When Taruna Sahu became a police inspector, one of the first people she visited was her guru, legendary Pandavani exponent Teejan Bai.Dressed in her new uniform, Sahu sought the blessings of the artist who had shaped her life for nearly two decades. Teejan had one piece of advice: “Don’t you give up on Pandavani.”Sahu, now 40 and posted as an inspector with the Railway Protection Force (RPF) in Rajnandgaon, says she has kept that promise.Teejan Bai, who died at AIIMS Raipur on Sunday at the age of 69 after a prolonged illness, broke centuries-old social barriers to become the first woman from the Pardhi community to gain national acclaim for performing Pandavani, the oral tradition that narrates stories from the Mahabharata. Her legacy now continues through many of the more than 200 disciples she trained over the decades.Among them is Sahu, who first met Teejan when she was a 10-year-old student at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in the 1990s.“I was a hostel student… and was singing out loud in my classroom when my music teacher spotted me and said, ‘You are good at singing. Have you heard of Teejan Bai?’ I was among the 100 children who were taken for training, and only 10 were selected to perform with Teejan didi in Delhi. With 15 days of training, we performed the Draupadi Swayamvar with her. Since then, I have performed over 50 times with her. Thanks to her, I had the honour to perform in front of our former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji,” Sahu recalled.What began as a school workshop turned into a 16-year apprenticeship.Story continues below this ad“I was a small-town girl. Teejan didi gave me an identity. I trained under her for 16 years. She treated me like her own daughter and even allowed me to stay at her home. I still know her address by heart,” she said.Days before Teejan’s death, Sahu spoke to The Indian Express about the woman she knew beyond the stage.“She loved wearing bangles, gold and make-up. She wore lali, lipstick and kajal, and chewing paan was a must before every Pandavani performance,” Sahu said with a smile.After joining policeEven after joining the police force, Sahu refused to let go of the art form. She performs during holidays and weekly offs, acknowledging that Pandavani alone cannot provide a livelihood for her.Story continues below this ad“When I became a police officer, I went to meet Teejan didi dressed in my uniform. The first thing she told me was that I should not give up on Pandavani, and I have kept the promise. It is true that the Pandavani art form is not enough to sustain a living, but it is my passion,” she said.Sahu is also trying to adapt the centuries-old storytelling tradition for younger audiences.Because Pandavani is performed in Chhattisgarhi, she says many outside the state struggle to understand the lyrics.“To help my audience, I am working on visuals in the background related to the performance where I have to sing over a dozen songs for 90 minutes to two hours alongside a narration,” she said.TeachingStory continues below this adTeaching the next generation, she added, has become equally important.“Recently, my performance on YouTube was seen by a small girl who started singing. Her mother brought her to me, and I was so happy. I want to teach it to the next generation so that the legacy of the Pandavani art form continues,” she said.For Sahu, Pandavani is more than a performing art. “It’s not only an art form but a performance that tells us the difference between good and evil. As a police officer, I see a lot of crime, but I believe this art form can help us become good human beings. I think the government must continue the initiative where it conducts Pandavani camps, which introduced me to Teejan Bai,” she said.‘Embodiment of India’s soul’Padma Shri awardee Anup Ranjan Pandey, 60, a musician and folk theatre artiste from Chhattisgarh, said Teejan Bai was not just a folk artiste, “she was the living embodiment of India’s soul”.Story continues below this ad“Through her extraordinary voice, the tambura, and her powerful folk renditions of the Mahabharata, she carried Indian values, traditions, and the essence of its spiritual culture to people across the globe,” Pandey said.Sudhir Saxena, 71, remembered Teejan Bai as a very young artiste. He first interviewed her in 1978. “She was full of confidence. After my interview, she performed on Akashvani radio and collected her first cheque,” he recalled.She also appeared in Shyam Benegal’s acclaimed TV series Bharat Ek Khoj, introducing Pandavani to millions.