Giridhar Udupa literally grew up surrounded by percussion as his father Ullur Nagendra Udupa was a mridangist who taught extensively. At age 4, he started learning mridangam and learned that exclusively until the age of 9. Then, at a concert organized by his father, Giridhar was roped in to play…
“I feel that teaching makes you learn twice. So, I teach lots. And I teach everybody who wants to learn tabla. “ – Sanju Sahai London-based tabla exponent Sri. Sanju Sahai shares his thoughts with us in this episode. Sri Sanju is a scion of the Benares style of tabla…
“A lot of artistes believe this is the time to introspect, to reflect and to ponder on music. But I believe this pondering and introspection should be happening throughout a musician’s life – not just during a pandemic….” – Abhishek Borkar Young Pune-based Hindustani sarod exponent Sri. Abhishek Borkar initially…
“I struggle between feeling that music and art is a pretty lofty luxury at a time like this, but at the same time it also feels like it is the one thing that can remind and connect us with our humanity.” – Priya Purushothaman In this episode, we hear from…
“What is important is how you got to the point where you have gained proficiency in your art form, and the process of gaining that proficiency….” -Arijit Mahalanabis Arijit Mahalanabis is a Hindustani vocalist and one who actively performs khayAl, dhrupad, dhamAr, tumri and tApA. He is the founder of…
“I imagine myself as a child who is near her mother – they have no fear – and that the Almighty or God or nature, will take care, like a mother.” – Anupama Bhagwat, on how she maintains hope amidst the pandemic. An acclaimed Hindustani sitar exponent, Smt. Anupama Bhagwat…
This is a detailed on-camera interview I did of Pandit Arijit Mahalanabis, Guru and Founder of the Society for Indian Music and Arts (SIMA), based in State College, Pennsylvania, USA. Before a live audience, Pandit Arijit expounds very candidly on all that is wrong about our classical arts, the state…
Spontaneous, versatile, grounded – some of these adjectives come to mind when one thinks of Anupama Bhagwat, the young Hindustani sitar player. Currently touring the U.K. and the U.S., she was one of the artists to participate at the prestigious Darbar Festival in London. Possibly the largest festival of its…
“I am a devotee of Carnatic music, but not a practitioner,” says Arijit Mahalanabis, Hindustani vocalist from the U.S., and founder of the Seattle Indian Music Academy (SIMA), one of the largest institutions teaching Indian music abroad. Arijit, who is in India after 21 years, takes an organic approach to…