FILMS OF THE SPIRIT

Curated by Rajiv Mehrotra

 

Meera (115 min; 1947; dvd; b/w; Hindi)

Director: Ellis R. Dungan

 

With M.S. Subbulakshmi

 

Meera has the iconic Subbulakshmi gloriously singing devotional songs mixing Carnatic ragas with popular Hindustani airs. The result is transcendental music, particularly the soft notes which Subbulakshmi sings with her incandescent facial expressions. Her rendition of the Meera bhajans in Hindi has remained the definitive musical version of the lyrics. They were an important part of her live concerts

 

(Collaboration: The National Film Archive of India; and the Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness the Dalai Lama)