KOCHI: Muhammad Sadique begins his day at the harbour in Vypeen. By five in the morning, the harbour is abuzz with activity. As the boats arrive with fresh catch, the fisherfolk rush towards it. Within moments, the boat turns into an ocean of faces and voices. In the centre of all this action, stands Muhammad Sadique, standing by the catch and auctioning it furiously. The numbers slipping off his lips are keenly observed. Before long the prize is fixed and it is time for the next auction.The scene changes in a few hours. There is neither the clamour of the fisherfolk nor the swish of sea breeze. We are at a popular star hotel in the city. Delectable dishes and appropriately dressed guests dot the hotel hall. But the man of the moment remains the same. Muhammad Sadique, can be seen crooning old movie songs and even ghazals. But here he isn’t a fish auctioneer, the ‘tharakan’ as he is called, but the student of veteran music composer Devarajan master. What more, this singer from Fort Kochi already has a couple of movie songs to his credit.“Some of my friends have asked me, how I can shout at the top of my voice for hours in the middle of a harbour and then switch to singing again for hours? But I don’t think there is cause for concern. People do ‘sadhakam’ for hours right? This is my ‘sadhakam’, says Mohammad Sadique. Being the nephew of renowned Malayalam ghazal vocalist Umbai, Mohammad Sadique’s association with music began early in life. “That tradition is there, but that is not where my music comes from,”, says Sadique. “I hail from Fort Kochi. There was this area called Bazaar. During day time, the area had workers with their rice sacks. By evening, the scene would change. Music lovers of Fort Kochi would gather in the evening. They would come with their instruments and other paraphernalia and sing. As children we used to be enthralled by their music. We would secretly move out of our homes, jump off fences and come for these music sessions. These were not trained classical singers. But they had expertise to tell you where you went wrong if you sang.”“I began working soon after my tenth. Those days you didn’t need any money to start a business in auctioning. So I and my friend took to it,” he recollects. But music was always a passion, and it resurfaced sooner than later. “It began with tabla and then to vocals. It was then that I met Devarajan master. I studied under him for around 15 years. Our training was in the ‘guru-shishya’ mode. I used to stay with him during my training. When Devarajan master fell sick, we had our class in the hospital. Even today people recognise me as his student” he says. Sadique today can earn enough with his music alone, but he has no plans to quit the fish business. “I have steady financial backing today due to my business. Musicians should never consider music as their sole source of income. I know of some great musicians, who died in penury.”But there’s another reason he doesn’t want to give up on his ‘other’ life. He’s quite a star at the harbour. “Being a ‘tharakan’, I have an image in the harbour”, he smiles. “Everyone knows me. For my last show, the whole Vypeen area had my poster stuck everywhere. I don’t want to lose that”, he signs off.
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