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The Literary Aspect of the Thumri

ON Stage brings you edited excerpts from the NCPA Quarterly Journal, an unsurpassed literary archive
that ran from 1972 to 1988 and featured authoritative and wide-ranging articles. In the first of a two-
part series, Chander Shekhar Pant expounds on the origin and lyrical content of the thumri.

Classical music in North India is now order, the grandiose, the pure, the in the possessive or associative sense,
in a phase which may be termed as the temperate, the pedantic, the conventional, like Kisan Rukminiri beli, like hama-ri,
age of the khayal. To all appearances, the the narrow and academic working out of tumha-ri. Another word closely related
khayal is a vocal form, but it has been refinement. The romantic element stands to the topic is thumka which means
recognised by experts as having had for liberty, strength, strangeness, curiosity, ‘of small stature’. Thus, by its overall
its vital counterparts in instrumental novelty, experimentation and a revolt etymology, the word thumri is suggestive
techniques and forms. It is for this reason against and a departure from set rules and of a song, which is small in size, and
that the use of an expression like the ‘age stereotyped practices; it stands for all that associated with dance and all its delicate
of the khayal’ can be justified. has a direct, unfettered and unsophisticated shades. At least in one of its aspects, the
Despite such a strong grip on musical appeal. Without any further digression let thumri is a reorientation and descendant
style, the khayal has had its limitations. us discuss the main topic—namely the of the dhamar which also has the three-
No sooner had it established itself on a literary garb of the thumri. fold meaning of special steps, rhythm
high pedestal of the classical pantheon and the song associated with these.
than it found itself sandwiched between Like the dhamar, the thumri also has a
various sides. The highbrow, puritanical Performing a thumri branch devoted to those colour sports of
kalawant came forward with disparaging Vraja [the region along the Yamuna also
remarks about the liberties it took in some
demands restraint. The known as Braj], which have a tinge of the
of its manifestations. The ordinary listener artiste must avoid the devotional and festive, touching as they
blamed it for its sophisticated techniques do the rasa of Radha and Krishna and
and the paucity and blurred aspect of its temptation of presenting the cowherds and milkmaids of Vraja.
word-content. an elaborate and lengthy The rhythm, in its measurement, is also
The result was that the thumri of the same number of beats namely,
trespassed in this sphere and threatened to passage of improvisations so the Deepchandi, sometimes evolving
cast her own siren spell, to overwhelm and or simplifying into Chancher. As far
carry away audiences in her own favour.
characteristic of the khayal. as this aspect is concerned, D. Ojha is
What could the khayal singer do in such The literary aspect is thus not far from the truth when he goes to
a situation? And how was he to acquit Vraja to trace the origin of the thumri
himself? quite an important element for the August 1959 issue of Sangeeta
Before a khayal recital has reached its in the thumri. Kala Vihar.
climax, there is already a certain reaction This cultural and one-sided aspect
in the hearts of the listeners. The reaction of the thumri should not be carried too
is symptomatic of a keen longing to find The word thumri has been defined far because as a specialised art form of
some relaxation, some indulgence, some in the standard lexicon of Hindi music, the thumri has found its full-fledged
fulfilment. What does it all amount to? usage—Hindi Shabda Sagar of Kashi development in Lucknow and Banaras; it
The artiste is expected to sing a bhajan Nagari Pracharini—in the following is there that it reached its high watermark.
or a thumri—something really charming; manner. It is a small geeta (song) with As S. K. Chaubey remarks, “Lucknow was
something really enthralling. And his two movements, and one which does its mother and Banaras its sweetheart.
counterpart, the instrumentalist, must not have more than one antara. The From these cities the thumri has travelled
come forward with some gat in the other meaning given to the term is far and wide in the country.”
thumri anga, some kajri, some chaiti, rumour or gossip. The dictionary does I want to sound a note of warning,
some pahari. What lies behind this direct not give the etymology explicitly, but and caution those who regard the thumri
and irresistible appeal which the thumri the root is clear. The word thum or as an invention of Wajid Ali Shah or Sadiq
commands? Is it the melody or the word- thumak denotes the kind of dancing Ali Khan. Because in 1834, when Captain
content or both? steps used by children in their frolic or Willard first published A Treatise on the
All literary and artistic manifestations in dance. It also denotes a gait which Music of Hindoostan, the thumri was
have been recognised by Walter Pater and has, according to the Shabda Sagar, already recognised as an established form
his French and German contemporaries an air of pride, conceit or simulation “in an impure dialect of the Vrajabhasha”.
as being governed by one of two dominant with all its delicate, emotive shades or As far as the literary aspect envisaged in
tendencies—classicism and romanticism. nuances (thasak). The affix ri is very the existing repertoire of the thumri is
The classical element stands for authority, often used in the sense of ‘pertaining to’ concerned, it is not possible to take up

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authentic examples earlier than in the wise and far-sighted enough to choose the
time of the last Nawab of the kingdom of Hindi of the region to clothe the thumri.
Oudh, Wajid Ali Shah. He was born in It was a mixed jargon of Vrajabhasha,
Lucknow in 1822, installed on the interspersed with the rural jargon of
gaddi in 1847, forced to abdicate Lucknow and of the eastern districts.
and sent to Metiabruz, Calcutta, Thus, in his famous thumri
in 1856, where he died in in Bhairavi, Wajid Ali mourned
1887. “Wajid Ali Shah,” and wailed over his pathetic
as pointed out by K. M. departure from Lucknow:
Munshi in his illuminating
Kulapati’s Letters, “had Babul mora naihar
a fine command of the chhuto jaae.
Persian language and was Chaar kahaar mil duliya
a master of Urdu. He mangaavi,
wrote over a hundred Apna bigana chhuto
works in these languages jaae.
and his poems fill several
big volumes. Himself The pathos lies in
an adept in music, he the mood of a bride
was the greatest patron departing from her parents
of music and dance. In and is heightened by the
his days, music and dance deliberate act of sending
were the breath of the for the palanquin and its
parikhana and its master four bearers. In spite of his
was the patron of the well- masculine voice, the late Faiyaz
known Lucknow thumri ... He Khan once brought tears to the
dramatised his romantic poems eyes of a distinguished audience at
and prepared a ballet known as a music conference by his rendering
Rahas—an Urdu corruption of the of this thumri.
word rasa. Its theme was the sport of The bol or the actual word or
Krishna and Radha. It must have been expression which is to be interpreted by
a delight to Wajid Ali Shah’s admirers to the singer in all its emotive shades is the
see him, in his solid corpulence, playing Wajid Ali Shah, the last Nawab of
soul of the thumri. This requires a special
the part of Shri Krishna with a mukut Awadh, did not invent the thumri temperament and an exuberance of
on his head, valued at a lakh of rupees ... but was certainly a great proponent emotion and imagination in the artiste.
of the form
After deposition when he lived in exile at It also demands restraint. The artiste
Calcutta, Wajid Ali continued to stage his must avoid the temptation of presenting
[Rahas]. Including technicians, the troupe aspect of it which is called bhava batana, an elaborate and lengthy passage of
numbered 361 souls of which 84 were an emotional interpretation of the bol in a improvisations so characteristic of the
women. Their total salaries amounted to sitting pose with rather informal gestures khayal. The literary aspect is thus quite
`11,859 per month.” accompanying the vocal rendering in all its an important element in the thumri. The
The learned author goes on to state, shades and nuances. khayal singer can and very often does
“Wajid Ali Shah was the father of the Thakur Prasad was a specialist in the throw the words of his song to the winds.
modern Urdu stage. At his command, Natwari—the delicate feminine aspect This is what a thumri singer cannot afford
[Agha Hasan] Amanat, the well-known of Kathak. All these elements form the to do. No thumri singer can present a
Urdu poet of Lucknow, wrote the famous background against which the thumri passage where the literary meaning is
Inder-Sabha which became the model for worked out not only delicate graces ambiguous, or where the literary garb does
all later Urdu plays. When Inder-Sabha like the murki but also the literary garb, not suit the tender and delicate sense. The
was staged, Wajid Ali played the title role most suitable for its requirements. It is essence of that delicacy which belonged
of lnder (lndra) and “there is little doubt remarkable, however, that the language to the Lucknow of the time—with its
that his paris took part in the play. The which was chosen for the thumri was nazakat and nafasat—had thus pervaded
romantic mysteries of Wajid Ali’s court neither Urdu nor Persian, but Hindi. We the mantle vouchsafed for the thumri.
are certainly brought vividly to life in this shall presently see what kind of Hindi And this mantle was not a royal robe. It
realistic drama.” was chosen for the songs. As pointed was a simple garment within easy reach of
It is further noteworthy that in out by Edwin Arnold in The Marquis any commoner.
dance, Wajid Ali’s guru was the famous of Dalhousie’s Administration of British One of the greatest of the thumri
Kathak dancer, Thakur Prasad (his family India, “Oudh was the garden, the granary composers of Lucknow, Kadar Piya,
members included the renowned artistes and the queen-province of India ... Oudh fully understood this factor and once
Bindadin, Kalka Prasad and Shambhu was not a Mussulman kingdom; it was expressed his views in unequivocal
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

and Acchan Maharaj). They all adorned historically and essentially a Hindoo terms. Kadar Piya was the son of a
a school not only famous for Kathak but realm…” spurious descendant of the second
also for thumri and, particularly, that The doyens of thumri were, therefore, emperor of Awadh. His original name

42 • April 2025 NCPA

was Wazir Mirza, and with full titles it “Kadar’s beloved is pining for him. She
was Mirza Bala Qadar Jung Nawab Wazir One of the greatest of does not know how to send him a message.
Mirza Bahadur (1836-1902). There is an the thumri composers of How she wishes that the love letter could
article on him written by Gopal Chandra walk over to him by itself. The dark night is
Sinha in the journal of the Hindustani Lucknow, Kadar Piya, a veritable sinner, and the forlorn bedstead
Academy. Kadar Piya was a poet, a believed that Urdu was lurks like a female serpent. It mercilessly
painter, a musician and a scholar of Urdu stings her tender and innocent heart.”
and Persian, but chose the Bhakha as he meant for a select few. He Everything is feminine here, even
called it, which is the Urdu corruption of the simile and the metaphor. And
bhasha. When he was asked why he did
used pure Hindi words, and the ejaculation haye savours of the
not compose in Urdu, he replied, “I shall where he has used words of voluptuous, mingled as it is with the agony
never do that in view of the common of separation. Again, in a thumri of Pilu,
audience I have. I shall write only in Persian origin, he has shaped Kadar would like a sarcastic retort from a
Bhakha—the dialect spoken in the and moulded them on the jealous and disappointed maiden:
households of the Hindus of Lucknow
and the neighbouring villages.” Urdu, in Hindustani anvil. He was, Mori ankhiyan dhoondh rahi, ho tumka
his opinion, was meant for a select few. paavat naahi kahi.
Kadar Piya has, therefore, used pure
in fact, a great protagonist of Kadar piya, jinka tum chahte ho, na
Hindi words, and where he has used Hindu-Muslim unity jaanu kaun des gayi.
words of Persian origin, he has shaped
and moulded them on the Hindustani “You say: My eyes are searching for
anvil. He was, in fact, a great protagonist you but alas, do not find you anywhere,
of Hindu-Muslim unity. He wrote a work he has also to his credit a large number beloved Kadar. I do not know to which
named Nayan-Dil Samvad. The eyes of compositions which have a fully land she has gone, she whom you wanted.”
and the heart each try to impute to the developed thumri personality, being in Another maiden complains of the enmity
other the responsibility for the pangs of the slow tempo of the Deepchandi or the of her eyes, that are responsible for a kind of
love. This idea frequently reverberates Punjabi theka. Here is a typical thumri of collision and have got the heart involved and
in his thumris. His life was typical of Kadar Piya in the raga Zila Khamaj and fatally wounded for no fault of its own.
the aristocrats of his time. Apart from a the Deepchandi tala:
number of illegitimate connections, he Mori ankhiyon ne bair kiya dekho mose
had seven wives. His refined, delicate, Ae ri gudiya, kaise bheju paati Kadar oar Kadar piya
voluptuous, acutely erotic temper, Kaahu ko saathi, paati aaphi chali jaati Aap larat aur manka fasawat, inhi
with occasional devotional outbursts, Kadar oar. kaaran ghayal hot jiya.
is reflected in the text of his thumris. Ek raina andheri paapin, suni sej jaise
While many of his thumris are chhota saapin This article first appeared in its entirety in the
khayals in a lighter strain and have the Kaise mora bara jiyara, haye, ise jaati September 1973 (Volume II, Issue 3) of the
concomitant spurious-ness of a raga, Kadar oar. NCPA Quarterly Journal.

A musical on Hariprasad Chaurasia’s

life and contribution to Indian cinema
For the last six decades and more, his first break in Hindi films followed by maestro has performed himself for films
the name of the legendary maestro his collaborations with the leading music or composed their music score. The films
Hariprasad Chaurasia has been directors of that time, his contributions include: Amar Prem, Taj Mahal, Guide,
inseparably associated with the as a musician to some hugely popular Silsila, Chandni, Lamhe and more.
Indian bamboo flute (bansuri). The songs of Hindi films. It also sheds light The musical has been written by
internationally acclaimed flautist has, on his collaboration with his long-time Pushpanjali Chaurasia and Suhail Abbasi,
with his innovative techniques, lent a friend and partner, Shiv Kumar Sharma, and directed by Bhushan Korgaonkar and
new “sound” to the instrument. the renowned santoor player, Chaurasia’s Kunal Vijayakar. It will be brought to life
Bansuri Jab Gaane Lage, in foray into classical music, his stint as a in the voices of singers Ayesha Mukherjee,
collaboration with Vrindavan Gurukul, disciple of the legendary Annapurna Devi, Srijonee Bhattacharjee and Shrikant
supported by CSR partner Jefferies, is a his various international accomplishments Narayan. The bansuri will be played by
celebration of the maestro’s journey, both and milestones in the world of music and Suchismita Chatterjee and Debopriya
personal and professional. This musical his awards on national and international Chatterjee.
portrays various events: his departure from platforms.
Allahabad, his stint at AIR in Cuttack, his The dramatic narrative is punctuated The box office opens on 26th April (members)
transfer to Mumbai, his initial struggles, with live music and songs which the and 29th April (public).

NCPA April 2025 • 43