Memories of singer ‘Delkash’

Other Voices

TBy Ahmad alsarraf

he famous Iranian diva singer (Esmat Bagherpour Baboli) ‘Delkash’ (1925-2004) lived half of her practical life under the rule of the Shah, and she saw fame, glory and significance, and lived her second half under the rule of hardline clerics, and saw grief and near humiliation.

In one of her memoirs she said, during time of her old age, she once took a taxi, and as soon as she got into the taxi, the driver, who was in his twenties, played a tape of one of her songs, and at the end of it he played another, all the time shaking his head and this continued until her eyes were filled with tears as she recalled the memories of her glory days which she sorely missed, and she felt blood shooting to her head, redness covered her wrinkled face and powder-free eyes and the driver addressed her saying.

Oh mom! Do you not see her beautiful voice and her wonderful performance? So she asked him with her eyes filled with tears, if he knew the singer and who she was. He said her name is ‘Delkash’, and that her voice cannot be equaled by any voice, and he apologized if that annoyed her, saying when he is alone and in difficult hours of his work he plays her songs, and that he was in love with her voice, just as his father was, and raised his arms towards heaven and called on the Lord to keep her safe wherever she was!

Delkash said to him, after much hesitation that she is that singer he is talking about. The driver sub conscientiously stepped on the car’s brakes, pulled it over to the side of the road and turned to her in total unbelief at what had had heard. He glanced at her tired face and the words came out with difficulty and with a slow whisper pointing his indicator finger at her said:

alsarraf

Are you really Mrs. Delkash? She shook her head, as she wiped the tears from her cheeks, and without saying anything, she started singing one of her songs with her tired voice until the rest of the journey.

The driver continued to shake his head as if in disbelief at what he was seeing and what he was hearing and as soon as she arrived at her destination, the driver got out and opened the car door for her, and he bent over her hands planted dozens of kisses, thanking her the beautiful moments saying they will stay with him forever and refused to take the fare from her.

Artistes, in any art, have a special place in the hearts of their fans and admirers, whether the artist is a painter, sculptor, actor, singer, or dancer. Of all these, a singer stays with us for many years. We, the ordinary people, are not haters of arts, culture and literature. We enjoy the play, and our hearts beat faster on seeing a wonderful statue or a charming painting, but the song, words and music, have their own place.

They are the comfort and the dream as we ride the road to joy, sadness; in the bright sunlight, and in the dark, we can restore our dreams and memories with us, and bring them out of our present to take us back to the past, or carry us to the future without leaving our places.

Thanks to everyone who brings joy to our hearts and ecstasy to our souls, and who will be with us when we reach the end of life, then we will choose, if we have a choice, to sit on the balcony every day in a rocking chair, and enjoy listening to the most beautiful songs, melodies and songs, which we have always been blessed with.

And we loved those who blessed us with their voices while were holding a cup in one hand and a cigar in the other, until the two fall from our hands and we bid farewell to this world while we were at the height of contentment, and the thieves of dreams and public money go to hell.

e-mail:

a.alsarraf@alqabas.com.kw