In this vibrant rendition of a traditional Ram bhajan, Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty creates moments of ecstasies in an exclusive evening of semi-classical presentations from the Darbar Festival 2006. Apart from his expertise in Hindustani and Carnatic classical repertoires, the acclaimed Pandit Chakraborty comes with a vast sea of knowledge and experience in many a semi-classical form of Indian music. This excerpt is from an evening where Darbar bent the rules slightly and presented him entirely in his semi-classical avatar.

This popular Ram bhajan – ‘Prem Mudit Man Se Kaho Ram Ram Naam’ (Call out to Lord Rama with a heart imbued in love) - is based loosely on Raag Bihag with traces of other ragas. Pandit Chakraborty expands and elaborates the melodic lines of this bhajan, bringing in shades and splashes of other ragas. His vivid and delicate vocal ornamentations extend the emotional experience of this devotional piece much beyond its lyrical contours.

Pandit Subhankar Banerjee provides upbeat thekas, enhancing the vivacity of this song and at the same time, underpinning its earnest emotions with controlled virtuosity.

Chiranjib Chakraborty’s accompaniment on the harmonium is commendable. His zesty and coherent pace with Pandit Chakraborty’s highly unpredictable melodic extensions is praiseworthy.

Musicians
Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty (khayal)
Chiranjib Chakraborty (harmonium)
Subhankar Banerjee (tabla)
Kaviraj Singh (tanpura)

Ram Bhajan