At 90, Ravi Shankar feted for lifetime contribution to music

NEW DELHI - Pandit Ravi Shankar, who was felicitated Friday for his lifetime contribution to Indian classical music, said music had been “his life” for the last 75 years.

Described as the doyen of Indian string instrumentalists, he is still grounded in music at 90.

“Music is the soul of India and it has been my life as well,” the maestro said in a message read out at a glittering function, “Ravi Shankar, 90 not out”, hosted by the Indo-American Friendship Association and Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) at the Islamic Cultural Centre in the capital.

“I have loved many countries like France, England and Japan of which I have several fond memories. But I deeply fell in love with the US from my first visit there in 1932 with ‘dada’ (older brother) Uday Shankar. Though my first home is in New Delhi and I am a citizen of India, my other home is in the Encinitas near San Diego, California,” he said in his message.

The event was attended by ICCR president Karan Singh, German ambassador Thomas Matussek, economist and former envoy to US Abid Hussain, dancers Sonal Mansingh, Birju Maharaj, former diplomat Lalit Mansingh and author Gurcharan Das among others. The guests recounted their encounters with the sitar exponent with anecdotes and personal reminiscences.

A Kolkatan and a thorough Bengali at heart, Pandit-ji, as he is fondly called, was born in Varanasi April 7, 1920.

“It is where my heart and soul lies for I began my artistic career in the city - the first nine years of my creative life as part of Uday Shankar’s ballet troupe and then as a musician. My brother taught me showmanship, presentation and stage etiquette. It is also in Kolkata that I met my mentor, classical music exponent, Baba Allaudin Khan, when he joined the troupe in the year in 1935 and we toured Europe. I learnt music from him,” Pandit Ravi Shankar reminisced in an interview to IANS.

Uday Shankar disbanded his troupe in 1938. And Ravi Shankar soon parted ways with his brother to pursue music.

“I left ‘dada’ and went to learn music from Baba Allaudin in Maihar in Madhya Pradesh. I stayed with him for seven-and-a-half years. I played on my own for the first time in 1939 at the Allahabad Music Conference and subsequently embarked on an independent musical career,” he said.

In 1956, Ravi Shankar began touring Europe and the US. His performances drew packed halls, giving Indian music an international face. He collaborated with violinist Yehudi Menuhin and George Harrison, and was one of the pioneers to write sitar music in Indian notations for western concertos.

“George Harrison became my student in the mid-Sixties, which certainly opened the biggest door in all the continents for me. The young generation all over the world became my fans…but I was strongly critical about their wrong approach to our music and religion - through drugs and the way of life,” Ravi Shankar said.

He was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in 1986 and was conferred India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna, in 1999. He also won three Grammy awards and was given the Ramon Magsaysay award in 1992.

Ravi Shankar has created as many as 30 ragas, says “Raga Mala”, a biography documenting his musical journey.

“Some of them are Nat Bhairav, Ahir Lalit, Yaman Manjh, Gunji Kanhara, Purvi Kalyan, Kameshwari and several more,” the book says. Ravi Shankar says he “is completely in sync with the changing face of classical music”.

“Read my autobiograhy, ‘My Music, My Life’. I have updated it with new chapters. And listen to my music. It is forever changing,” he exhorts the youth.

To preserve his music and the legacy of the Indian sitar for posterity, the maestro has set up the Ravi Shankar Institute of Music and Performing Arts (RIMPA) to carry on innovation, research and fusion. The institute serves as a platform to promote younger artists.

Initially housed in his home in Varanasi, the non-profit organisation moved to Chanakyapuri when the maestro shifted base to the capital.

On April 7 this year, the centre celebrated his 90th birthday with an evening “of film and music” dedicated to him. A documentary on Ravi Shankar, “Between Two Worlds”, was screened as part of the tribute.

In February, the maestro launched his own music label “East Meets West Music” as well.