From The Strings Of Sarod To The Strings Of Heart

When he touched the guitar, tunes flowed like water. When he stood near the mic, people were enthralled by his voice. When he picked up the Sarod, classical tunes danced on his fingertips.
Anupam Shobhakar with his first love - Sarod; Source: Anupam Shobhakar Official Website

Anupam Shobhakar with his first love - Sarod; Source: Anupam Shobhakar Official Website

Imagine a day full of tension and targets. We come back home, sprawl on our comfortable lounge and start thinking about the entire day’s events. Just then, a voice speaks, “Alexa, play some soul-soothing music.” Guess what, our mind immediately relaxes and we are transmigrated to an entirely different world. Music is the soul of the universe. Wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything that exists on this planet, music and rhythm certainly find their path into the secret places of the soul.

Be it bending the tune or making the tune, this man has indeed made music a way of life. Be it Sarod or be it guitar, he adds magic to everything that he plays. Be it Indian classical music or be it world fusion, he adds life to all of them. Be it Kolkata or be it New York, he has made a huge place in the heart of every fan. Let’s go on a rhythmic ride with the musical legend, Anupam Shobhakar.

Born as a Bengali, brought up as a Mumbaikar and currently living his life as a New Yorker, Anupam’s connection with places and transitions is quite old. Belonging to a home that reverberated with the tunes of classical music day and night, had a huge impact on Shobhakar. Also, being the grandchild of a musician who sang and played sitar and tabla, Anupam was very much into music from quite an early age.

Anupam was for sure suffering from musical madness from the age of thirteen when he first started ‘mixes and matches’ with jazz and classical music. Indian classical music piqued his interest when he was a teenager. A light and fashionable guitar in his hands did not satisfy his thirst for music but when he held the heavy and traditional sarod, it certainly re-ignited his musical gravitas.

Shobhankar’s ears stood up when he heard the awe-inspiring tracks of Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. Their tracks pushed him to the world of western music and he eventually formed a band named Dead Sea Scrolls.

Even after adopting the western fusion style, he was always enthralled by the energetic blasts of Indian classical music. Anupam’s first Guru was Suresh Vyas who taught him the intricacies and technicalities of classical music.

Shobhakar’s talent was recognized by Priyadarshni Academy who honoured him with the Best Young Artist Award. As time went by, his talent grew to a height that was difficult to ignore. He was felicitated by the Indian Armed Forces.

Anupam recorded his first-ever album in the year 2004 called the Mysterious Awakening. During the making of this album, Shobhankar made sure that he participated in every aspect of the production to make it to the list of perfectly released albums. Finally, this album was released by Saregama HMV.

One of the best moments of his life came when he was awarded the title of Surmani or Jewel of Melody by Sursingar Samsad.

This was the story of a sarodist who loved the guitar equally. This was the story of a man who loved the tunes of Ustad Aashish Khan but also rocked to the tunes of Metallica. And finally, this was the story of a Bengali boy who is now the heart of New York.

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