Baburao Jadhav, a musician from Sholapur, created a small instrument with eight holes from a 20-cm ‘useless’ piece of wood in 1928.
The instrument played sweet music and the locals started calling it 'bobbin'.
In 1936, Jadhav played the instrument at a function at the “Darbar Hall” of Akkalkot Raja Fattehsingh.
The king heard the sweet music and said Sundar Sundari (beautiful instrument), and from that day the instrument was called ‘sundari’.
Sundari, a double reed wind instrument made from wood of the Palmyra tree, is known as the younger sister of shehnai, as the method of playing it is similar to shehnai.
The instrument is limited only to Jadhav family of Sholapur. The audience at 17th National Youth Festival (NYF) had a chance to listen to the music of sundari, thanks to Kapil Jadhav, the great grandson of Baburao Jadhav, who is continuing the family tradition.
“I played the instrument for the folk dance competition presented by the team from Maharashtra,” says Kapil, who has his hands on the instrument since he was six.
Kapil, 20, was trained by his uncle Pandit Bal Bhim Jadhav and is the youngest sundari player in the family. Speaking to Deccan Herald, Kapil said that sundari is a small instrument, but playing it is difficult.
“You need a lot of strength to blow it. Only the Jadhav family knows to play this instrument in the whole world,” he claims.
“We don't want to limit this instrument to the family. Hence we decided to teach the interested through an institution. However, there were no takers,” says Kapil. Now, it is up to our generation to take the skill forward. My cousins have made a big name by playing this instrument. I hope to do the same. I have been nominated for the ‘Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar,’ he said.
“The sundari I used for NYF was given to me by my uncle. It is over 50 years old. It is a rare instrument,” he adds. Kapil is also adept at playing shehnai and harmonium.
“I love music. If someone is interested in playing sundari, I don't mind teaching it for free,” concludes the youth artiste.