Culture 
Portrait - A Courtesan Expression
by Shaheen Sultan Dhanji

Courtesan dancers; an Art of expression most often misunderstood by conventional society, as it has been labeled, terms of 'usage', 'prostitution' and 'destitution'....How far from the actual fact, that, it was indeed a finer way of conveying stories, reality and struggle, further, it was highly poetic, mystical and spiritual. These women had depth, passion, intellect and lived a life full of rhythm. Thus, why did they suffer internally? Why was their fate often contributed as just 'labels' or worse as non-existing in the face of society?

Social developments have contributed to major changes in the lives, performance traditions, and status of women in South Asian music, in particular from the mid-nineteenth century to today. Prior to the 1930's, virtually all professional women musicians and dancers belonged to communities of courtesans. Known in South India as devadasis (Hindu temple dancers) and in the North as tawaifs or baijis (secular courtesans), these women performed in temples, or for rulers and feudal lords.

At the turn of the twentieth century, women performers in Western India shifted their focus from the temple-oriented repertoire and lifestyle to studying under Ustads (teachers) of other regions. Some of these women such as Moghubai Kurdikar and Kesarbai Kerkar, went on to become highly respected singers, learning previously male dominated musical genres such as dhrupad and khayaal.

The British occupation impressed upon Indian society that dance and music practices by professional women were immoral and should be abolished. In south India, upper-caste nationalist-revivalists worked to undermine the socio-musical power of devadasis by co-opting the traditional sadir dance form and renaming it Bharat Natyam. Acts and reforms were introduced throughout the subcontinent to make professional women performers 'respectable', but some women arguing that enforced legislation such as the Nautch Act (c. 1920) was discriminatory and marred their status as artists, as well as those of their patrons. The acceptance of women disciples into gharanas (North Indian stylistic lineages) beginning in the late 1920's was a step towards validating women's classical performance on the concert stage, previously a male domain. Women musicians began to incorporate 'higher' classical forms of music, such as khayaal, and its lyrical 'daughter' genre, bol banoa thumri, into their repertoires.

Beginning in the late 1930's. partly due to women's movement and to the nationalist movement, music education programs became available to amateur upper-class women. At the same time, professional women, challenged by the demise of feudal patronage and increasing competition, often had to make artistic (and personal) compromises in order to maintain an audience-----or leave the profession. By the late 1950's , police raids on musical performances in courtesan quarters, such as that in Lucknow, further marginalized women of these communities. Nevertheless, several exceptional artists, such as Begum Akhtar, Siddheshwari Devi, and Gangabai Hangal, transcended the stigma of their backgrounds to gain acceptance as artists on par with that of men.

Following the brief appearance (late 1950's-early 1960's) of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan's sister, Surbahar player Annapurna Devi, the late 1960's saw the emergence of a few women instrumentalists, notably Sharan rani (Sarod), Jaya Biswas (sitar), Kalyani Roy (sitar), and N. Rajan (violin). Women like these struggled to make their musical voices heard in a soundscape where the difference in timbre is much subtler than in vocal music. Today, in South Asia, it is not unusual for a man to study under a woman guru, instrumental or vocal. As the 21st century dawns, young women are breaking conventions by excelling on instruments previously played exclusively by men, among them Aruna Narayan-Kalle (sarangi), Anuradha Pal (tabla), Sukanya Ramgopal (ghatam), and many women who remain contributed to finer ways of expression.

Often I float away in wonderment, how the Spring evenings were spent in the courtesan compounds of Lucknow and Jaipur gharanas – the height of emotions! The cham-cham of the anklet, mingled with great anticipation of poets with their own destinies...Such intoxication, defining color of life, with heightened beauty of love, rage, laughter, separation, despair, and spirit... Indeed a portrait of the courtesan expression !

March 31, 2007

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