Exclusive Interview with special guest of Virasat Festival, Cultural Artist Abhishek Lahiri
By OUR STAFF REPORTER
Dehradun, 1 Nov: Making a remarkable entry into the enchanting world of music, the globally renowned Abhishek Lahiri is a personality who has proudly elevated India’s name through his cultural performances worldwide.
In a special conversation with him, we discussed his ascent to new heights. During this meeting, he mentioned that his music albums, “Sparkling Sarod” and “Mood of Puriya Kalyan”, have propelled him to great heights, with the blessings and praise from people serving as significant encouragement for him. Throughout his musical journey, his name has been mentioned with great respect in cultural performances both at home and abroad. Abhishek Lahiri, one of the youngest recipients of the “A” grade award from Prasar Bharati and Doordarshan, has created a unique style of playing the sarod, earning countless accolades worldwide. He received extensive training in the Gharana tradition, primarily under his eminent father and guru, Pandit Alok Lahiri, as well as through the Gurukul system, merging with other gharanas.
Interestingly, Abhishek began performing publicly at the tender age of 11. He shared that his first break at the national level came in 1997 when he was invited by Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia to perform at the “Saath Saath Mahotsav”. That same year, he made his international debut at the “World Kinder Festival” in the Netherlands, where he was nicknamed the ‘Wonder Kid’. This marked the beginning of his lifelong commitment to extraordinary talent in music, leading to extensive performances not only across India but also in Europe, UK, USA, Canada, Sri Lanka, Japan, Singapore, West Africa, and Bangladesh.
During our conversation, he proudly stated that he had the honour of being the first Indian to perform at prestigious events in Europe, including the European Parliament in France, the Cannes World Music Festival, and Canada Culture Day in Toronto, alongside his father, Pandit Alok Lahiri. In 2017, Abhishek was sent to Morocco and Cyprus as India’s cultural representative by ICCR, the Ministry of Culture, and the Government of India. He has performed at several world-renowned venues such as the Darbar Festival in London, Théâtre de la Ville in Paris, Musée Guimet in Paris, Sacred Music Festival in Strasbourg, Tropen Theatre in Amsterdam, Bimhuis in Amsterdam, Music Public in Brussels, Eye On India Festival in Chicago, ICMC in Dallas (Texas), the Chhandayan All-Night Concert in New York, the Indian Embassy in Tokyo, the Sangita Abhiman Festival in Colombo, Sangeet Natak Akademi, Harivallabh Music Festival in Punjab, Tansen Festival in Gwalior, Sankat Mochan Festival in Varanasi, Rimpa Festival in New Delhi, Dover Lane Music Conference, among many others.
Abhishek’s music albums “Sparkling Sarod” and “Mood of Puriya Kalyan” have also been nominated for the GIMA (Global Indian Music Awards) in 2010 and 2014 alongside luminaries like Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Ustad Rashid Khan, and many others. He expressed his joy in receiving these accolades, stating that it brings him immense pride and honour to represent India and shine his name abroad.
