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Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish Passes Away

 
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> Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish Passes Away
pradeepasrani
post Aug 3 2006, 11:52 PM
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Ashwinji

I saw this thread today so apologies for the delay.

Please accept my sincere condolences on the passing away of your dear father, respected Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish ji.

We shall all cherish his memories and the beautiful musical legacy he has left behind for us.

May the departed soul rest in peace.

Pradeep
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deewani
post Aug 4 2006, 06:19 AM
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Some news articles:

Santa Cruz Sentinel (Batishji's local paper): Please click to visit the newspaper's website (posting article here as well in case folks outside of US cannot see the page, hope that is OK).

By JONDI GUMZ
Sentinel staff writer
SANTA CRUZ — When Shiv Dayal Batish was growing up in India, his family realized he had a rare musical gift and arranged for him to study singing with a well-known composer. He refused to take a job with the telephone company paying a few rupees a month to help his father pay the mortgage, and held onto his dreams for the musical career that was his destiny.

His stubbornness paid off soon after. He was called for a radio audition. At 22, he signed a contract that paid more than 300 rupees, five times the amount to pay off the mortgage.

He enjoyed success on three continents — India, England, and in the U.S. in Santa Cruz — and still had many irons in the fire when he died Saturday at age 91.

In India, he won fans by singing in Punjabi and Urdu as well as Hindi. His songs made the top of the charts, and when he was invited to perform in films, his hit songs brought him national recognition. He composed songs and served as musical director for more than a dozen "Bollywood" films.

Tiring of the ups and downs of the industry, he left for England. There, he ran into difficulty with immigration officials until Lord Fenner Brockway wrote a letter on his behalf and became his patron. His wife and his children joined him.

His family said he played music for "Help!" starring the Beatles 1965, met George Harrison, who was interested in Indian music, and taught Harrison's then-wife Patti to play the dilruba, an instrument played with a bow like a small bass fiddle.

How did this Indian musical genius come to make his home in Santa Cruz for 36 years?

Ralph Abraham, a math professor at UC Santa Cruz, explains.

In 1969, Abraham was a visiting professor in London, looking for instruction in the Indian music he had read about. He saw an ad for the Batish family and took weekly lessons on sitar. Taken with the experience, he arranged for Batish to teach at the university's Merrill College as a visiting lecturer.

Batish and his wife moved into the professor's house on California Street. When the year was up, they decided to stay. It seemed like destiny, given that a region near Bombay is known as Santa Cruz.

Since the teaching position had ended, the couple opened a restaurant, the Sri Krishna Cafe, on Mission Street. It was so popular, the manager of the McDonald's complained the waiting customers interfered with his business. The couple worked six days a week, according to then-Sentinel columnist Wally Trabing, and Batish got an ulcer. He returned to England, where his five children were living, but destiny intervened once again.

While in England, his request to immigrate to the United States was approved, so he decided to return to Santa Cruz.

This time, he and his wife opened another restaurant by the Clock Tower, near where the U.S. Hemp store is today. He called all of his children to join them and they helped in the restaurant.

His next move, in the mid-1970s, was to buy a building at 1310 Mission St., across from his first restaurant. There, he opened Batish's India House, a restaurant where he created a stage for musicians. "He was the visionary to see all this," said his son Ashwin Batish, who, like his father, is a musician of renown. "Food and music became our passion. We would sit on the stage, and he would perform every night. It didn't matter if it was one person or 100 listening. It was very high energy and it was beautiful to have him next to me."

All the children were involved.

"In our family, the music is the glue, you see," Ashwin said. "We could not break away from his spell."

During his years in Santa Cruz, Batish taught Indian music to Westerners, at the peak scheduling 60 to 70 students a week. He wrote English words for the Hindi versions he knew, "which made it very learnable," his son said, explaining that the catch-phrases help students memorize the music yet allow them to improvise.

His encyclopedia explaining Indian music scales, "Ragopedia," inspired other composers. Prolific, Batish penned nearly 8,000 compositions.

He started on his memoirs 10 years ago. A newer project involved recording largely undiscovered musical scales, or ragas, from south India, in an effort to bridge the cultural divide between north and south.

Congestive heart failure slowed him down; the last time Abraham visited was a month ago.

"He was putting up a strong fight," Ashwin said of his father. "He wanted more years to complete his projects."

Contact Jondi Gumz at jgumz@santacruzsentinel.com
S.D. Batish

BORN: Dec, 14, 1914, Patiala, India.

DIED: July 29, 2006, Dominican Hospital, Santa Cruz.

HOME: 36 years in Santa Cruz.

OCCUPATION: Singer, musician, composer, restaurateur, teacher, author

EDUCATION: Studied with Chandan Ram Charan, an authority on North Indian music; learned to play harmonium, sitar, violin, dilruba and vichitra veena.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: Established Batish Institute of Indian Music and Fine Arts on Mission Street in Santa Cruz.

HONORS: Silver jubilee celebration for 25 years on the Indian music scene, 1961; Tansen Award for best vocalist, from Bombay organization devoted to classical Indian music.

SURVIVORS: Wife Shanta Devi Batish; daughters Surendra Devi Batish and Vijay Laxmi Batish, sons Tarun Kumar Batish, Ashwin Kumar Batish and Ravi Kumar Batish, all of Santa Cruz; eight grandchildren.

SERVICES: Private; ashes will be scattered at sea. Memorial concert planned. Condolences may be e-mailed to batishs@gmail.com or faxed to 423-5172. Tributes are posted at http://www.hamaraforums.com/index.php?showtopic=25501



Another article from Mumbai Newsline:

Music stalwart Shiv Dayal Batish, 91, dies in America

Mumbai, July 31: The voice that charmed a million hearts over the air waves of All India Radio, rendering timeless numbers like the famous qawali Yeh Ishk Ishk or Na To Karwaan Ki Talash Hai and Poochon Na Kaise Maine Rain Bitaaye, Shiv Dayal Batish passed away at Dominican Hospital in California on Monday morning. He was 91.

He may not be so well known among the present generation, but old-timers would remember him as a stalwart on the Indian music scene since 1936. Batish is survived by his wife Shanta Devi Batish and five children. His son, Ashwin Batish, a sitar and tabla player, takes over his musical legacy.

''We will sorely miss his presence and his phenomenal grasp of culture, language, musical abilities and humanity. My father leaves us with a tremendous legacy that we will share with you in the very near future,'' said Ashwin from the US.

Pandit Batish often said: ''With music, you no longer need to try going to heaven, you are already there!'' Ashwin plans to archive all his father's works and memorabilia. He is also considering creating a non-profit foundation to carry on spreading Batish Sr's love for music.

It all began when Batish, in a small town called Bhatinda, 100 miles from Patiala, at the age of 12 sang for Maharaja Hari Singh of Kashmir. This enthused the Batish family and it wasn't long before they packed him off to Mumbai to make it big.

In Mumbai, Pandit Batish soon became popular in film circles and was affectionately called the young Saigal after the famous singer-actor. He even took up small roles, but got bored and after hardly six months of his whirlwind introduction to the film world, he decided to return to Patiala. Here, he began training again under Guru Charan and returned with renewed vigour for his craft.

He lent his talent to various vocal and instrumental styles of North Indian music, including bhajan, geet, thumri, ghazal and film sangeet. In 1970, Batish moved to California to teach music at the University of California, Santacruz, where he subsequently settled. He has authored several books on music. He devoted his life to teaching and spreading the love for music.







Doston, Apna Tau Yeh Imaan Hai
Jo Bhi Jitna Saath De, Ehsaan Hai
Umr Ka Rishta Jodne Waale
Apni Nazar Mein Deewane Hai

Thanks for the memories HF. Bye Bye.
deewani is "permanently away"





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SuDeo
post Aug 4 2006, 10:50 PM
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QUOTE(deewani @ Aug 4 2006, 06:19 AM) *

Some news articles:


Thanks for the original articles, Ms Deewani.
One of my favourite duet of Pandi S.D. Batish Saab is from Ada (the second movie of Madan Mohan). He sang it with Asha Bhonsale. The words are: Sab Kuchh Karna Pyar Na Karna.... It is a most lovely and hummable song.

Subhash G Deo
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balajigade
post Aug 5 2006, 02:45 PM
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An irreparable loss to the music world. A good singer, a music director and a great human being. May his soul rest in peace.

--Balaji
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desai2rn
post Aug 5 2006, 07:53 PM
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This is a great loss for the music world. He will be miised by his family
and music lovers. May god rest his soul in peace.

Ramesh

R a m e s h
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nirvana
post Oct 3 2007, 03:39 AM
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Hi Ashwin,

I've just joined the forum. Please accept my belated condolences.

Your father was a genius and will be greatly missed.

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