Healing Space | The catharsis of KK

All crying or powerful emotion isn’t cathartic. Release, insight, re-contextualizing, and realignment are important outcomes of catharsis. (Illustration by Suneesh K.)

Note to readers: Healing Space is a weekly series that helps you dive into your mental health and take charge of your wellbeing through practical DIY self-care methods.

Whether in Chhod aaye hum, vo galiyan from Maachis or in Koi Kahe Kehta Rahe from Dil Chahta Hai, the late singer KK’s voice carried the vulnerability, ambitions and dreams of a young, liberalizing India.

It is telling that many of his early songs were ensemble and spoke to the opening up of collective ambition, a determination to succeed, and break with tradition. He did so, of course, in consort with powerful lyricists such as Gulzar and Javed Akhtar, backing vocals for then-heart throbs like Salman Khan, the blockbuster leading man who at the time of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, was dating Aishwarya Rai, considered the most beautiful woman in the world.

The cumulative force made KK’s voice the catharsis of a whole generation, perhaps because, as his close friend and former band mate Gautam Chikermane noted in tribute, KK represented that era best himself, he was its most authentic expression. When we lost the woman of our dreams, our hearts broke through the power of his vocals in Such Keh raha hai deewan.. from Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein. The identification was strong enough for us to find release through his music. As such, when KK passed away earlier this week, for many who grew up with him, the message received was, that youth is now over.

The grief of his passing is in a way another final song of that era, of the '90s kids of India. The manner of his passing has been abrupt, gone too soon, out of left field, allegations of mismanagement by those in charge of the crowds at this venue, a lack of immediate medical attention. It also reminds us of the unnecessariness of what we miss out on, that we are not everything we would have hoped to be by now collectively, the gaps still exist, the system lets us down, and with it, comes a reminder of and a disappointment with everything we could have been.

We collectively put a lot to rest with KK, not the least of it a hope for a better way of life because no matter how good life is now, it still doesn’t match the fantasy we once built in our heads. We are suddenly confronted by the things we imagined we had time for. We’ve compromised, and left some ways and people behind, put things on the back burner for too long. And while the people around you right now don’t know the ways in which you could have had more, KK does. It seems like he always did.

Research shows that catharsis through music comes in two ways, through chills and tears. It is a peak emotional experience that takes you to either shivers and gooseflesh, or crying. Shivers produce psychophysiological arousal while tears slow breathing while increasing the heart rate, both cause you to breathe deeply and induce pleasure. This is also because tears release endorphins and oxytocin, hormones that regulate pain relief and improvement of mood. In brief, songs that give you chills are perceived as both happy and sad, and songs that reduce you to tears are sad, but calm you, giving you a sort of pleasure from your sadness. The purpose of a lot of art, overtly or covertly, is to induce these states of catharsis as a response to its power of creativity. Crying isn’t always cathartic but when it is, a key aspect to how the catharsis works is by its social context. Research finds it elicits social support, interaction, and exchange. When you cry or become mellow on listening to ‘yaad aayenge ye pal’, someone in your context is more likely to reach out to you, talk about the good old days, and share a drink with you or make a plan with you. Through this interaction you arrive at a new insight into your past. And thus you re-contextualise a memory you find painful or long for. In A Human History of Emotion, author Richard Firth-Goodbehere notes that possibly Greek philosopher Socrates’ last words were an acknowledgement that his execution would be an act of healing for the city of Athens, one last act of catharsis, an act of ultimate virtue. Dissimilar, but somewhat akin to KK standing in difficult circumstances, curbing his rising sense of ill health, to sing ‘Yaad ayenge ye din’ one last time.

KK didn’t just sing. He became an instrument, lending his voice, his experience of life to its authenticity, so that a generation could find their release through him. And for this, his passing is a grief by which we gain catharsis of our own too.

Gaining catharsis

1. Catharsis is a peak emotional experience that allows us to gain emotional release.

2. It is often provoked powerfully through art, and through events or conversations.

3. A strong identification with the art work or artist is its medium.

4. All crying or powerful emotion isn’t cathartic. Release, insight, re-contextualizing, and realignment are important outcomes of catharsis.

5. Music is one of the most powerful instruments of catharsis because it’s so accessible and direct.