Kishore da's birthplace still lacks memorial to genius

Khandwa, MP, Aug 3 (UNI) 'Naam gum jayega... chehra yeh badal jayega... meri aawaz hi pehchaan hai... gar yaad rahe'.

Ironically, the words penned by Gulzar seem to be aptly revealing the sheer neglect of immortal playback singer Abhas Kumar Ganguly alias Kishore Kumar at his birthplace Khandwa.

A silence prevails here on the eve of the 77th birth anniversary of Kishore da who had tremendous affection for Khandwa a town that seems to be ravaged by a guilt complex as it has not been able to do much for preserving the melody king's memories even almost two decades after his demise.

It would be ridiculous to state that Kishore da needs a memorial or function to highlight his fame. However, the fans -- for whom this town is nothing short of a pilgrimage centre -- are tormented by the fact that no honest attempt has been made here to earmark a place for singing an ode to his greatness.

Has eminent poet Javed Akhtar forgotten his promise of donating Rs 1 lakh for renovating Kishore da's sepulchre? ''At a local function on August 4, 2005, Mr Akhtar made the announcement but the amount is awaited,'' says Khandwa Municipal Commissioner S N Jharia.

Last year, Akhtar was bestowed the Kishore Kumar Samman by the Madhya Pradesh government's culture department. Earlier recipients of the award, which carries a cash component of Rs 1 lakh and a citation, include Amitabh Bachchan, Gulzar, B R Chopra and Naseeruddin Shah. This year's recipient is renowned filmmaker Shyam Benegal.

'Gauri Kunj', the ancestral house of the Ganguly family, where 'Dadamoni' Ashok Kumar and comedian Anup Kumar also spent their childhood, once played host to Swami Vivekananda who conveyed the eternal philosophy of the spiritual East to the materialistic West.

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