Dream come true: First-timers at Sawai Gandharva festival get ready to face Pune’s aficionados

“We are paying homage to Ustad Zakir Hussain at the festival. We will mention his association with the festival and Pt Bhimsen Joshi ji,” says Shrinivas Joshi, the son of Pt Bhimsen Joshi and an organiser of the event.

He added that introducing up-and-coming talents has been a long-standing tradition at the festival. “Recognising new talent and showcasing it to connoisseurs was one of the traits of my father. He had introduced many stalwarts to Pune audiences through Sawai Gandharva festival which, at that time, used to be the only such musical event in the city. Many performers came to know the people of this region through this festival,” says Joshi.

The young performers are selected by listening to musicians and hearing about them. There is also an element of encouraging artists of the Kirana Gharana, to which Pt Bhimsen Joshi and Shrinivas Joshi belong.

“This year, there is Krishna Bongane, whose guru was the late Ustad Rashid Khan,” says Joshi.
One of the first-time performers is Arati Thakur Kundalkar, whose guru was the late Prabha Atre who passed away in January this year. The finale of the festival will be a tribute to her, with Thakur Kundalkar taking the stage.

“The festival will end with our performance. Till now, very senior artists have played the role of ending the festival, such as my guru Prabha tai. Earlier, it was Pt Bhimsen Joshi who performed on the last day. They have set a tradition. It seems like a big responsibility,” says Thakur Kundalkar.

“For few days, I have been having mixed feelings. I am happy to be performing at the Sawai Gandharva festival as this is the dream of every artist. On the other hand, we are paying a tribute to Tai so there is sadness as well,” she adds.

Among the other first-timers is Shashwati Chavan-Zurunge, who has been attending the Sawai Gandharva festival since she was very young. Her father, Pt Sudhakar Chavan, is a renowned classical artist of Kirana Gharana.

“For as long as I could understand things, I used to say that I wanted to be a classical vocalist. I was in Class III when I told my mother, ‘I will become a vocalist and perform on this stage’. Her mother had told her that she would need to do a lot of riyaaz. She had answered, ‘I will do it and I will perform on stage,”’ she recounts.

A testimony to her commitment is that Chavan-Zurunge has received talim in both streams of Kirana Gharana – Abdul Karim Khan sahab’s and Abdul Wahib Khan Sahab’s. It is a dream stage for every classical artist. I feel very fortunate,” said Shashwati.