The New England Kannada Koota (NEKK) organized a combined Dasa and Vachana day at the Chinmaya Maruti Temple in Andover on February 25, 2012. The nearly 10 hour mega Event organized by the NEKK drew nearly 400 spectators and close to a hundred participants.  In the most significant sanctum of Anjaneya Swami, the “parama bhakta”, a path towards spiritual inquiry was awakened by musicians ranging from 5 year olds to the most senior artists like Smt. Bhuvana Ganesh.   In an unassailable testimony to the “Sahana” of the various sects in our great religion, both Shiva and Krishna were invoked in one voice on this day. And if this was not a strong statement on itself, our own Sowmya Sandeep (Winner of the NE SaReGaMaPa contest) rendered a moving Dasa pada, “Kaliyugadali Harinava” composed by Fayaz Khan.  Kudos to the NEKK team for inspiring thoughts of universal cooperation and community.

Other notable participants included Deepti Navaratna, Ullas Rao, artists from our local Lahari group and the junior SaReGaMaPa champ, Anusha Kulkarni. Many other musicians accompanied the performers. Rajesh Pai was seen on the dais often as was Suraj Rao and Ashok Jakati. There was also one Bharatanatyam performance by Smt. Jeyanthi Ghataraju. She brought a bit of Brindavana into the room, attesting Lord Krishna’s omnipresence. In spite of the long day and the myriad of participants, there was not a moment of monotony or tedium. The organizers ensured smooth sailing and accommodated everyone, including those last minute entries and schedule change requests. It was inspiring to see both the NEKK volunteers as well as those from the Boston Chinmaya Mission work in tandem to run this successful event.

The highlight of the evening was a concert from Smt. Bhuvana Ganesh. A talented Carnatic musician and teacher, Bhuvana enthralled all with Dasa Kritis. She began the concert with Purandara Dasa’s famous Vinayaka kriti, “Sharanu Siddhi Vinayaka” in Sowrashtram. This was followed by one of my favorite Purandara Dasa kriti’s, “Yare Rangana”, in Hindolam and Aadi taalam. It invoked images of my childhood days when my grandfather would perform the Gokulashtami puja starting about 8:00 pm and we waited with bated breath for the butter he would give for Prasadam soon after midnight. My mother would sing Dasavani all night and it was pretty much the only time we were allowed to stay up that late! Bhuvanan’s superb rendition, I am sure resonated with many on a similarly personal level.

Her soulful and dulcet tones were accompanied by Rama Balakrishnan on the Violin and Ullas Rao on the Mridangam. The hour long concert was concluded with a rousing “Ramachandraya Mangalam” composed by saint Ramadasa. Bhuvana was the perfect conclusion to a day filled with bhakti, bhava and contemplation on the theme of universality.

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