As my wife, her cousin from Washington DC and myself were driving back to N R Colony on 29th Dec’09 from Columbia Asia hospital, the only thought that struck all our minds was why did he have to depart on the day he had arrived!! Coincidentally, he was born on the same date that he breathed his last.
His live performance that I sat through till the very end was in APS College. He went on stage to perform just one more time at Ambedkar Bhavan. The run-up to the function at APS College was unique in many respects. He was brought in style in a horse drawn open carriage. His wife and his grand daughters were by his side in the carriage as it slowly moved from Ramakrishna Mission at Gandhi Bazaar to Dodda Ganeshana Guddi and then wound its way to the college grounds to the beat of Dhol Kunitha. Dhol is a percussion instrument, and this dance form is a traditional art form – Janapada Nritya.
The first song “Jaya Bharatha Jananiya Tanujathe” had everybody on their feet. Written by the well known poet Kuvempu, music for this song was composed by C Ashwath on a catchy tune and to the beat of a soldier’s march past; this popular number is sung in the assembly halls of all Kannada medium schools.
Midway in the program after all the distinguished dignitaries from the world of Literature and Poetry had spoken, Ashwath also spoke a few words with nostalgia…it all began 60 years back in this school Acharya Pata Shala (APS), he said about the start of his education. It was with fond remembrances that he spoke of belonging to the community in N R Colony, the love and affection shown by the people in this part of Bangalore where his roots lay, people who had showered heaps of accolades on him during his career spanning few decades. Although impromptu, his speech was quite emotional and it gave me the eerie feeling that he was perhaps running against time.
Noticeably, he did not appear to be his normal self; he looked quite pale and tired and seemingly lost in his own thoughts; hopefully absorbing the presence of such a large and lovely gathering. He thanked people for the love, affection and adulation they had showered on him and went on to add as he always has said that an artists success can only be measured by “Pull” the artist can generate during such open contact performances.
The aura of a celebrity at home can be overwhelming at times, especially if it’s a person like C Ashwath; he was like a coin with an identical face on both sides. What he was at home, he was outside as well. With an eye for detail, if he was a highly demanding leading artist in his group, so was he at home, equally demanding for perfection in everything that was done at home! With absolutely no patience for shoddy work, whether at practice or on stage, it was the same expectation from his near and dear ones at home. If his close colleagues and supporting artists were in awe of him, so was the family; always on tenterhooks on when he would fly off the handle, in case he found something wanting.
He was truly looking forward to the program organized on the 29th Dec’09 at Ravindra Kalakshetra. 18 prominent singers, virtually from the who’s who in the Kannada music world had lined up to perform on stage alongside him. It had all the promises of a great event and combined with a book release, the show was expected to be truly spectacular. It was painfully sad to see this desire of his cut short so abruptly.
It is the cherished dream of all those who make it big in their lifetime to make a dramatic exit while at their peak performance. It was indeed dramatic and ironic at the same time. Ravindra Kalakshetra, the place he had chosen to celebrate his 70th birthday amidst his colleagues in the music world had to be converted hurriedly into a makeshift venue for conducting a tearful farewell.
C Ashwath was given a state funeral amidst relatives and hundreds of admirers. A state police contingent reversed arms and offered a gun salute as a mark of respect to the illustrious son of Karnataka. Earlier during the assembly proceedings as the news trickled about C Ashwath’s death, elected members unmindful of their political affiliations, spoke highly of C Ashwath’s achievements and particularly the prominence he had brought for Kannada as a language.
Being a celebrity, he had the uncanny ability to rally all his relatives around the aura he had created. Presuming that the 29th Dec’09 performance would be out of the world, almost all his immediate family members including those residing in distant places including the US had made a beeline to Bangalore. It was as if he had created a platform for all his near and dear ones to come together – something that he loved doing. Being less visible during his innumerable performances, he jokingly pulled my leg saying he would force my place of work to shut down should they deny giving me a day off on 29th Dec’09.
He would perhaps be remembered as a one-man army in the field of Sugama Sangeetha, Folk Music and Bhava Geethes. C Ashwath was principally responsible for scores of people making a career in singing through the platform he created for them to perform. Almost all of them carry fond remembrances of their experiences with him on stage and how he catapulted them to fame. With allegiance to none and no die hard followers behind, his life was dedicated to the verse and the scintillating music that he composed. And this reminds me of Albert Camus and his quote, which so aptly describes C Ashwath: "Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend." I am sure C Ashwath would have added: Observe, Learn, Repeat and Innovate!!
