of the best artists on RhythmScape – V Suresh on ghatam, S Shekharan on mridangam, and the laya and tala component is very solid, we do some incredible stuff. But there is also a fun element, with body drumming, cheek playing. There’s banter, it’s accessible to everyone, there’s a visual element – I throw my tablas in the air, stuff like that. The music I compose doesn’t intimidate the listeners.
How was your Hindi cinema experience?
Raju Hirani wanted me to do the music for ‘Munnabhai’ way back in 2002, but I was on contract with Raviji for that period and I couldn’t do it. I was travelling on a concert with him. But after that my music for movies started. Sonu Nigam and I compose music together now, it started with him singing a song for a Hindi film I did. I had done a couple of Bangla films too, when I was contacted by Mira Nair, who loved Rhythmscape. I did ‘Little Zizou’ which got me a lot of accolades. Then Sonu and I were nominated in the first 100 films for an Oscar for the best musical score for “Jal” even though it was not a success commercially. My latest,” Happy Anniversary” by Prahlad Kakkad is yet to be released. Recently, I composed music for a hit Bangla film, “Byomkesh Pawrbo”. I have acted as well and it was during a film “Hothat Neerar Jonnyo” that I met my wife Jaya Seal, who is an actress and dancer.
What have you changed in your concerts today?
Well for one, I play with two right tablas – the lower “sa” is added. In fact, Raviji encouraged me to play this. I play pakhawaj baaj during the instrumentalist’s jod portion in the aalap, like artists used to do years ago, but which now is more rare. Specially with sarod which has such a sonorous sound, it sounds very nice. I learnt Carnatic laya from Pandit S Shekhar for 30 years; that reflects in my playing too. I consciously play my own style; most tabla players today copy Zakir bhai’s style, but I consciously play differently.
You can’t really be a “paan” chewing, gold chain wearing traditional musician any more – you have to let your younger audience connect with you, by looking a certain way, talking a certain way. I feel there is a huge market for classical music, and the chemistry between the main artist and tabla player can create a certain excitement amongst the audience. If you want to play on stage with the same tabla players you practice at home with, it won’t make magic on stage. The audience should feel two greats are playing a jugalbandi, who knows what will happen on stage!
Gradually, I am playing a lot more classical concerts. In my case, the hierarchy issue has gone now, so I can play on my terms! From 2003-2008 I did not play classical concerts – perhaps I am the only tabla player in the history of players who has walked away from concerts!
Who do you like playing with in the current generation of musicians?
Tarun Bhattacharya, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Ronu Mazumdar, Tejendra Mazumdar, Tony (Debjyoti) Bose….
What’s next on your agenda?
I am playing a cameo, a bearded musician in a film “Band Of Maharajas”, which will start soon.
