'Bhajo Re Bhaiya' by Vedanth Bharadwaj

Remember the essential, and call it whatever name you will – Raam, Govind or Hari. In this deceptively simple song, with just a few, succinct words, Kabir reminds us that death is dancing over our heads, though we try to remain obtusely unaware of it. So the time to connect with the essence, as always, is now!

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Find lyrics/translation of this song at
http://ajabshahar.com/songs/details/1...
Discover a universe of Bhakti, Sufi, Baul poetry and music at http://www.ajabshahar.org.
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It was a lazy afternoon on the steps of a lake by the Jageri Dhooni where we had paused our caravan of the Rajasthan Kabir Yatra. Vedanth picked up his guitar to sing this curious blues-y evocation of Kabir, and the motley gathering of listeners was charmed. It was – as one of the Yatris put it – Muddy Waters meets Kabir!

“My guru, Sri Ramamoorthy Rao, taught me Bhajo Re Bhaiya in Raag Jog-Kauns,” says Vedanth. “One day I was strumming the 12 bar blues on my guitar and suddenly started singing Bhajo Re Bhaiya over that and it seemed to fit like magic! It wasn't the same as what he had taught me, but the seeds were from there, nevertheless. So I sang it to my guru, he took it pretty well, and said, the blues goes well with what Kabir is saying in this song. And that's how Bhajo Re Bhaiya happened!”

Vedanth Bharadwaj is an independent composer, singer and guitarist from Chennai. In his music, the rigour of Carnatic, Hindustani and Western classical music all comes together in a charming and powerful blend. Contact Vedanth at vedanthmusic@gmail.com;   / vedanthbharadwaj;   www.vedanth.in

(Click on Settings for subtitles in English & Hindi. Click ‘B’ on keyboard to remove the black background in subtitles.)

The Rajasthan Kabir Yatra was a travelling festival which toured 7 villages with 13 singers of Bhakti, Sufi and Baul poetry in February 2012. The Yatra was organized by Lokayan in Bikaner (http://www.lokayan.org) in partnership with the Kabir Project, Bangalore.

Ajab Shahar is a digital archive of mystic poetry and music drawing from the rich Bhakti and Sufi oral traditions in India and beyond... Explore a world of sung and spoken wisdom at https://ajabshahar.com

Song Credits:
Composition, Guitar & Vocals: Vedanth Bharadwaj

Translation: Vipul Rikhi

Video Credits:
Camera: Smriti Chanchani
Sound: Rahul Orra
Editing: Piyush Kashyap & Aarthi Parthasarathy
Sub-Titling: Nandini Nayyar
Collection: The Kabir Project

Date of Recording: 28th February, 2012