Thursday, August 20, 2015

काय खर्ज लागतो एकेक बेडकाचा...Mandookavani

काकाजी:
"… आपल्या देवासला पावसात हजारो बेडकं ओरडतात मेंडकी-रोडवर, ओहोहोहो! काय खर्ज लागतो एकेक बेडकाचा- असं वाटतं, की  कोणी दशग्रंथी ब्राह्मण वेदपठण करून राहिले आहेत बेटे ! काय ?"
(पु ल देशपांडे, 'तुझें आहें तुजपाशी', 1957)


[Kakaji:

"...in our Devas thousands of frogs croak in the rain on Mendaki road, oh..oh..oh! What deep (bass) sound each one creates- one feels, it's as if  Brahmins with the command of the ten great books are chanting Vedas ! What?"

(P. L. Deshpande, "Tujhe Ahe Tujapashi"]



Mohit M. Rao reported for The Hindu in April 2015:

"...In a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country, research spanning a decade has resulted in a comprehensive audio database titled ‘Mandookavani’ (translates to ‘speech of the frog’ in Sanskrit) which contains voice samplings of about 70 of these amphibian species.

The 30-minute CD contains a brief introduction to the frog species, followed by a 10 to 30 second voice sample. As an added bonus, the CD also features a one-minute ‘symphony’ using these samples. Researchers Ramya Badrinath, Seshadri K.S., Ramit Singal and Gururaja K.V. independently recorded the samplings during their research in amphibian behaviour and ecology in the Western Ghats.

The lush forests and innumerable streams of the region house 192 frog and toad species – or, around half of the amphibian diversity of the whole country – each of whom have their own distinctive voice. Of the 70 in the CD, 58 are endemic species..."

I have downloaded Frog Find, an Android Apps and I just love listening to various sounds of Mandookavani. 


 courtesy: gubbilabs