Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur - 17a Raga Gaud Malhar "Surang Chunariya..."

Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur (31 December 1910 - 12 September 1992) hailed from Dharwad, Karnataka, and was an exponent of khayal gayaki, having been trained in the Gwalior and Atrauli gharana traditions. He learnt from Pandit Nilakanthbua Alurmath of Miraj, who had, in turn, received ta’lim from Pandit Balakrishnabua Ichalkaranjikar. Subsequently, Mansur ji became the gandabandh shagird of Ustad Badruddin ‘Manjhi’ Khan sahib, the son of Ustad Ghulam Ahmed 'Allahdiya' Khan sahib, one of the progenitors of the Atrauli gharana tradition. Following the untimely demise of Ustad Manjhi Khan sahib, Mansur ji subsequently learnt from Ustad Shamsuddin ‘Bhurji’ Khan sahib, the younger son of Ustad Allahdiya Khan sahib. Through his eclectic ta’lim and meticulous riyaz, Mansur ji was able to craft a gayaki which was instrumental in popularising the Atrauli gharana repertoire, along with several other representatives of the gharana tradition.

During the period 1933-36, Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur recorded 22 78 RPM records, across HMV, Twin, Broadcast & Columbia record labels, consisting of a total of 44 tracks. These tracks cover a range of genres - Khayal, Thumri-Dadra, Bhavageet & Vachana, giving an insight into his rich repertoire while he was in 20s. Most of the recordings feature the Gwalior repertoire, both in terms of ragas as well as bandish-es. It’s only towards the end that we get a glimpse of the Atrauli repertoire, with ragas Ek Nishad Bihagda and Nayaki Kanhra.

It is for the first time that the complete set of 44 tracks are being shared here on YouTube as a comprehensive and complete set, in order to give connoisseurs a sense of Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur’s early recorded genius. It is sad that we do not have his recordings from the late 1930s almost all the way up to the late 1950s in circulation, barring a few exceptions. These undoubtedly must have been the peak years of his performing career given that he would have been in the age group 30-50, typically when most classical musicians mature and perform with vigour & vitality. Nonetheless, from the late 1950s onwards and particularly from the early 1970s till his demise in 1992, we have access to a staggering number of archival recordings from various occasions, including festivals, intimate mehfil-s and landmark documentation sessions.

The a & b in the track names reflect the two sides of the 78 RPM record. Here is the complete list of the 44 tracks in this unique playlist:

1. 1a Bhavageet "Mandira Patoli..."
2. 1b Bhajan in Raga Karnataki Kafi "Yeh Maya..."
3. 2a Bhavageet "Hee Raat Savat..."
4. 2b Bhavageet "Hoi Bala Kamuka..."
5. 3a Raga Gaud Malhar "Sainyaan Mora Re..."
6. 3b Raga Adana "Kanganwa Mora..."
7. 4a Raga Alhaiya Bilawal "Naahin Bin Dekhe..."
8. 4b Raga Chhayanat "Eri Ab Gund Lao..."
9. 5a Raga Des "Daiyi Piya Bin..."
10. 5b Raga Jaunpuri "Hamaraiyya Raat..."
11. 6a Raga Hameer "Mainde Kul Aayi..."
12. 6b Raga Shankara "Tu Mera Sai..."
13. 7a Raga Bhimpalasi "Sohi Rasana..."
14. 7b Bhajan in Raga Kafi "Har Naam Sumar..."
15. 8a Kajri in Raga Mishra Sarang "Bin Baadal Bijli..."
16. 8b Thumri in Raga Ghara "Kaahe Ri Nanadiya Maare Bol..."
17. 9a Raga Miyan ki Todi "Bajo Re Mohammad Shah..."
18. 9b Thumri in Raga Kafi "Ab Ki Dekh Hamaari..."
19. 10a Bhavageet "Chal Jaavu Gokul..."
20. 10b Bhavageet "Jaoo Kuthe Vanmali..."
21. 11a Raga Multani "Laagi Laagi Re..."
22. 11b Raga Khambavati "Kaise Kaise Jaoon..."
23. 12a Dadra in Raga Mishra Ghara "Daghabaaz Tori Bansiya..."
24. 12b Dadra in Raga Zila "Sajna Pal Chadhu..."
25. 13a Raga Lalita Gauri "Yaar Kataari Mhanu Prem Di..."
26. 13b Raga Jaijaiwanti "Tujhe Malarani..."
27. 14a Raga Basant "Aisi Mundhata..."
28. 14b Raga Brindabani Sarang "Eri Main Jaagi..."
29. 15a Raga Todi "Been Been Bajaayi..."
30. 15b Raga Durga "Chatar Sughar..."
31. 16a Raga Puriya "Piya Mere Mann..."
32. 16b Tarana in Raga Malkauns
33. 17a Raga Gaud Malhar "Surang Chunariya..."
34. 17b Dadra in Raga Kafi "Barkatwa Liyo..."
35. 18a Bandish ki Thumri in Raga Mishra Mand "Mann Har Lino..."
36. 18b Raga Bhairav Bahar "Jobana Re..."
37. 19a Raga Ek Nishad Bihagda "Bairan Bin..."
38. 19b Raga Miyan ki Todi "Daiyya Baat Dubhar..."
39. 20a Raga Nayaki Kanhra "Mero Piya Rasiya..."
40. 20b Raga Yamani Bilawal "Aali Ri Kit Ve Gaye..."
41. 21a Bhajan "Shree Ramana..."
42. 21b Geet "Sada Viharati..."
43. 22a Basavanna Vachana "Neenolidare Koradu..."
44. 22b Shishunala Sharif Vachana "Teraneleyuthare Thangi..."

Special shout out to Prof. Rajeev Patke for having created this wonderful discography containing the details of all (but one!) 78 RPM records of Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur that were released. Here it is: https://courses.nus.edu.sg/course/ell...

For that one additional one not mentioned in the discography referred to above, I am grateful to my dear friend Samar Mavinkurve, and for the Vachana-s released on Twin Records, I am indebted to my dear friend Naveen Bharathi.

Enjoy!