It is said that a ‘legend’ is born out of passion, determination and the miseries of life. To be one among thousands requires the will equivalent to the mountains. Pt Tulsidas Borkar is one such legend, who was shaped by dedication, adamance to fulfill the dreams and his incomparable genius for music.
This Thursday, introducing the journey of Padmashri Pt Tulsidas Borkar as a legendary harmonium and mouth organ maestro and equally wonderful Marathi music composer on his 87th birth anniversary.
His Journey!
The revered ‘guru’, Pt Tulsidas, was born on November 18th, 1934 in a small village of Goa, Bori. He then moved to Mumbai with his parents and spent a few years enacting minor roles in theatres. His inclination towards music and harmonium began from an early age. And with his mother being his first teacher, harmonium soon turned into his favorite instrument. He was trained in classical music and harmonium under Pt Vishnu Pant Vasht and Pt Chhota Gandharva in Pune.
On an astonishing note, he was only 11 when he started to accompany many renowned singers, composers and instrumentalists! He started his career as an accompanist in Marathi musical theatre at a remarkably young age and accompanied artists like Pt Ram Marathe, Pt Bhimsen Joshi, Pt Kumar Gandharva, Pt Mallikarjun Mansur and many more renowned names of the Marathi musical theatres. Borkar became a famous image in the Marathi theatres, directing music in Marathi Sangeet Natak.
He was not only a harmonium accompanist but also played the mouth organ, equally wonderful as he was with harmonium. Starting from a young age, his unbelievable skills brought him fame in Marathi musical theatres. Borkar also authored a book titled “Samvadini Sadhana”, which is a guide and motivation for young students and music lovers to date.
Achievements and Awards
Pt Tulsidas was honored innumerable times with prestigious national awards in music, the highest being the Padma Shri award. He received the Padma Shri award in 2016 and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2005. Not just these, his list of awards seems never-ending. He was also honoured with the Bal Gandharva Gaurav Puraskar at the age of 22. His comprehendible contributions in Marathi theatres and Marathi Sangeet Natak won him the Govindrao Tembe Sangatkar Puraskar, Pt Dinanath Mangeshkar and many more awards to name.
Pt Tulsidas passed away on 29th September 2018, suffering from tuberculosis, leaving the Marathi theatres in the grief of losing a legendary accompanist and composer. He was not only an artist but a revered teacher. Many of his disciples are carrying forward his teachings and techniques to the new generation even today. The journey of Pt Borkar is, indeed, a saga that needs to be sung to generations to come. It is the journey that has and will fill the young learners and artists to dream and believe in themselves.
