Indian Music

Punjabi singer Gurdas Mann – Soulfully yours

Punjabi singer Gurdas Mann - Soulfully yours

To describe him in a few lines or sentences is always an unlikely possibility, so most of the times his description settles with the word ‘sufi’! Gurdas Maan whose on-stage energy gives any new Punjabi singer’s stamina a run for money, can still hold a live audience captive for hours. He talks measured, taking small peaceful unheard breaths, as he …

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People losing interest in pure classical music: Amjad Ali Khan

People losing interest in pure classical music: Amjad Ali Khan

Sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan, who has enthralled audiences all across the globe with his mellifluous music, is concerned that people are today more interested in fusion than pure classical music. “Today people are more interested to see collaborations. Why are people more interested in fusion, what is the reason and why is it happening? It is a very big …

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Vocalist Jai Thirath Mevandi – Indian classical ragas can work as alternate medicine

Vocalist Jai Thirath Mevandi - Indian classical ragas can work as alternate medicine

Hindustani classical vocalist Jai Thirath Mevandi belongs to the land that has given gems like Pt Sawai Gandharva and Pt Bhimsen Joshi. Following his mother who hummed devotional songs while doing household chores, Jai Thirath took a liking to music right from his childhood. He started learning classical music under Pt Arjunsa Nakod at the age of 14. Inspired by …

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A selfie with Arif Lohar in Chandigarh

A selfie with Arif Lohar in Chandigarh

Hands in the air, mobile phones, camera, and action! As Pakistan-based folk musician, Arif Lohar, arrived at Paara, a night club in Chandigarh, to perform, the audience that kept waiting for three hours pulled their Smartphones out and clicked selfies and videos with Arif in the backdrop! What followed later was a Friday night drunk on the beats of dhol …

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Indian classical music has a strong following abroad: Anoushka Shankar

Indian classical music has a strong following abroad: Anoushka Shankar

Internationally acclaimed sitarist Anoushka Shankar says Indian classical music has a strong following abroad, but it’s “such a shame” that the genre’s popularity hasn’t translated in the country of its origin. The daughter of late sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar earned her fifth Grammy nomination this week for her album “Home”, which reaffirms Indian classical music’s hold in the West. …

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Jodhpur Rajasthan International Folk Festival – Tunes of the dunes

Jodhpur Rajasthan International Folk Festival - Tunes of the dunes

A heady mix of rustic and contemporary notes and global rhythms — Rajasthan folk festival encourages and promotes people’s music Jodhpur RIFF (Rajasthan International Folk Festival) is different. It is music from dawn to midnight and beyond. It coincides with Sharad purnima — the brightest full moon each year. From finding one’s way in the dark before dawn, to get …

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Jodhpur’s Rajasthan International Folk Festival – Presenting new forms of music

Jodhpur's Rajasthan International Folk Festival - Presenting new forms of music

Presenting a platform for the folk and root musicians of Rajasthan with international music collaborations, Jodhpur RIFF, which will present its ninth edition during October 23-27, has been creating new music for not just audiences but to the country, festival director Divya Bhatia said. Jodhpur’s Rajasthan International Folk Festival (RIFF), with its Rajasthani folk musicians and international artists, has been …

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Navraj Hans & Dil Sandhu – Sincerely Sufi

Navraj Hans & Dil Sandhu - Sincerely Sufi

Huge solitaire studs in both ears, hair sticking up stylishly, kadak moochen and a groomed beard, as Navraj Hans walks in to announce his next single in Maverick, Piccadily Square on Tuesday, everyone present can’t help but notice. In tow, is his ‘veer’ Dil Sandhu, who has rapped for the song. A typical Punjabi number set in a wedding backdrop, …

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