Gangubai Hangal: Doyen of Kirana Gharana in Hindustani Classical music

Gangubai Hangal: Doyen of Kirana Gharana in Hindustani Classical music

Hubali and Dharwad are two twin cities and very well known for their glorious contributions in the Hindustani classical Music. Some vocalists like Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur, Ramchandra Kungolkar (Sawai Gandharva) and Jayateerth Mevundi is the examples, but Gangubai Hangal is possibly the most well-known of them all. Multifaceted and Humorist Marathi writer P L Deshpande once rightly said that,” Hubali and Dharwad is the twin city and known for Sidharth Math (a national renowned Spiritual Ashram) and Gangubai Hangal. If Hubali and Dharwad is on the world map,  it is largely due to these two”.

From Yogesh Gogwekar

Gangubai Chikkurao Hangal was born on 5th March 1913 in family of occupational musician in Dharwad, Her Mother, Ambabai, was a vocalist in Carnatic music and was an expert in singing Javali a gebre of semi erotic song. It was being said that Ustad Adbul Karim Khan used to come to her to learn Javali. Ambabai taught Sanskrit with proper pronunciation of Shloka to Gangubai. From local school at Dharwad, she learnt to sing the patriotic songs and in 1924, at the age of 10, she got an opportunity to sing the welcome song at the inauguration of Indian national Congress session in front of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad in Belgaum. Seeing Gangubai’s interest in music, Ambabai also taught her Carnatic classical music and after completing her elementary education from Dharwad School, family of Gangubai shifted to Hubali  in 1928. So that she could get training in Hindustani Music. Thus, music came to her easily but also with a feeling of social embarrassment as Hangal belongs to Gangamata cast in which women were using their mother name because they are not officially married. Ambabai was lover of agriculturalist Brahmins Chikkurao Nadiger, Similarly, her daughter Gangubai was a lover of Brahmin lawyer Gururao Kaulgi. 

In the beginning, she started learning Hindustani classical music from Krishnacharya and Dattopant Desai. She took initiative in self-learning and learnt the music by listening to records of singers Joharabai  and took interest to study the various volume of music of Pandit Bhatkhande; but her real education of Hindustani Classical Music started in 1937 when she  became the student of Sawai Gandharva who was the master in the genre of Kirana Gharana. Even though, her voice was sweet, thin and feminine, she used to change her voice to broad and heavy tone at the time of singing classical music, especially Khyal. 

Gangubai always prefers to sing selected Raaga with an inherent mood which allow slow melodic elaboration, especially, Raag Bhairav which is an ancient raaga and simple raaga of Bhairav thaat and always perform in the morning and the beginning of the concert. It is often taught to the fresh learners. This is mythological raaga related to Lord Shiva as there is a firm belief that this raaga was first originated from the mouth of Lord Shiva. Gangubai performed this raaga in a simple way by using all melodic movements. For this purpose, everyone should listen her khyal in this raaga “Balama More Sainya”. She also always liked to sing devotional songs in Kannada. 

Gangubai became a master of Hindustani Classical music of Kirana Gharana; she mesmerized her fans by her melodious voice for nearly seven decades. She has been honoured by awards like Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and Sangeet Natak Academic. From 1928 onwards, she used to sing at Dover Lane music Conference in Kolkata.

Such a doyen of Hindustani classical music died in Kolkata at the age of 97 on 21st July 2009 due to respiratory problems. She will be remembered through her musical legacy. Thanks to government of Karnataka to establish two institutions by her name in Hubali.  

Mumbai

06/06/2020