The second view as to the origin of the Banis holds that the Banis derived their names from the places where they developed and flourished. According to this view, the Gobarahara Bani, which is said to have been introduced by Tansen, started in Gwalior, the dialect of which was known as Gobarahara. Khandarabani which is said to have been introduced by Sammokhana Singh, originated in Khandara Pradesa, the dialect of which is known as Khandari. The Dagara Bani which is said to have been introduced by Brjachanda, originated in Dagara which was near Delhi. The Nauhar Bani, which is said to have been introduced by Srichanda, originated in a place called Nauha. Some hold that Banis emerged from the school of music which was formed at Delhi by the descendants of Tansen. This school was named Senia Gharana after the name of Tansen. The school is reported to have flourished between the 16th and 18th centuries and reputedly produced many distinguished Dhrupadiyas (Dhrupad singers). Tansen's youngest son, Bilasa Khan, was the pioneer of Gobarahara Bani. The descendants of Tomtaranga , another son of Tansen, settled at Jaipur and pioneered the Dagara Bani. The third Senia line started with Naubata Khan, son-in-law of Tansen and came to be known as Khandara Bani. The musicians of the Khandara Bani were primarily Veena players and sang Dhrupad only secondarily. The Banis had a short lifespan. In the course of time the different Banis merged with each other and lost much of their distinctive qualities. As a result, when a Dhrupad singer of today performs, it is difficult to say which of the various Banis he is combining in his particular performance. However, since the Suddha and Dagara Banis were less ornamented and offered a better scope for Layakaris, these are the ones which are predominantly reflected in the performance of a modern singer. |