''Bedu Pako Baro Masa'' (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: ''Figs do ripen round the year'') is a Kumaoni

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fo ...

song in

Kumaoni language Kumaoni (; ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by over two million people of the Kumaon region of the state of Uttarakhand in northern India and parts of Doti region in Western Nepal. As per 1961 survey there were 1,030,254 Kumaoni speakers in ...

which was composed by

Mohan Upreti Mohan Upreti (1928–1997) was an Indian theatre director, playwright and a music composer, considered one of the pioneers in Indian theatre music. A popular figure in Kumaon, Mohan Upreti is remembered for his immense contribution towards the ...

, B. M. Shah and written by Brijendra Lal Shah. This Kumaoni song was composed, written and first performed in the early 1950s and since has become popular all over

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...

as even before it had been sung as a traditional folk song among the villagers in Kumaon. This song is the official regiment song of the

Kumaon Regiment The Kumaon Regiment is one of the oldest infantry regiments of the Indian Army. The regiment traces its origins to the 18th century and has fought in every major campaign of the British Indian Army and the Indian Army, including the two world war ...

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

Composition

Mohan Upreti composed this song in Raga Durga. It was sung on stage for the first time in 1952 at Government Inter College,

Nainital Nainital ( Kumaoni: ''Naintāl''; ) is a city and headquarters of Nainital district of Kumaon division, Uttarakhand, India. It is the judicial capital of Uttarakhand, the High Court of the state being located there and is the headquarters o ...

. The song became popular when it was sung and was sung in

Teen Murti Bhavan The Teen Murti Bhavan (''Teen Murti House''; formerly known as Flagstaff House) was built by British as the residence New Delhi of the Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru. However, He stayed there for 16 years until his death on 27 May ...

in the honour of an international gathering. Then Prime Minister of India,

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

, chose this song as the best folk song among other participants from India. and Mohan Upreti became popular as the ''Bedu Pako Boy''. Mohan Upreti and

Naima Khan Upreti Naima Khan Upreti ( hi, नईमा खान उप्रेती; 25 May 1938 – 15 June 2018) was an Indian theatre actor, singer and a producer at Doordarshan. She was also the wife of Mohan Upreti, considered to be one of the pioneer ...

also recorded this song for

HMV Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom. The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...

. The HMV recording was given to the guests as a

souvenir A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...

. This song was one of the Favourite song of first Prime Minister of India,

. Recently, in the honour of all who gave this folk song an international fame and to make Uttarakhand folk available all around the world 24X7, an online radio, which is one of the only and very first online radio of Uttarakhand available on web, was created by the name of Bedu Pako.

Lyrics

Theme of the song

The theme of the refrain is symbolic. The fig fruit which ripens round the year is not valued much but the deliciously sweet bayberry only appears briefly during the short season in March and April. Thus it is something to look forward to in the midst of an ordinary existence. In a state typified by mountainous terrain the warmth of spring and summer brings a promising bounty of flowers and berries and gladdens the heart. The verses of the song has many themes. Primarily a woman is expressing her feelings to her husband called Narayan. She lives with her in-laws and the advent of spring kindles in her a desire to return to her parents' home where she was lovingly nurtured as a child. Filled with nostalgia, she recalls the visits to the holy Nanda Devi shrine and Lal Bazaar in the town of Almora. One of the verses describes her bond with Narayan. Her love for him is so deep that she feels his pain unwittingly. In another verse she rues the fact that at her in-laws’ she has to settle for things of lesser value while others enjoy the good life, a reminder of how she was pampered as a child but had to settle for a dreary married life. It emphasises her longing to visit her parental home where she knows she will be fussed over.

Description

In this song composer expresses the emotions of a woman giving reasons her beloved husband to visit her mother's place. ' Bedu', the

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

, is one of the very abundant fruit available throughout four seasons, however the '

Kaphal ''Myrica esculenta'' is a tree or large shrub native to the hills of northern India, southern Bhutan and Nepal. Its common names include box myrtle, bayberry and kaphal. Its berries are edible and are consumed locally. It is the state fruit ...

' (wild red-coloured

bayberry ''Myrica'' is a genus of about 35–50 species of small trees and shrubs in the family Myricaceae, order Fagales. The genus has a wide distribution, including Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America, and missing only from Australi ...

) is available only in the month of

Chaitra Chaitra (Hindi: चैत्र) is a month of the Hindu calendar. In the standard Hindu calendar and India's national civil calendar, Chaitra is the first month of the year. It is the last month in the Bengali calendar, where it is called Cho ...

. In general, 'Bedu' fruit has only a limited value be it eating or other usages among

Kumaoni people Kumaonis, also known as Kumaiye and Kumain (in Nepal), are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group who speak Kumaoni language as their first-language and live mostly in Kumaon region in the Indian Himalayas . Kumaoni is also used as an ad ...

, hence not considered as a fruit at all. However 'Kaphal' not only tastes good but also it happens to ripen around the month when natural beauty touches its extreme. This entire natural beauty instigates childhood memories and fun days within her heart and she expresses her interest of going to her mother's place. Also to add to the meaning composer included places like

Almora Almora ( Kumaoni: ''Almāḍ'') is a municipal board and a cantonment town in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Almora district. Almora is located on a ridge at the southern edge of the Kumaon Hills of th ...

and

in the songs and the famous things therein. In one of the lines composer provides us with the powerful bond of love and explains that if beloved is hurt it is the self who realizes and feels the pain more than anyone else around.

In popular culture

This song is the official regiment song of the

. The Kumaon Regiment has its headquarter at

Ranikhet Ranikhet ( Kumaoni: ) is a hill station and cantonment town, nearby Almora Town in Almora district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the home for the Military Hospital, Kumaon Regiment (KRC) and Naga Regiment and is maintained by the In ...

Almora district Almora is a district in the Kumaon Division of Uttarakhand state, India. The headquarters is at Almora. It is 1,638 meters above sea level. The neighbouring regions are Pithoragarh district to the east, Chamoli district to the west, Bageshwar d ...

. The song also serves as the cultural anthem for the

worldwide.{{Cite news, url=https://www.euttarakhand.com/bedu-pako-song, title=Bedu Pako Song - From Uttarakhand to Globe, date=2016-11-16, work=Uttarakhand Stories - Connect to Uttarakhand with eUttarakhand and Share Stories, access-date=2018-09-09, language=en-US

References