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Listening Nepali melodies in the heart of the smoggy, smoky, choking Delhi
The smoggy ITO crossing can hardly be mistaken for the breezy Mall Road of Mussoorie. But curiously, it is here that the natives of Kumaon and Garhwal presently residing in Delhi head for their music fix. All thanks to four rickety stalls specializing in Garhwali and Kumaoni music videos.
These stalls are a treasure-trove for Uttaranchali music lovers.(Uttaranchal is a tiny Himalays province north of Delhi and primarily consist of two regions of Garhwal and Kumaon.) About 300 VCDs, audio CDs, and cassettes fly off their shelves daily. Although there are Bhojpuri songs also in stock, the Uttaranchali chartbusters are the biggest draw. “Garhwalis come here from all parts of Delhi,” claims Ravindra Singh of the Maiti Music Center, who chose to name his stall after the Garhwali word for maayka. “An immigrant in Delhi is like a girl in her sasural who keeps yearning for her mother’s home,” he explains.
It would be a pity if this music remains limited in its appeal. There might be difficulty in understanding the language but the VCDs are really amusing. True, the camera work is amateurish, the dance steps contrived, but the home video feel is endearing.
For a dummies’ guide to Uttaranchali music Dinesh Singh of Pooja Music Center comes to the rescue. “Narendra Singh Negi is our Amitabh Bachchan,” he says recommending Nauchemi Narena. This bestselling music album is a spoof on former Uttaranchal chief minister N. D. Tiwari. The video plays on popular perceptions about him, showing a Tiwari look-alike playing the flute and serenading several young women.
Music videos on love songs sometimes feature deliciously raunchy dance numbers, but alas, they lack the spicy rawness of their Bhojpuri counterparts. Still, entertainment is guaranteed. Have fun.
Price: VCDs and Audio CDs are priced at Rs 40, Audio cassettes at Rs 25
Timing: 8 am to 9 pm
Where: Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, Opposite Abdul Nabi Masjid
(2 votes, average: 2 out of 5)
Loading ...Posted by Mayank Austen Soofi on Monday, November 2, 2009 at 6:55 pm
Filed under Musings · Tagged Garhwal, ITO crossing, Kumaoni music, Maiti Music Center, Mall Road, Mussoorie
These himachali pahadi guys are great cooks. We had this young chap in our company guesthouse at khar who used to make the most amazing roti, dal, sabzi and chicken on weekends. Also there was a small restaurant in front of M&M - TD Kandivli run by a pahadi cook. excellent. grr making me hungry. aaaand of all the places in hiroshima japan i came across a nepali chap running a Indian restaurant. well the culinary skills of these guys is not the point of the post but thats all I can think of when they r mentioned. So there !!!
btw quite a short post Soofi i thought u would ramble on about one of your trips to the mountains.
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hi,delhiwalla .I found ur article intersting . But, in content of ur article is about Garhwali and Kumaoni music, but in title u have mentioned nepali music. I believe Garhwali and kumaoni music can’t be defined as nepali. Although, nepali laguage spoken in far western region is similar to Garhwali and kumaoni.
Music u mentioned listening up in Delhi is Garhwali and kumaoni not Nepali.
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