ANURADHA PAL-THE QUEEN OF TABLA

ANURADHA PAL-THE QUEEN OF TABLA: by M.Iqbal, Cochin

Anuradha creats an amazing world of rhythm on Tabla. Like a magician. A wizard. She has arisen herself a maestro percussionist in the world scenario. But behind her uprisingone can see only tales of hard toils and struggles.
The regaled audience on hearing her Tabla playing, will shout, “Wah…Ustad Anuradhaji…” Many among them will express wonder, “Still, it is a woman playing like this…”
But this was the problem, to say, with Anuradha. Tabla is a hard instrument. The fingers of a woman will not play on it- this was the doubt of many of them. But Anuradha hadthe undiminishing will and restless endeavours to meet such a challenge. She met it.
One and a half lakh people had attended the Womad Festival conducted in Britain. It was Anuradha as the first ever woman there to perform a solo concert on percussion.The audience there who had come across the world was mesmerized by Anuradha’s performance with surprise. The Sunday Observor reported, “one more male bastioncaptured…by Anuradha Pal.” U K Weekly wrote, “The one and only one Queen onTabla”. It was a News for the British dailies.
Anuradha Pal, well versed with the stylization of Tabla gharanas Punjabi, Delhi, Benares, Poorab and Ajrada, had learnt Tabla for a span of period of 16 years from the world famous Ustad Alla Rakha and his son Ustad Zakir Hussain. Even now she is gettingher guidance from Ustad Zakir Hussain. She had also a training on Mridangam fromVidwan Umayalpuram Sivaraman for understanding the science of rhythm in Carnatic Music.
Anuradha Pal, who was born on 8th May 1975, as the daughter of Ravindra Pal andEla Pal, dremed in her childhood of becoming an air pilot! But her obsessive desireto music somehow brought in for her the world of Tals. Her father is a reputed pharmacist consultant and mother a well known writer and artist. Anuradha had been watching how amazingly scholars like Ustad Alla Rakha was playing Tabla!It attracted Anuradha Pal.
Regarding her education, after her studies in Mumbai Jamna Bai Narsi School, shehad continued in Rooparel College for Science stream. After that she had her higherStudies from Mitti Bai College on English Literature. Anuradha who had expressedher unabating desire for music from her childhood had her initial studies on HindustaniMusic from Manrao Popatkar and Madan Mishra. Striking balance to her training onMusic for three and four hours together well with the school studies, she had securedhigher marks for examinations. Anuradha appeared on stage to play Tabla solo right when she was only 10 years old.
Anuradha still remembers the moment she had met first her Guru Ustad Alla Rakha:“I still remember that. I had gone to him all alone. I requested him to beat me,to shout at me, but you please teach me Tabla.” Then he asked me, “Are you readyto practice Tabla for three-four hours a day?” She did not look back. From the nextday she had started her training from the great Ustad.
When Anurada hears her Guru’s name her throat gets stumbled. She honourilyremarks her Guru, “the Last Saint”. She says, “ I did not have any consideration from him for being a girl. Instead he had expected from me more on Tabla.She had realized my scope as a student on Tabla. Expected more from me.”Anuradha has great reverence to her second Guru Ustad Zakir Hussain. 16 years’ ideal Guru-Sishya relation! Alla Rakha has three sons. Some commentAnuradha to be his “fourth son”.]
The world was knowing her at Swarvilas Sangeetolsava. She was only 16 yeas old then.The reputed Classical singers Kishori Amonkar, Pandit Jasraj and Shobha Gurtuwere there to perform for the three day-festival. It was this girl, Anuradha, who hadaccompanied on Tabla for Kishori Amonkar, for the first day. It was a wonder to manypeople to see a girl accompanying on Tabla to such a great artist. But, for the secondday a storm had blown up in the music circles of Mumbai. Anuradha Pal hadperformed on Tabla solo. Some said, “see… another Zakir Hussain”. Subsequently,there were many a programme of Tabla concert by Anuradha Pal in the various partsof India. Everywhere the audience had felt it a wonder.
There appeared no delay in her mission with Tabla to the other parts of the world like United States, Europe, Hongkong, Japan etc. Actually she was on her Aswamedha. around the world. Anuradha who had enticed the Wellingdon Global Carnival of Mellbourne, Cardiff Jazz Festival of Manchester etc. was the centre of attration onthe 12th Commonwealth Games Festival in London. She also started to make dialoguewith other musical forms of the world, as her Gurus had successfully done.
Her venture with the African musicians, Pan African Orchestra, with the caption,“India and Africa in Conversation” became a notable event.
Anuradha has accompanied Tabla to illustrious Hindustani musicians like Pandit Jasraj, Hari Prasad Chowrasya, Shivkumar Sharma, Ustad Sultan Khan, Imrath Khan, ShahidParvez, Veena Sahasrabudhe and Viswa Mohan Bhat.
There are records related for Anuradha Pal with Encyclopaedia of Britanica, Asian-American Who is Who Journal, Historical Society of World, Limca Book of Records etc. As the First Female Percussionist of the World, the Rhythm Personality of the Women or as the Musical Genius.
Anuradha is also the founder of Stree Shakti. There are only women to play percussionsIn the Stree Shakti. The Stree Shakti troupe consisting of vocalist Shubha Pardakar,Meera Vijay Kumar in Veena, violinist A. Subba Lakshmi, Sasikala Venkita SwamiIn Ghadam, and in Ganjira is not only an embodiment of empowermentof women, but a synthesis of Hindustani-Carnatic musical systems of Percussions.Anuradha becomes eloquent when speaking about the Stree Shakti, which gives importance to rhythm, “rhythm is the sign of very life. Rhythm is motion. And the paceof advancement.”
“Saas aur Aawaaz” formed under the initiatives of Anuradha is yet another venture and has become notable for it’s organizing many a musical event. She laments onthe present days’ misfortune: “today the students who undergo studies for merely some days want to become famous instantly… many of them are not prepared toto take pains. .. they should understand our musicians had taken a lot of painsand sufferings to reach to their positions now… let our youngsters listen to goodmusic… let them think about the hardships faced by our Gurus.”
M.F. Hussain had identified Anuradha Pal for scoring background music for His movie, “Gajagamini”. Hussain who had by the time listened to the concert ofAnuradha, approached her and told, “In Gajagamini, the plight of women is depicted.Her pains, sufferings and sacrifices. Anuradha is expressing all these things in yourTabla. You actually speak on Tabla. I want this in Gajagamini…”
Anuradha has appeared in “Aaj ki Naari”, the documentary made by Films Divisionsof India.
Now Anuradha is busy with her engagement for the UNICEF film, “Gender Vendor”,directed by Poojitha Chowdhury. It is a film on women empowerment. Anuradhais giving her messages for the subject on Tabla.
Anuradha Pal’s albums are there in the market. Anokha (Solo) of B M G Crescendo,Stree Shakti, Sensational (with Ustad Shahid Pervez), Shanti, In Search of Peace, Spiritual Journey of India, Journey from Creation to Moksha, the albums releasedby United States Indian Archives, like Jugalbandis or Performance with Sarangi maestro Ustad Sultan Khan, Pandit Viswa Mohan Bhat, Tarun Bhatacharya and the solosAnu (Solo) by Amazon dot com and Orchard dot com.
Anuradha’s Tabla playing is a mesmerizing experience. The clarity of Parans.The perfect conclusion of Thihayis. Like her Gurus, we can visualize in herTabla also, the noises of heels of the horses, the waterfall, the rain, the lightningand thunder . Her fingers elegantly dances when she plays. Her eyes lashing out. The face eloquent. All these are for her journey…And she yet plays her Tablastill for perfection…
- by M. Iqbal, Cochin