Vinayakrai Patwardhan | |
|---|---|
| Born | 22 July 1898 Miraj, India |
| Died | 23 August 1975(1975-08-23) (aged 77) Pune, India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Other names | Pandit Vinayakrao Patwardhan |
PanditVinayak Narayan Patwardhan (22 July 1898 – 23 August 1975) was an Indianvocalist ofGwalior gharana (style of singing) ofIndian classical music.[1] Vinayakrao Patwardhan was a prominent and multifaceted figure of his time. As a distinguished disciple of the legendary Vishnu Digambar Paluskar, the founder of Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Mandal,[2] he dedicated his life to the promotion of Hindustani music.
Vinayakrao's uncle Keshav Rao Koratkar was his first music teacher. In 1907, he went toGandharva Mahavidyalaya atLahore, where he was taught byVishnu Digambar Paluskar.
Vinayakrao accepted teaching assignments at the various branches of the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, including those inBombay,Nagpur andLahore. Vinayakrao's high-pitched voice was popular with the masses, and specifically caught the attention of actor/singerBal Gandharva. On one occasion, theGwalior veteran Ramkrishna Buwa Vazhe offered a challenge to singers inPune. Vinayakrao accepted this challenge and proceeded to learn complexragas from Vazhe.
In the late 1940s, whenBhimsen Joshi was searching for a teacher, he met Vinayakrao inJalandhar. Vinayakrao advised him to learn fromSawai Gandharva. Later, Patwardhan took up roles inMarathi musicals. Heeding his teacher's admonition about singing for films, Vinayak went to Pune and established his own branch of theGandharva Mahavidyalaya. Despite his young age, he had decided to dedicate himself to teaching music and ignored the lure of drama and film.
Vinayakrao trained disciples who became well known, including his guru's son,D.V. Paluskar, andSunanda Patnaik.
Vinayakrao Patwardhan's singing reflected the simple and straightforward approach to ragas, which is the characteristic of the Gwalior Gharana style. His favorite ragas included ''Bahar'', ''Adana'', ''Multani'', ''Malhar'', ''Jaijaivanti'', ''Hameer'' and ''Bhairav-bahar''. He performed in most of the important music festivals. He was one of the few practicing musicians of the time who wrote textbooks on music. In his seven-part ''Raaga Vigyan'' series, Vinayakrao described the important aspects of various ragas as well as their grammar. In his concerts and recordings, his fellow-studentNarayanrao Vyas accompanied Vinayakrao.
He was awarded thePadma Bhushan award in 1972 by thePresident of India.[3] He led the Indian cultural delegation to theUSSR and other countries.
The Film & TV Institute of India supported a documentary on him by Aruna Raje.
One of his disciples, L.R. Kelkar, settled down in Madras (Chennai). Author Rohiniprasad learned sitar from him initially. Among Kelkar's better-known disciples is violinistN. Rajam, who also studied withOmkarnath Thakur in Benares.
