The emerging performance platforms for young artistes

Hindustani vocalist Rujuta Lad accompanied on the harmonium by Vinay Mishra and on the tabla by Saptak Sharma performed for Raza Foundation’s ‘Aarambh’.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

In recent times, there has been a surge in young talent, but not all of them are able to make it to the performance stage despite rigorous training. It is here that initiatives such as Raza Foundation’s Arambh and IIC’s (India International Centre) ‘Double Bill’ play a pivotal role.

While the 2025 edition of ‘Arambh’, held at the Amaltas Theatre of India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, featured vocalist Rujuta Lad, ‘Double Bill’ showcased Hindustani vocalist Dhanashri Ghaisas and Aditya Shanker and troupe (instrumental fusion music).

Rujuta initially trained under Dhondhu Tai Kulkarni, and further refined her skills under Ashwini Bhide Deshpande, an exponent of the Jaipur Atrauli gharana.

Accompanied on the harmonium by Vinay Mishra and on the tabla by Saptak Sharma, Rujuta opened her concert with raag Nand. The traditional bada khayal ‘Dhundhu bare sainyan…’ was rendered in vilambit Teentaal as per the convention of her gharana. She delineated the piece in a leisurely manner, going through systematic alap, bol alap, barhat and varied taan patterns, before progressing through the chhota khayal ‘Aa ja re balauva’, composed by Kishori Amonkar in a medium tempo of Teentaal.

She next chose to render ‘Nayaki kanhada’ is a staple of the Jaipur Atrauli gharana. The famous bandish ‘Mero piya rasiya’ was dealt with aplomb in Madhya-Vilambit Rupak taal. The other bandish ‘Nikli albeli rangili naar’, composed by Ashwini Bhide, was adorned with quicksilver taans to suit the bandish. Rujuta also wanted to sing a Hori but concluded with a Bhairavi bhajan due to paucity of time.

Dhanashri Ghaisas, disciple of Ashwini Bhide Deshpande, showed a good grasp of the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana.
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Dhanashri, who performed at the Double Bill series, also trained under Ashwini Bhide Deshpande. Showing her grasp over the characteristic features of her guru’s gharana, Dhanashri opened with raag Yaman, but the use of the Shuddha Madhyam sometimes made it sound like Yaman-Kalyan. After an alluring alap, Dhanashri presented a traditional bada khayal ‘Mo mann lagan lagi’ set in Vilambit (slow) Teentaal. She elaborated the raag gradually, focussing on its melodic points. The bandish featured taan patterns unique to the gharana. The tarana set to Drut Ek-taal, composed by her guru, came as part of the main raag.

Dhanashri next presented raag Basant, which brought about a change in mood. She sang the bandish ‘Aai ruta Basant’, adorning it with a variety of taans. Dhanashri concluded with a Hori ‘Main toh khelungi unahin se hori guniyaan’, composed by Bindadin Maharaj. The harmonium accompaniment by Kshitij Singh and the concluding laggi on the tabla by Vinod Lele enhanced the appeal of her concert.

Aditya Shanker on the tabla, Kartikeya Vashishth on the flute, Neeraj Kumar on percussion and Shailendra Wakhlu on the guitar performed at IIC’s Double Bill concert series.
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

The performance by the fusion ensemble with Aditya on the tabla, Kartikeya Vashishth on the flute, Neeraj Kumar on percussion and Shailendra Wakhlu on the guitar was structured like a journey. Aditya’s guru Ustad Rafiuddin Sabri was present in the audience.

The concert, which began with Shiv-Vandana ‘Om Namah Shivaaya’, in raag Malkauns moved to an Egyptian folk tune that sounded like Bhairav, and pop-influenced piece, before concluding with a thumri ‘Ka karun sajni, aaye na balam’ in Bhairavi. But the ensemble couldn’t keep up the momentum with its disparate repertoire.