Quite a journey

A journey of three and a half years

Last to last week, on May 3, me and my friend Vittal Balaji were at the Vigyan Bhawan taking the Swarna Kamal from Vice President Hamid Ansari for our book ' R D Burman, the man the music'. As I almost marched ahead to take the coveted gold medal, the entire journey passed through my mind in a flash - the thought of writing the book, Balaji's first trip to Bombay and the subsequent ones that followed, my interactions with Pancham's friends and well-wishers in Kolkata and over the phone, how we wrote and re-wrote the manuscript from time to time, the multiple discussions with Shantanu Ray Chaudhari, the editor of the book, the launches at Bombay, Kolkata , Delhi and Jaipur (I was not party to the Chennai launch)..and how the news of the National Award generated a flurry of smses and phone calls.

It has been a fascinating journey into the psyche of Pancham and his sound. Without his well wishes, his guidance, his aura, nothing could have happened. I am sure he is there somewhere above looking at us and smiling , probably singing - Dam hai to unase chheen ke le aayenge :)