Janjgir Naglila Festival: These days a three-day Nag Leela is being organized in Janjgir Champa district. In this event, programs of different artists of Chhattisgarh were organized. An artist also came to present in this program who worked hard to keep his folk art alive and enthralled the people by presenting folk tales like Bharthari with singing. Special report of this famous Bharthari folk singer of Chhattisgarh…
The name of Chhattisgarh’s female artist Suraj Bai Khande is recorded in the pages of history for singing Bharathari, who has created her own identity by singing Bharathari in the country and abroad. At the same time, now another artist has emerged from Balaud district, whose name is Hemlata Patel, who practiced folk singing and Bharthari songs by watching the performance of her guru Rekha Jalakshatri and late Suraj Bai Khande from YouTube and today has given her presentation in many states apart from Chhattisgarh.
Chhattisgarh’s famous Bharthari folk singer Hemlata Patel, resident of Balod, said that just as the stories of the five Pandava brothers are sung in Pandavani, which our respected Teejan Bai Ji has taken to the country and the world, in the same way in Bharthari, the mythological story of King Bhartrihari and Mahakaleshwar Garh Ujjain is presented, it tells how a Bhogi king can become a yogi, this is the basic tone of Bharthari.
He said that his first inspiration was living the respected late Suraj Bai Khande, after that he watched through YouTube, then he also got the opportunity to learn from respected Gurumaa Rekha Jalchhatri ji, every year in the program organized in Raipur, he got excellent training in the new and old folk cultures of Chhattisgarh, from where he deeply studied the story of Raja Bhartrihari.
Hemlata told that they have not yet been registered with the Culture Department, hence the programs are limited to the surrounding areas of Maharashtra, Orissa, Raipur, Durg, Janjgir-Champa and Sarangarh. At the same time, among musical instruments she uses flute, harmonium and tabla. He told that earlier the mic arrangement was not proper, but now modern combinations like organ, pad, harmonium, tabla, banjo etc. are being used.
She said that every person has his own art, some are singers, some are instrumentalists, this artistic attraction has drawn her towards Bharthari, it starts with the folk tale about the essence of horse stables and elephants, the meaning of which very few people know, but she tried to understand it and perhaps that is why she has reached this position today. He told that he is about to complete two years of Bharthari singing.
Told a small couplet of Bharthari
Hemlata told that we start Bharthari by praising and worshiping Ganesh, in the beginning of the statement, get Bhagwat done, Naudha La Sun, the virtues of the name of Hari in the company of saints, heart is Rajim, breath is Dongargarh, this is what Bhaiya says in Chhattisgarh. The culture of our Chhattisgarh, the story of Raja Bharthari, is now being served with respect among all the people. In the end, folk singer Hemlata Patel appealed to all the people of Chhattisgarh that they should try to save their mother tongue and folk culture, because we ourselves are reducing the use of Chhattisgarhi language.
