After all the heavy tones of electronic music on New Year’s Eve, enters the soothing sounds of Indian Classical Music with the annual Saptak Festival, this time in its 38th edition. After a fervent opening day performance on January 1, 2018, by Ustad Shujat Hussain Khan, Pandit Prateek Chaudhuri, Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Shri Vijay Ghate the second day soared with Nishat Khan’s sitar recital.
The first session of the 2nd day began with a stirring father-son duo performance, where son Hemdeep’s stroke of ingenious instrument Jaltarang amalgamated with Shri Jayantilal Mishra’s Kachtarang. The audience was entrenched in oceans of emotion as they touched the Charukesi raga wonderfully accompanied by tabla player Jay Dabgar’s Teentaal and Madhya Taal rhythm.
The second session was marked by the performance of Abhishek Mishra, the grandson of Pandit Surendra Mohan Mishra, a prodigy tabla player from Benares Gharana along with versatile vocalist Swaransh Mishra, son of Pandit Sajan Mishra. Along with Banarasi harmonium player Pandit Sumit Mishra, the talented vocalist moved the audience with Raga Bageshri in Dhrut Teentaal and concluded with Raag Maalkauns.
The third act saw the mood of evening peak with flawless rendition of Raga Hameer by Sitar maestro Ustad Nishat Khan. Ustad was well accompanied by Shri Gourishankarji on tabla.
By the fourth performance the LD Arts courtyard was teeming with Indian classical music enthusiasts, after all, it was the Kathak performance of Lucknow Gharana exponent, Pandit Birju Maharaj. Unfortunately, Panditji couldn’t perform due to a health condition, which led to a visible despair among many fans. However, there was a lot for the patient listeners to consume and enjoy. The stage was taken over by Panditji’s daughter Sushri Mamta Maharaj and his lead disciple Sushri Saswati Sen. With Panditji providing the vocals for many portions, the finale act had moments of joy, albeit the legends magic as experienced last year, was definitely amiss.
For the second time Creative Yatra is bringing you a regular update on India’s most significant Hindustani Classical Music Festival. It is a golden opportunity for citizens to revive their deep-rooted connections with Indian art. Stay tuned for more!
Photographs : Rajkumar Rao
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