One day while taking a ride on a tonga in Lucknow, Kathak guru Pandit Birju Maharaj was surprised to hear the tongawallah sing a thumri. Not because tongawallahs aren't given to classical music, but because even as an expert he did not know the provenance of the thumri. Birju Maharaj was more astonished to learn that it was Bindadin Maharaj's thumri. He quickly jotted down the lyrics and notation before turning to the awed tongawallah and revealed himself to be the grandson of Bindadin. To both of them, it became clear that day that the thumri, the royal song of yearning and sublimation, of lovers and courtesans, was fast approaching the "endangered" status.

LAST NOTES: Mishra (top) Savita Devi hope the tradition of thumri will survive

Great khayal singers like Pandit Bhimsen Joshi still charm the masses with thumris. But there are others who throw an obligatory thumri at the audience, oblivious to its form, idiom and the structure. "Musicians are to be blamed for presenting half-baked thumris," says Pandit Chhannulal Mishra of the Benaras gharana. To popularise the genre, Mishra even sang thumris in the film Let's Talk to the accompaniment of western instruments. But it will take more measures to keep the tradition alive. The thumri festival organised by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations in Delhi last week was one such step.

Lack of encouragement from concert organisers is one of the many reasons for the decline of thumri. "A thumri responds better to a mehfil than a public concert," explains Biswajit Roy Chowdhry, curator of the Shankarlal Music Festival held annually in Delhi. "An intimate gathering appreciates the subtle nuances and inspires the singer." Another reason is the perception among classicists that thumri is the preserve of women. "Thumri is considered an effeminate art," says exponent Savita Devi. No wonder there are no exclusively thumri male singers today. Others believe thumri is subservient to the khayal, being a semi or light classical form. Savita Devi disagrees: "Intricacies of technique are stressed in khayal, so there are limitations. But thumri gives freedom to the singer."

Thumri was born in the 18th century in the United Provinces, now Uttar Pradesh. The last nawab of Oudh, Wajid Ali Shah, not only patronised it but composed thumris under the pseudonym Akhtar Piya. Thumri is derived from the Hindi word "thum" representing the music emanating from anklets and "thumak", the graceful stamping of the foot. "Ri" is from "rijhana" or aesthetically charming. Musicologist Sumati Mutatkar traces thumri lyrics to the kathas recited by kathakars in temples. Initially a part of kathak, it went on to acquire a distinct musical style.

The problem with perpetuating thumri goes beyond just the passing away of greats like Rasoolan Bai, Siddeshwari Devi and Begum Akhtar, who used to perform at mehfils for as long as nine hours. For one, the sarangi, the instrument long associated with thumris, is itself on the wane. The guru-sishya parampara too is lacking. Very few singers have groomed disciples. Even university syllabi do not stress this form. Also, many gurus are unwilling to part with their treasure of rare compositions. In other words, the preservation of the thumri may yet depend on accidental occasions like an exponent coming across his grandfather's composition on a tonga.

-S. Sahaya Ranjit