Darbari Kaanada

The height of any emotion, the climatic point of any event, from wherethere is no furtherance and nothing more to be achieved, a sense offulfillment, not without a pinch of longing for something which the soul tells you can never be reached, but which it would never leaveback resigned, heaving out a sigh that it was what it had to be.

An alaap of Darvari Kanada whirls in the listener through all theseemotions. When it ends one feels life is lived to its fullest.
Known by the same name both in HCM and CCM (with slight variation of"va" into "ba"), Darvari (HCM) or Darbari (CCM) Kanada is janyam offAasaveri thaat and suited for late night riyaaz.

Aro: S R g m P d n S
Avro: S d n P m P g m R S

HFM abounds with instances of songs where the rich pathos quality ofthe raag is totally exploited as it provides brilliant moments of bothjoy and sorrow Be it a dejected singer beseeching "oh duniya kerakhwale" (Baiju Bawra) or an abject lover mourning for the "tute huekhabon" (Madhumati) or the girl crying over the "muhobat ki jhutikahani" (Mugal E Azam), or the blind pathetic nostalgic singerremembering when he "raha ghardishon mein hardam (Do Badan),. Thejoyous part was capitalised by Ramachandra in "kitna haseen hai mausam"(Azaad). A lighter version was used by Bappi Lahri in the playful "pagghunghru" for Amitabh in his Namak Halal.

The merriment part of the raag was more to be seen in Tamil films.Earliest one could be dated to Seergazhi's "Sivasankari" inJagathalapradhaban, rendered truly in the classical style with all theswars, nirthams and ghamakas. The accompaniment of veena and flute tothe song is to be heard to be enjoyed. The next in the line should bethe duet of TMS and Janaki "Chinnanchirya vanna paravai" in Kungumam.The denouement of the song with the high pitched Janaki and sternvoiced TMS vying with one another rendering the alaap one after theother is delight to the enlightened listener. Recent romantic formatsof the raag were to be found in "Kalyana thenila" (Mounam Sammadham)and "Malare Mounama" (Karna).
Nothing could possibly be entertained by the mind and soul afterlistening to Darvari kanada.

Perhaps, only sleep, where emotions workback in jigsaw pattern blending joy and sorrow, mingling past and present and lifting you into a world of fantasy yet so much partaking of reality.

Truly the way Darvari Kanada makes you feel.