Recorded at Darbar Festival 2006 on 4th April at the Phoenix Theatre, Leicester.

Musicians:
- Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty (khayal)
- Chiranjib Chakraborty (harmonium)
- Subhankar Banrjee (tabla)
- Kaviraj Singh (tanpura)

Surdas Bhajan

In 2006, Darbar presented Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty in an exclusive evening in his semi-classical avatar – a gamut consisting of numerous forms in which the stalwart holds a position of deep respect for his extensive knowledge, experience and authority on the subject.

In this video, he performs a Surdas bhajan, ‘Jag Me Jeevat Hi Ko Nato.’ Surdas was a visually challenged saint, poet and singer from the 16th century in India. His devotional compositions form one of the pioneering works that laid the foundations of the Bhakti movement in India – a spiritual revolution that stripped Hinduism of its sectarian, caste and creed-based propagation, re-established it as a form of spiritual anchor that is open to all and devoid of any discriminatory divisions in the society.

This bhajan is a narrative about the transience of human body against its permanent soul. Pandit Chakraborty dedicates it to his father in acceptance of this transience and permanence, although the grief of the loss still haunts him at that point. There is no rhythmic accompaniment throughout this bhajan.

Chiranjib Chakraborty calibrates his harmonium accompaniment to the slow-paced rendition, replicating Pandit Chakraborty’s meandering improvisations with great anticipation and confidence.