Herald Café: How does it feel to receive the fourth highest civilian
award in India?
Pt Tulsidas Borkar : I am truly
delighted. I am falling short of words to describe the joy of receiving this
honour. I truly believe that my devotion towards the harmonium has paved the
way to this. It’s the victory of my devotion, blessings of my family deity Shree
Navdurga-Borim and my gurus (teachers). It would not have been possible without
the support of these well wishers in my life. I would like to take the
opportunity to share the names of some of my gurus such as my mother Jayashri
Borkar, Harmonium player Vishnupant Vast, Chota Gandharva, P Madhukar
(Pednekar), Devendra Murdeshwar, Pandit K G Ginde, Pandit S R Bhat, Malikarjun
Mansur and others.
HC: How does it feel to be the only
Goan awardee this year?
TB: It makes me proud that my
instrument, the harmonium, is being noticed. Generally, people tend to take
this instrument lightly in comparison with others. It is an honour that my work
and the instrument I play is being recognised.
HC:What inspired you to choose the
harmonium over other musical instruments?
TB: I was attracted to the beauty of
harmonium from the tender age of 5. My neighbours in Borim, Goa would take me
to temple at that time. I developed an interest in listening to bhajans and
kirtans at this age. When I turned twelve, I moved to Mumbai where I learnt the
finer nuances of playing the harmonium under the tutelage of gurus there.
HC: Since you now live in Mumbai, is
there anything that you miss about Goa?
TB: It has been more than four decades
now since I left Goa. At that time, the Portuguese were ruling, but the music
was very well retained; though we did not have an institute like Kala Academy
to groom our talent. Hence, there was not much scope. I had to leave the state
in search of further knowledge in the field of music. I do not miss much in
terms of learning the harmonium, but, yes, I do miss my childhood days of
listening to bhajans and kirtans in the temples. Secondly, I miss the taste of
food, which is incomparable. It’s my birthplace so these childhood memories will
live in my heart forever. I used to perform at the Pt Madhukar Pednekar birth
anniversary at Borim temple. But, for the last seven years, I organise it in
Mumbai only.
HC: What are some of the memories that
you cherish from your journey as a musician?