An Indian classical instrument?

Indian classical music is essentially a vocal art form. But both melodic and percussion instruments have traditionally been used to accompany the singer. The most common accompanying instruments used in classical music are the violin in Carnatic (south Indian) music and the harmonium in Hindustani (north India) music. Both are considered Indian musical instruments. Indian, did we say? The truth is that both are relatively recent additions to Indian culture but very quickly became the preferred instruments. In this post, I will focus on the harmonium. In a later post, I will also talk about the violin and the interesting story about how it became a part of carnatic music.

The harmonium is a type of reed organ, that was not uncommon in Western classical music in the second half of the 19th century, but has almost completely disappeared from the scene by now. It is said to have been invented by the Frenchman Alexandre Debain in 1842.

Reeds are metallic strips that vibrate when air is forced through a slit near them. The reeds are sized and shaped to vibrate at a particular frequency, which in turn is associated with a particular note. This mechanism is common to several instruments, including the harmonica and the accordion. In the harmonium, air is forced over the reeds through the use of bellows. In typical western harmoniums, the bellow are operated by a foot pedal, freeing both hands for playing using piano-like keys.

Traditional Harmonium with Foot Pedal

Several composers wrote musical compositions specifically for the harmonium. You can hear one such composition by clicking this link, that was played on the instrument in the picture above.

European missionaries and the clergy brought with them portable versions of the harmonium. They were easy to carry and could be much more easily used with choral music in churches and missions in small colonial outposts than full-sized organs. One such organ folded up into a box like the one below.

Harmonium in a Box

However, in just a few minutes, this harmonium in a box could be assembled into the instrument shown below

Fully Assembled Harmonium in a Box

Eventually, the instrument got passed on to Indian classical musicians by the missionaries in places like Rampur and Delhi during the mid 19th century. It did not, however, get adopted into Hindustani classical music unchanged. The major changes in its design included the replacement of foot-operated bellows with hand-operated bellows. This was because Hindustani musicians (as indeed classical musicians anywhere in India) would never perform sitting on a chair or a steel. The hand-operated bellows allowed it to be placed sitting on the floor. And the fact that only one hand could now be used for playing, while the other operated the bellows, was not a loss of capability, since Hindustani music is not polyphonic in nature. Another significant modification was the addition of drone stops (which played a constant note without having to press any key) and octave couplers (to play the same note in two octaves at a time, in order to impart richness to the tone of the instrument).

Typical Indian Harmonium with Hand Operated Bellows

Within a period of a few decades, the instrument had become the most popular accompanying instrument. Although it is somewhat limited in scope, when it comes to Indian classical music (since it is an instrument with discrete notes, and hence disallowing the glides and embellishments that are an integral part of the art form) its popularity is largely due to its portability and the ease with which it can be learnt. While some top musicians consider it inadequate and hence use the Sarangi as the accompanying instrument, the harmonium continues to be extremely popular. From classical music, it has also made its way to other forms of music like qawwalis, ghazal singing and even some forms of folk music.

In recent years, further modifications have been made to harmoniums by several musicians. The most significant changes were made by one of the greatest Harmonium players in Hindustani music, Pandit Manohar Chimote. He called the modified instrument as the Samvadini. The main objective of the modifications was the creation of an instrument that could approach the capabilities required of a solo instrument. Pandit Chimote and some of his disciples have indeed given a number of solo concerts on the harmonium, even though it remains an instrument used primarily for accompanying vocal singers (or other instruments) till date.

Samvadini

Here's a clip of a solo piece in Raga Mishra Pahadi played by Jitendre Gore on the Samvadini

To sum up, the harmonium is well established in India as a classical instrument, albeit primarily for accompanying vocal music. At the same time, it has almost entirely vanished in Western music. There are no known makers of the foot-operated harmonium and the only harmoniums still around are those made more than a century old. Its origins are therefore almost forgotten. The story of this instrument also illustrates how 'classical' in 'classical' music does not automatically imply 'static' or even 'historical'.

Photo credits:

1. Foot operated harmonium: Jef Raskin - Waters and Sons Harmonium
2. Folding harmonium (two pictures): Jef Raskin - Estey Folding Chaplain's Harmonium
3. Samvadini: Rajendra Vaishampayan's website

Audio credits:
1. Western classical music clip: Jef Raskin
2. Samvadini clip: Jitendra Gore

References:
1. Wikipedia page on the harmonium
2. Rajendra Vaishampayan's website
3. The Classical Harmonium - by Henry Doktorski

We don't even know what we don't know

One of the books I am currently reading is "Fragmented Memories: Struggling to be Tai-Ahom in India" by Yasmin Saikia. The book is about the history of Assam, or rather its absence from the history of India as taught to most Indians. And it is about identity, sub-nationalism and the associated politics. The book itself is marginally interesting, but the reason I am writing this post is because the book reminded me how little I know about the history (and indeed the present) of the North East of India. History was one of my favourite subjects in school and I consider myself reasonably knowledgeable about Indian history. But I am ashamed to say that this "Indian" history does not include the history of Assam or the rest of the North East. It is simply absent from Indian history. I do not recall a single book of Indian history I have read until now, whether by Indian or non-Indian authors, that has anything at all to say about it. It was even more surprising to me when I discovered how well documented Assamese history is. This post (and perhaps future ones) will attempt to at least partially fill this gaping hole in our knowledge of Assamese history.

The earliest settlements in the region of Assam date back to the early stone age. There is also evidence of extensive neolithic (later stone age) presence in Assam. This is not surprising, since the neolithic cultures (which represent the beginnings of agriculture and human settlement) took place in fertile areas close to rivers. The Brahmaputra river provided an abundant year-round supply of water and the annual floods of the river ensured that the land was very fertile.

The early proto-history of Assam is constructed primarily from the epics and is hence somewhat tenuous. The recorded history of Assam really dates back to the establishment of the Kamarupa kingdom and the Varman dynasty by Pushya Varman in the 4th century CE. The history of Assam is often divided into four major periods. The ancient period between the 4th century CE and 12th century CE is also sometimes referred to as the Kamarupa period after the kingdom of that name, although power did not stay in the hands of one dynasty throughout this period. The medieval period, dating from the 13th century CE until the early 19th century CE, saw a struggle for power in the region of Assam between various local chieftains, the Muslim rulers of Bengal and even of Delhi in later periods and various groups from Burma and further away in South East Asia. The third period is the colonial period, which starts from the inclusion of Assam in British India starting in 1824 and lasts till the independence of India in 1947. Finally, the post-colonial period of Assamese history starts from 1947 and continues till date.

In this post, I shall focus on the history of medieval Assam and specifically on the period of the Ahoms. There are three reasons for this focus (at least for now). First, it is the period I have learnt the most about due to the focus in Yasmin Sheikh's book (ciited above). Second, it is one of the longest periods of Assamese history, lasting about 600 years from 1228 (when the first Ahom kingdom was established) to 1824 (when it was finally liquidated and Assam became a part of the British empire). Third, it is highly relevant to Assamese identity. The name Assam itself is a corruption of the word Ahom. And like other nationalist movements, the Assamese nationalist movements have also linked Assamese identity with real and imagined glories of the past, of which the Ahom period is considered (by them) to be the most significant. Hence, this focus on the Ahoms, at least for the purpose of this post.

The origins of the Ahom kingdom dates to the early 13th century, when a Shan prince by the name Sukaphaa established his kingdom in the region centered around current-day Sibsagar. The capital of the kingdom was established in 1253, but the dynasty is usually acknowledged as having begun in 1228, when Sukaphaa first reached the plains of Assam. He was originally from the region near the current borders of Burma and Thailand, where most of the Shan currently live. Unlike many other kingdoms, its name is not based on that of the ruling dynasty. The term 'Ahom' first appears in Assam's historical chronicles, the Buranjis and it is used to refer to the entire civil and military bureaucracy of the kingdom.

The Ahoms are also often referred to as the Tai Ahoms, where the 'Tai' refers to the language spoken by them. The Tai Ahoms brought with them their own religious customs and language, remnants of which have survived till this day. Over time, the integration of the Tai Ahoms into Assamese society proceeded. While the kings were always drawn from the descendents of the dynasty's founder, the officialdom increasingly included local officials. Former kings, chieftains and warlords including the Koch (of Koch Hajo and Koch Bihar fame), the Chutiyas, the Bhuyans were eventually co-opted into the Ahom officialdom or allowed to rule under Ahom supremacy. Over time, the Tai Ahoms adopted Hindu religious customs and the Assamese language as the official court language.

The Ahom king, as mentioned earlier, was chosen from amongst the descendants of the founder of the dynasty - Sukaphaa. However, succession was not by male progeniture as was common elsewhere in the subcontinent. The power of deciding who the successor would be resided in the powerful officialdom of the kingdom, especially the Gohains. Gohains were powerful officials who were appointed to assist the king, termed as the Swargadeo, in his administration. They were often, but not exclusively, from the royal family. However, any prince eligible to be a future Swargadeo was explicitly disallowed from being appointed a Gohain. The five most powerful officials or Gohains were the Burhagohain, Bargohain, Barpatragohain, Barbarua and Barphukan. The central bureaucracy was served by a series of officials with titles like Barua and Phukan (which are common Assamese surnames today).

The common man's life is considered to have remained unaffected in most of India with changes in dynasty. In fact, even democracy is often considered to have changed the rural Indian's life in a relatively small way. However, the coming of the Ahom kingdom considerably changed the lives of rural people living in Assam. This was because of the introduction of the "Paik" system. Under this system, each commoner was termed a "Paik". At any given point of time, one fourth of the Paiks in the kingdom had to render forced service to the King. This form of servitude had not existed in the previous regimes, with the armies consisting of mercenaries and some committed volunteers and civil labour being composed entirely of volunteers. While the system was repressive, it was also very efficient. An extensive bureaucracy administered this system, with officials like Bora (in charge of 20 Paiks), Saikias (100 Paiks) and Hazarikas (1000 Paiks) appointed to ensure the smooth running of the system. One of the important reasons for the logevity of the Ahom kingdom was the strong bureaucracy that kept the gears of the administration well-oiled.

The Ahoms were faced with a number of attacks by the Mughal empire, which was strongly entrenched in Bengal by the time of Akbar. The first Mughal-Ahom conflict of significance took place during the reign of Jahangir, though the Mughal campaign was mostly locally managed, with little involvement of the emperor in Agra. The Ahoms managed to thwart these attacks during the reign of Jehangir, his successor Shah Jehan and even during Aurangzeb's reign repeatedly and while there were temporary setbacks, regained control very quickly each time. Finally, the Ahoms were defeated by Aurangzeb's governor in Dhaka, Mir Jumla and signed the treaty of Gilajharighat in 1663. In 1667, the Ahom king appointed Lachir Barphukan as the Commander-in-Chief of the Ahom army and tasked him to retake the lands granted under the treaty. Using a combination of guerrilla tactics and sabotage, Barphukan managed to drive the Mughals out of Assam. The Mughals retaliated in 1669 but were finally defeated by Lachit Barphukan's heavily outnumbered army in the famous Battle of Seraighat. This brought to a final end any Mughal attempts to establish supremacy over Assam. Lachit Barphukan is considered one of the most important personalities in Assamese history and enjoys legendary fame, bordering on veneration, to this day.

While the Ahom kingdom survived a couple of centuries after this event, it never reached the heights of power that it did in the 17th century. It got weaker both administratively and militarily. In the early part of the 19th century, the Burmese kings started probing attacks on Assamese territory. There were three major invasions between 1817 and 1819 and eventually the Ahom kingdom was abolished and Burmese rule established over Assam. However, this was not to last long, with the British defeating the Burmese kings and annexing Burma. The treaty of Yandaboo in 1826 finally brought an end to the Burmese rule over the areas of Assam and Assam officially became a part of British India.

The purpose of this long account of Ahom rule in Assam is not just a lesson in an important part of India's history. It would also illustrate to most Indians how little we know of even the most prominent parts of Assam's history. How every child has heard of the three Battles of Panipat, but none has heard of the Battle of Seraighat, despite the huge role it played in shaping Assam's history. Or the historical linkages with other regions of the world, South East Asia in this instance. We (and I can say this at least for myself) are in a state of "we don't even know what we don't know".

Sources:
1. Wikipedia pages on the History of Assam
2. Yasmin Saikia, "Fragmented Memories: Struggling to be Tai Ahom in India"

The Siddis: a slice of East Africa in India

I was reading Owais Mughal's post on his blog about the Sheedis of Karachi and it got me thinking about the Siddis who live on the West Coast of India. I remembered the old documentaries on Doordarshan from my childhood that referred to them. My interest was piqued and I tried to find out more about them.

According to the Wikipedia entry on the Siddi community, they are of East African descent. Their ancestors are said to have arrived in India between the 11th and 19th centuries. While most seem to have been brought to India as slaves by Arabs and Europeans, many were also apparently free men - merchants, soldiers, administrators etc. Some of them even rose to prominence, (source: Wikipedia page) though it is not clear if these were actually Habashis (Abbysinians) who are being confused with Siddis.

A Smiling Siddi Girl

The origin of the name 'Siddi' for the community is not completely clear. In Western Arabic and in Egypt, the word 'Siddi' has the same meaning as 'Syed', i.e. somebody who can trace his origin to Prophet Muhammad's family and is a honorific title. One theory suggests that the name was used by them on conversion into Islam. On the other hand, Siddis are not exclusively Muslim. Many of them are Hindus and a few (particularly in and around Goa) are Catholics as well. Hence, this explanation for the origins of the name is not perfect.

In Pakistan, they are referred to as Sheedis, and not Siddis. In that country, they are mostly concentrated in the Karachi area. In India, there are between 20,000 and 30,000 Siddis in Gujarat, with some exclusively Siddi settlements inside the Gir forest near Junagarh (incidentally, the only abode in the wild for the Asiatic lions). It appears that most of the Siddis in Gujarat were brought there by the Nawabs of Junagarh in the 15th and 16th centuries. There are also significant settlements in the areas around Goa (where the Portuguese brought them as slaves and from whom they escaped into neighbouring areas currently in Maharashtra and Karnataka).

Siddis have largely assimilated into the local populations where they live, adopting local religions, languages, food habits and clothes. The only remaining cultural traits from their African origins are their music and dance forms. The dance form that they are most famous for is called Dhamal.

Dhamal Dance

While they are culturally assimilated, there has been little, if any, intermarriage between tribals and others in the areas they live in and hence they have remained a distinct community. They have also faced discrimination and isolation. In Saurashtra, they are the only tribal community and are at the bottom rungs of the social hierarchy. They are an extremely impoverished community and either live off the land inside forest areas or are employed as agricultural labourers. The Government of India has designated them as a Scheduled Tribe, thereby giving them access to affirmative action e.g. reserved seats in educational institutions and in Government jobs and financial assistance. However, their small numbers, coupled with low development status and general apathy of the Government has ensured that very few Indians even know about their existence. One famous Siddi is the goalkeeper of the Salgaocar SC football club of Goa (one of the most prominent and successful clubs in the premier division of the national football league) - Juje Siddi. But apart from him, I was unable to come up with contemporary examples of Siddis in any significant modern occupation.

In sum, the Siddis constitute a unique element in the diverse society that is India and the same is the case in Pakistan. While facilitating the preservation of their unique culture and allowing them to retain whatever level of distinctiveness they wish to retain, it is incumbent upon our Governments and socieites at large to help this community develop and gain access to modern education and employment.

References and resources:
1. Wikipedia page on Siddis
2. K. L. Kamat's photo essay "The African Connection"
3. Team Members of Salgaocar SC, Goa
4. Essay on the Siddis of Janjira and the Dhamal dance

Photo credits
1. Siddi girl: The African Presence in India: A Photo Essay: by Runoko Rashidi, originally from K. L. Kamat's photo essay on the Siddis.
2. Dhamal Dance: Press Information Bureau, Government of India.