Saptak: 40 glorious years of selfless service
| Date :14-May-2019 |
By Nandu Andhare;
Saptak Nagpur, an organisation started way back in 1980, by seven city-based Hindustani classical music addicts, has completed forty glorious years. Its growth has been like the proverbial roller-coaster ride, experienced by any organisation in its teething years, baptised by fire and raging thunderstorms. These magnificent seven, remained undaunted in the face of stiff hurdles and competition, remained aloof from limelight, to get down to work and gave their best of precious time of life for the cause of providing rich, wholesome everlasting happiness to the listeners and connoisseurs of classical music, in roping in legends, who topped the music charts in those days, and inviting them to Nagpur to perform.
The seven member team, continues to work in unison till this day untiringly, like the seven notes of music, inseparable, sharing and believing in forwarding heartily, the best in music, literature, dance and theatre to its connoisseurs and the generation next. Most of them were in service. Two are serving doctors. Now, most of them have retired, but not tired. The Hitavada met Vilas Manekar, Dr Uday Gupte and Uday Patankar, three of the team members, who pleaded to remain anonymous, but relented to the request and shared some of the great moments in years gone by .
“It is God’s will and blessings that has bonded the seven of us for life,” remarked Vilas Manekar, member of Saptak, while interacting with The Hitavada on Sunday. Vilas went on to say, “We started our activity in 1979 as a group and had with us Late Amrutlal Kakkad, Pradeep Munshi, Dr Shiram Kane and Arun Pophli and use to attend classical music programmes, just for the love of it, that were sparsely held in the city. The idea struck us then, as to why not start a Sanstha of our own and organise more baithaks and concerts to increase the tempo in an attempt to satiate the demand of the music-lovers.
That set the tone and we got down to serious business by bringing out a souvenir, collecting advertisements, calling on corporate heads, introducing ourselves and requesting them to lend a helping hand in spreading the goodness of classical music amongst people, and specially youngsters. Our sincere appeal and desire to do justice to music is what probably appealed to the sponsors, who came forward wholeheartedly and thus began a journey.
Dr Gupte intervened to add, “Initially, we concentrated on music concerts, that led to memorable maifils being held in the city, launched with an auspicious theme Abhang Wani by Pt Bhimsen Joshi, Ustad Bismillah Khan, Gangubai Hangal, Pt Kumar Gandharva, Protima Bedi, Dr Vasantrao Deshpande, Chhota Gandharva, Pt Basavraj Rajguru, Pt M S Gopalkrisnan, Asha Bhosle, Pt Hariprasad Chourasia, Pt Shivkumar Sharma, Ustad Zakir Hussain , Ustad Allarakha, Ustad Rashid Khan, Pt C R Vyas. We were supported in a big way by Chief Engineer Shenolikar, Chief Engineer Kamath and Forest officer Sohoni in our endevour.
We would like to mention here that Pt C R Vyas gave his last programme in the city under our banner. We held some of the most memorable programmes specially like the Kojagiri nights when there used to be an overnight maifil, that commenced at 7 pm the previous day and ended at 8.30 am the next day. But, over the years, our vision, too, broadened and we also scouted for other arts and organised medley of programmes like plays, commercial as well as those by local artists, inviting popular satire poets, Keertan mahotsavs, classical dance festivals, photography and painting competition and exhibition, lecture series sponsored by Chhaya Dixit Welfare Foundation in which eminent personalities like Ram Shewalkar, Dr Kothari, Justice Shrikrishna, Dr Abhay Bang, Ninad Bedekar graced the occasion. Uday Patankar spoke on the organisation’s future and said, “We had a grand silver jubilee celebration and now are poised to gradually prod and push the organisation to greater heights. The trough of sponsors has shrunk rapidly in its content.
We did everything from releasing souvenirs and selling tickets to raise funds for the programmes. We have drawn the cart and its burden of loads of thrilling presentations to the present day. Now, we need to look back upon a second line of sincere, self-less volunteers and supporters, who can gradually takeover the mantle, provide fresh impetus , by wholeheartedly supporting the tiring shoulders of the seven founders, bringing in funds and there by inviting new generation of artists to perform. The organisation has always been blessed by Pt Satish Vyas and his Sanstha Lalit Kala Nidhi, Mumbai, by sponsoring two major concert series every year in the city, solely due to Saptak’s sincerity to wards music. It is our endevour to see that the organisation prospers and proliferates for posterity.