As a child, I heard Shobha Gurtu on television, and found myself immediately caught under the magic spell of her voice. Little did I know then that I would have the opportunity of accompanying Shobhatai on the tabla for well over a decade – an association that went well beyond a mere professional arrangement between a main artiste and an accompanying musician. I feel privileged to have been permitted entry into a space that is normally reserved for close family. But this would not have been so, had it not been for Shobhatai’s open-hearted manner, her ability to cross-over and connect with those several years her junior, in age and experience. It was perhaps this very quality that engaged her listeners across generations.

In many ways, Shobhatai remained a child at heart often remembering her childhood days. Though born in Belgaum, she would narrate anecdotes of her early initiation into music in Kolhapur where her mother learnt from Ustad Bhurji Khan, the youngest son of Ustad Alladiya Khan (founder of the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana). As a young girl, Shobhatai had a keen observation and could mimic compositions and other musical material that her mother was being taught. She soon became a favourite with Ustad Bhurji Khansaheb’s family and spent long hours in their company. Later, the Jaipur-Atrauli tie was strengthened when she studied with Ustad Alladiya Khan’s nephew Ustad Natthan Khan. But her musicianship flowered under the guidance of Ustad Ghamman Khan, who had been engaged to teach her mother thumri–dadra and allied forms. Ustad Ghamman Khan also taught young Shobha these forms during his stay with the family in Mumbai. After her marriage, Shobhatai received guidance from her father-in-law Narayannath Gurtu, a highly-placed officer in the Belgaum police force but a sitar player by passion.

Given the various musical streams that had influenced Shobhatai in her formative years, it was left to her to make sense of it all and develop a style that was unique to her. While focusing her attention on thumri-dadra, chaiti, kajri, and such other forms, she intelligently introduced in her thumri singing, taan (fast melodic passages) patterns and glimpses of jod ragas (compound ragas) like Basanti Kedar and achhop ragas (rare ragas) like Bahaduri Todi, which she had inherited through her Jaipur-Atrauli association. Not for a moment did this take away from the emotive aspect of her singing. In fact, her voice had an endearing quality that attracted the listeners even before she launched into a thumri. Though not a trained dancer like her mother, she would at times introduce adaa/abhinaya (gestures) to highlight a particular line from the text. While transforming herself from one singing of playful or coy Radha-Krishna dalliances to one yearning for union with the Ultimate, Shobhatai demonstrated her inimitable style of musically acting out each of these roles. This ability was seen even in the rare appearances she made as a singer for Hindi and Marathi film and non-film songs, and in the collaborative ventures heard on her son Trilok’s jazz albums.

Shobhatai’s unique style won her many fans round the world and brought her several awards, the Padma Bhushan coming as crowning glory. But despite all the public acclaim, Shobhatai remained humble right through. Her humility was evident in the manner she carried herself at concerts, interacting freely on and off the stage with accompanying musicians like eminent harmonium player Pandit Purushottam Walwalkar and me. She even looked forward to spending lighter moments with us, at times cracking jokes and at others talking about food and special recipes!