Mountains and Melodies

“Juda hoke bhi…. Tu muzme kahi baki hai….” I was hearing the notes of this song from Kalyug for the first time when we were making our way to Gangtok from Baghdoghra. It was late in the evening and we had been driving for about 3 hours. We had all been fascinated by the narrow mountain road we were driving on, the tall mountains, the clouds and the greenery. We had watched mesmerized till there was light and then the mood had become silent and thoughtful. It was quite dark when the driver switched on the music player and these notes floated to us. All we could see in the dark were many, many stars in the sky that we didn’t normally see in the cities and the electric lights far away in the hills – that was Gangtok…

The natural beauty surrounding us, hidden from us by the curtain of the darkness now, was still very fresh in our minds. The darkness, starlit sky and the dipping temperatures were adding to the feeling of being in an unearthly place. And this song, “Juda Hoke bhi…”, added beautifully to this overall experience. I don’t know if I fell in love with the song because of the overall atmosphere of the time when I heard it for the first time, or it was a lovely song which made the atmosphere so amazing. But, every time I hear that song now, I remember that late evening, that starlit sky and the mountains that we were driving through. 

On our trek in the Kanchanjunga national park, before which we had visited Gangtok, when we reached Bakhim after a long and strenuous trek from Yuksum, we stayed at a Jungle lodge. In this lodge, after we had had our dinner, our sherpas sang for us; some of them also danced. “Resham Phiriri” is a Nepali folk song that I heard for the first time in that wooden cabin at Bakhim. It was around 8:00 PM but it seemed much later because it had gotten dark even before 6:00 PM and there were no lights anywhere as far as we could see. The only light was those of the candles burning on the big wooden dining table. It was very cold and so a fire was setup in the fireplace. We had had our dinner in the candle light after a long and tiring trek. It was another of those surreal times. I think of that song sometimes when I remember that jungle lodge. And I think of that jungle lodge when I think of this song. I don’t know which one is the stronger memory; they are so completely associated with each other…

There are other melodies that I have heard in mountains at different times that have stayed with me as reminders of those places and times in the mountains. Some of these are old Hindi movie songs, some that have always been my favorite. But even these favorites have become more special because of the specific times & places in Himalayas.

On the same trek in the Kanchanjunga national part, we had a guide called Amar, who sang quite well. “Phoolon ke rang se” from Prem Pujari was a song he sang very well. I heard Amar sing this song many times on this trek. I myself had requested him to sing this a few times as I have always loved this song; its one of my all-time favorites. But the one time it made the most impact was when we were climbing down from Samiti Lake to the camp. There had been just four of us at the lake and it was possible to imagine yourself to be all alone; it was so beautiful and peaceful. Samiti Lake is one of the most tranquil places one can go to. After spending some time at the lake, we made our way back to the camp where others were waiting for breakfast. When we were climbing down to the camp, Amar started singing “Phoolon ke rang se”… We still had 4 days of trekking, but it was all going to be much easier since we would be climbing down. It was early morning of a surprisingly clear day and we had just visited one of the most beautiful places we had even been to. Because of all these, we were in a very happy frame of mind. That climb down to the camp, and that frame of mind is what I remember now every time I hear “Phoolon ke rang se”…

My trek to valley of flowers has been one of the most fun treks I have been on. In Rahul Bhusari and Dinesh Patil, we had 2 very good camp leaders, and we seemed to have a group with great sense of humor – that always helps on treks. When we started off on this trek, it had been raining very heavily and we weren’t sure we’ll be able to make it to the valley. In fact, that year we were amongst some 5 groups who did make it upto the valley. The first day’s trek from Govindghat to Ghangaria is 13 kms of up and down through the mountains. Its tiring but the view throughout is really beautiful; so much so that later on your remember the beauty of this path rather than the struggle you had climbing. After we reached Ghangaria in the evening, we washed up, had dinner and then went to the visiting center there to see a short film about Valley of Flowers.  After the film, when we were walking back to our lodge through the small town, I heard “Chand fir nikala, magar tum na aaye…” from Paying Guest. It was a dark night, very cloudy and no moon in the sky.  We were walking on a small mud road with a big ground on one side. And this song was probably coming from one of the small houses, being played on a transistor radio and the station tuned I would guess was Vividh Bharati. But hearing the longing in Lata’s sweet voice, at that place and at that time brought me to tears. This is another of those beautiful songs that I have always loved. But it had never made my cry earlier; somehow the impact of this song at that time was so much more intense. And now this song reminds me of walking through Ghangaria at night; I can clearly see the open ground we were walking by…

Somehow, the songs heard in the quiet of the night leave a big impact, especially in the mountains when you are already “away” from the real world. But sometimes even on quiet afternoons, when you are resting on a mountain slope, when you can see leaves fall noiselessly to the ground, you hear some melody as it rides the light breeze, coming from somewhere in the valley,  that can take you by surprise and touch your heart like never before. 

I was on a trek to Saurkundi lake in Himachal Pradesh and I got sick at Baggi Thatch. So I didn’t go up to Saurkundi lake that day. Along with Meena, who too had stayed back with her daughter, I went on a small “picnic” – we took our books and climbed a little distance away from the camp. We spent a beautiful afternoon there, reading side by side, napping when we felt like and talking very little. On this afternoon, seated there under the tall trees on that mountain slope, I heard “Hai duniya usiki, jamana usika…” from Kashmir ki Kali. It floated to us from some small village down in the valley. It was coming from a distance and if it had not been for the tranquility or the fact that we were absolutely quiet at that time we wound not have been able to hear it. But barely audible notes of this soft song, heard there on the remote mountain have remained with me very solid. Now, when I hear this song, in my mind I am back on that remote mountain….
Hearing music in remote mountains, where everything else is quiet and you are feeling closer to the universe,  is such a magical experience!! I have felt this in Himalayas every time I have trekked there.