The Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal will organise the 69th Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav from December 13 to 17 at the Sports Complex of the Maharashtra Mandal at Mukund Nagar. Shrinivas Joshi, executive president of the Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal, Wednesday announced the list of artistes participating in the classical music festival.
Joshi said, “This year, we mark the birth centenary year of Pandit Kumar Gandharva, Pandit Ram Marathe and Pandit C R Vyas. We will be paying special tribute to these three veteran artists through this year’s Mahotsav with performances by their disciples and family members.”
“The Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav strives to present a bouquet of legendary performers along with providing a platform for new talent to boost Indian classical music. This year too, we have a stellar lineup of artists who will showcase their brilliance,” Joshi said.
The itinerary of the 69th Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav is as follows:
Day 1 (December 13): The first day will commence with mellifluous shehnai by Shehnai exponent Tukaram Daithankar. This will be followed by a vocal rendition by Sanjay Garud, a disciple of noted Kirana Gharana vocalist, Pandit Shrikant Deshpande. Thereafter, Kalapini Komkali will pay tribute to her father and Guru, Pandit Kumar Gandharva, to mark his centenary birth year. This will be followed by a Sarod performance by Tejendra Narayan Majumdar, a disciple of Bahadur Khan of Senia Maihar Gharana. The first day will conclude with enthralling vocals by Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar.
Day 2 (December 14): The second day will begin with a performance by Ankita Joshi, an emerging vocalist and disciple of Mewati Gharana maestro, Sangeet Martand Pandit Jasraj. The second presentation will be by eminent vocalist Pandit Upendra Bhat, a disciple of Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi of the Kirana Gharana. This will be followed by a captivating Sitar performance by Partha Bose, who hails from the same Sitar tradition as Nikhil Banerjee. The closing programme for day two will be melodious vocals by Vidushi Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande, a disciple of Manik Bhide of the Jaipur-Atrauli Gharana.
{{/usCountry}}Day 2 (December 14): The second day will begin with a performance by Ankita Joshi, an emerging vocalist and disciple of Mewati Gharana maestro, Sangeet Martand Pandit Jasraj. The second presentation will be by eminent vocalist Pandit Upendra Bhat, a disciple of Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi of the Kirana Gharana. This will be followed by a captivating Sitar performance by Partha Bose, who hails from the same Sitar tradition as Nikhil Banerjee. The closing programme for day two will be melodious vocals by Vidushi Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande, a disciple of Manik Bhide of the Jaipur-Atrauli Gharana.
{{/usCountry}}Day 3 (December 15): The third day will commence with a vocal performance by young and emerging Rajat Kulkarni of the Kirana Gharana. The second performance will be by Padma Deshpande, granddaughter-in-law of Kirana vocalist Pandit Sawai Gandharva. Then there will be an alluring Sitar performance by well-known sitarist Niladri Kumar. The third day will conclude with vocal recitals by Pandit Ajay Pohankar of the Kirana Gharana. He will be accompanied by his son and disciple Abhijit Pohankar.
Day 4 (December 16): The fourth day will begin with vocals by Prajakta Marathe paying a tribute to her grandfather, Pandit Ram Marathe, to mark his centenary birth year. The second session will be a joint performance by vocalist Debapriya Adhikary and Sitar player Samanway Sarkar, from the same musical legacy as Pandit Girija Devi. After this, connoisseurs will witness a graceful Kuchipudi dance by Yamini Reddy, a well-known Kuchipudi dancer and choreographer. This will be followed by a Santoor performance by Abhay Rustum Sopori, the son and disciple of Santoor player, Pandit Bhajan Sopori from Kashmir. Day four will end with vocal recitals by celebrated vocalist, Begum Parveen Sultana of the Patiala Gharana.
Day 5 (December 17): The last day of the Mahotsav will commence with a performance by vocalist Shrinivas Joshi, son and disciple of Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. This will be followed by a vocal recital by Pournima Dhumale, a disciple of Pandit Babanrao Haldankar of the Agra Gharana. Then, Pandit Suhas Vyas will pay tribute to his father and Guru, Pandit C R Vyas to mark his birth centenary year. After this, there will be an instrumental programme of Carnatic music - ‘Atma Ensemble’ featuring Aishwarya Venkatraman and associate players. The next programme will be the much-awaited rendition by Kaushiki Chakraborty of the Patiala Gharana. This will be followed by a melodious flute performance by Sangeet Natak Akademi award winner Ronu Majumdar. The 69th Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav will conclude with the performance of Swarayogini Padma Vibhushan Dr Prabha Atre, who belongs to the Kirana Gharana.
District collector gives permission to classical music festival till midnight on Dec. 16
Pune district collector Rajesh Deshmukh has given permission to the Sawai Gandharva Bhimsen Mahotsav till midnight on December 16 on the request of the Arya Sangeet Prasarak Mandal. Deshmukh said, “The Maharashtra government had given 15 days permission to extend sound restriction in the Pune district. Already, the collector’s office had given permission for 14 days for various festivals and a single day remained.”