Music Lives On

Garud performed at Sawai on Wednesday. “For any classical musician,the Sawai stage is like a dream. I have been attending the festival for the past 15 years and it will be an honour to perform on a stage that has seen the performances of the gods of music. However,I am sad that I got the honour of performing here when my guru,Pandit Shrikant Deshpande is no longer here.”

Nagaraj Rao Hawaldar,who is based in Bengaluru,has been performing across the globe. However,Sawai holds a different importance in his life. “Nagaraj had accompanied Panditji for the first time in 1984 in Kolkata. Following that,Panditji,who was very busy at the time,suggested that he learn music under the tutelage of his disciple,Madhav Gudi,” says Sudhamayi Havaldar,wife of Nagaraj Havaldar who is on his way here from the US. He started learning music from Gudiji from the year 1985. “Both my sons,Omkarnath and Kedarnath,will be accompanying their father on stage on December 11. It is sad that his guruji is no longer alive to see his performance,” she adds.

Even for Shrinivas Joshi,son of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi,this year’s festival will be different. “The loss of Shrikant Deshpande was huge for me as he played an important role in organising the festival. Even though father is no longer with us,I am sure we will be able to feel his presence at the festival,” says Joshi who will take to the stage on December 10.