Grammy news music to ears for Shakti fans in Kolkata
Times of India | 6 February 2024
Kolkata: Fans of Shakti in Kolkata are ecstatic with India’s success at the Grammys this year after the band became Global Music Album Winner.
“This Moment” – the Shakti album featuring John McLaughlin, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Shankar Mahadevan, V Selvaganesh and Ganesh Rajagopalan, that won the Grammy – has been a favourite with original Shakti fans. Singer Dibyendu Mukherjee, who attended Shakti’s 50th anniversary concert tour on Jan 24 last year at the Calcutta Cricket and Football Club (CC&FC) grounds, described Shakti as “a music school”. “It is so inspiring to see veterans like John McLaughlin and Zakir Hussain carrying on with the band and then coming up with an album that defeats works of GenZ,” Mukherjee said.
For Sundeep Bhutoria, trustee, Prabha Khaitan Foundation, it was a huge moment to witness Shakti’s win live in Los Angeles. “It was my maiden experience witnessing the Grammy Awards live. It filled me with pride as it was a big day for India ,” said Bhutoria on Monday.
News of Hussain’s win has been echoing in Kolkata’s music corridors. Pt Tejendra Narayan Majumdar met the tabla legend in Delhi. “I told him that we are sure that he will win the Grammys,” Majumdar said, adding, this puts Indian classical musicians on the global music map.
Young tabla players like Ishaan Ghosh consider Hussain’s Grammy wins are “motivational” and give “courage to experiment without straying from the roots”. “Zakirji is an idol and a handbook for teaching us to strike the right balance. He has opened new vistas for us,” said Ghosh, who has recently come up with a fusion track called ‘Euphoria.’
Music lovers are also rejoicing two Grammy wins of flautist Rakesh Chaurasia, whose collaborative album, “As We Speak”, won the Grammy for the Best Contemporary Instrumental and Best Global Music Performance categories.
Ojas Adhya, who accompanied Chaurasia at the Dover Lane Music Conference on Jan 23, said, “In ‘As We Speak’, he has been so true to the roots .”
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