On November 10, there is a morning concert by Arya Sangeet Prasarak at Tilak Smarak Mandir, which will also feature his father, the eminent Shrinivas Joshi (Express Photo by Pavan Khengre)In Delhi, one of the nation’s most eclectic centres of art, Pune vocalist Viraj Joshi was surprised to hear that the tradition of morning Diwali musical concerts does not happen anywhere except Maharashtra.“When the organisers whom I had been talking to told me that Diwali concerts only take place in Maharashtra, I was amazed. That makes the Diwali pahat really special, especially as, nowadays, we don’t get to hear a lot of early morning concerts. Diwali becomes a special occasion to perform morning ragas,” says Joshi.If the evening of Diwali is marked by lights, the morning is to come together to listen to an eminent or rising musician fill the cool November air with ragas and other compositions. Pune vocalist Viraj Joshi was surprised to hear that the tradition of morning Diwali musical concerts does not happen anywhere except Maharashtra. (Special Arrangement)“Many people want to hear the famous renditions of my grandfather, the late Pt Bhimsen Joshi, from me. I make it a point to include Indian classical music. After performing the raga for at least 10 to 15 minutes, I move on to singing lighter compositions,” says Joshi, who will be performing at Chittaranjan Vatika in Model Colony early morning on November 8. On November 10, there is a morning concert by Arya Sangeet Prasarak at Tilak Smarak Mandir, which will also feature his father, the eminent Shrinivas Joshi.“Till around 2000, Indian classical music concerts used to happen all night and people got to listen to a lot of early morning and midnight ragas. This tradition is now preserved by the Diwali Pahat concerts,” says Joshi.Apart from the Diwali Pahat, concerts are spread across the Diwali week and held across the state, including Kolhapur and Sangli. A number of morning concerts are held on the days preceding or following Diwali.Rahul Deshpande’s voice will be heard from Mumbai to Pune this month. On November 9, he will take the stage at the Pu La Deshpande Udyaan on Sinhagad Road. Deshpande says that while Diwali is a festival that one celebrates with everyone, one’s family, friends, colleagues and loved ones, he feels “truly fortunate” that through his music, he gets to celebrate it with thousands of people.Story continues below this ad“There is something very special about being a part of so many people’s celebrations and sharing in their joy. The experience is wonderful, but the satisfaction and happiness it gives me is something I cannot really put into words. I look forward to Diwali every year, and I hope everyone gets to experience the same joy that I do,” says Deshpande.Across the city, Diwali Pahat this year will features the doyens of music, such as Suresh Wadkar, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and Kaushiki Chakraborty. Classical vocalist Urvashi Shah, who is also an artiste at Akashvani Bhavan and has performed at Nehru Centre London and at Ganeshotsav Berlin, says that the strictly-classical morning is giving way to something lighter. She added that younger listeners, fed on music from apps, were attracted to “a mixed bouquet of different compositions” rather than a single raga that stretched over 45 minutes to an hour. Mahesh Kale, a master of Hindustani classical ragas, Abhangs, Bhakti Geet and Marathi Natyasangeet, will perform at the Poona Club on the morning of November 6. (Input from Bhagyashri Prajapati) Dipanita Nath is a Senior Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. She is a versatile ... Read More