Chowtaal for Indira

It is no surprise that Indira Maharaj has grown into a prolific singer of religious and patriotic songs of India. She was brought up in a strict Hindu home as her father Bhanwani Maharaj is a pundit. Indira is well known in cultural circles for singing chowtaal which is synonymous with the Phagwa festival being celebrated today. More than 20 villages will take part and chowtaal groups will go from village to village singing. She teaches at the Sangre Grande Hindu School but Indira also assists pupils of the Robert Village Hindu School, (where she began her teaching career two years ago) with their preparation for Children’s Phagwa. This 22-year-old of Robert Trace, Rio Claro, began singing from age seven.

“I believe I started to sing even before I could talk. I live in a house where I would hear my father singing from the holy Ramayan on a daily basis. And, the Hindi words are now embedded in my soul. It comes naturally for me.” She particularly likes the Phagwa season because of the interaction between the various communities in dancing, singing and having fun. “The music and song sound different on the day of Phagwa. There is a kind of magic about the actual day. People free up a lot and I love to see them put everything in their performance while enjoying what they do,” she said with passion. Pointing out the importance of the jaal (brass instrument) which accompanies the chowtaal songs she said: “Well I don’t have to tell you the impact brass has where music is concerned. It really sounds different from any other combination of music, and this is why it is so noticeable.”

Another aspect of chowtaal that really impresses her is the art of singing in groups. “When the voices come together, it is like a choir but the music really plays a great role in bringing out the songs,” she explained. Indira is attached to the Rameshwaram Hindu Temple in Robert Village and she accompanies her group members to local villages and towns to perform chowtaal. She is also known for her renditions of film songs and was a finalist in the 2003 Mastana Bahar programme. She is also in demand for local concerts and for this she praises her mother, Drupatie Maharaj, who has been very supportive in developing her singing career. “I could not do it without her.  She was there to assist me in everything I did. As a youth one can be short-sighted, but a mother thinks long-term and this is where the wisdom comes in,” she said, and also urged young women to become friends to their mothers. “Your mother is the only one who can truly love you and it is stated in the Ramayan that if you have seen the face of your mother then you have seen God.”