10th of October, 2011. The news of the passing away of the maestro magic melodies, Jagjit Singh, sent shockwaves across the globe. The ghazals sung by him had cast a spell on millions at home and abroad for about four decades. Not only that, his singing awakened and sensitized the countless emotions of men and women, young and old, boys and girls and they all swayed to the slow soothing and solacing pitch of his enchanting voice, tremulous like the silk petals of newly-opened buds fluttering in the soft breeze blowing from the still silent waters nearby.

Jagjit Singh’s impact was invariably and thunderously felt for decades. With due apology to other maestros of yore, Jagjit had sent them into oblivion and the novices and commoners in music who know nothing about the techniques and technicalities of musical compositions felt his inimitable art. His slow movement into eternal silence left the world stunned and his admirers expressed their grief and sorrow on the electronic and print media flooding it with messages and memories, personal and professional. Surely, the maestro is no more in fleshand blood amidst us. It is hard to believe and his myriad melodies of love, romance, separation, beauty, recollections, devotional - sad, sorrowful, yearning, mystical - are resounding everywhere around.

These are the tense times of music mania and music mess; composers and singers are working hard to express their talent.The world has a great tradition of swift changes in the fashions in music. Here Jagjit eclipsed the age-long tradition and dominated the scene in his own unique way. In the mid-70s, I played Unforgettables, Virha da Sultan, live London concerts on my RP again and again. Its soothing effect calmed and tranquilized my troubled head and heart and my aching emotions and passions had an easy outlet into the world of beauty, love, romance and peace. Then my friend, Dr. R. S. Toki, himself a great lover and critic of music and poetry fed my hunger with the latest of Jagjit Singh and my thirst remained unslaked and is lasting. The news of his death yesterday morning disturbed me to the very essence of my life the whole day and I spent some hours in the evening listening to his enchanting melodies on my PC. This is how my humble composition as a tribute to the immortal Jagjit came out.

Soul's Ecstasy Sinks into Silence

Unforgettables -
Commenced my journey
into magic melodies of you, dear Jagjit.
Since then, they have been dancing,
Day and night, waking
Pain and pleasure, delight and demise,
Memories smeared with sorrow and grief,
Drenched in tears and
Sweetened!

The warmth and fire,
Lulled me into soft slumber
When the thorns pierced deeper
And, not the heart but the poor soul
Bled with echoes
Of resounding love, lord, devotion,
Separation, agony, ecstasy, loneliness,
Beauty of reminiscences and romance -
Bathed in light and love
Radiating the coloured past
Through times of immensities
When all gone/deserting
The once glowing
And shadowed lanes of life -
Your soulful soothing, solacing
And sublimating harmonies
Lead me in a procession
to the Holy Feet of the Divine,

My Master!
Be blessed where you are!
Love!