| Keeping
alive its tradition of presenting
the country's promising young
musicians to the discerning audience
that flocks to Pune in the second
week of December every year, the
Sawai Gandharva Music Festival
- India's most prominent festival
of Hindusthani classical music
- will get underway tomorrow. |
|
This year, the four-day
festival - in its 54th year now -
promises to offer a glimpse of times
to come in the field of Indian music
because, as many as 11 artistes will
perform in it.
Although many of
them have performed elsewhere in the
country, the opportunity to perform
at the Sawai Gandharva Festival is
largely considered as a passport to
bigger platforms.
Prominent among
the first timers at the Festival are
youngsters Shaswati Mandal, Rakesh
Chaurasia, Rahul Deshpande and Kathak
dancer Deepak Maharaj.
Shaswati who hails
from Bhopal is the grand-daughter
of Gwalior Gharana exponent Balabhau
Umedkar. Daughter of singer Kamal
Mandal, Shaswati is a recipient of
the government of India scholarship
for 1987-92. She has also been awarded
the Sur Mani Samman by the Sur Singar
Sansad, Mumbai.
Young flautist Rakesh
Chaurasia is the nehew of flute maestro
Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia. Rakesh
has performed all over the world and
was part of a 24-hour live music concert
broadcast by the BBC to celebrate
Queen Elizabeth's silver jubilee.
Rahul Deshpande
- grandson of the legendary Dr Vasantrao
Deshpande - has trained under Usha
Chipalkatti and Mukul Shivputra, son
of (Late) Pandit Kumar Gandharva.
The Sawai Gandharva
Festival invariably includes a Indian
classical dance performance. This
year the performer will be Kathak
artist Deepak Maharaj - younger son
of Kathak legend Pandit Birju Maharaj.
He has been performing solo in a number
of concerts and also accompanying
his illustrious father on stage.
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