Shakti band members (L-R) V Selvaganesh, Shankar Mahadevan, John McLaughlin, Ganesh Rajagopalan and Zakir Hussain

In their 50th anniversary year, things have become even more special for jazz-fusion stalwarts Shakti. The group, comprising guitarist John McLaughlin, tabla player Ustad Zakir Hussain, vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, percussionist V Selvaganesh and violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan, has bagged a Grammy nomination for This Moment, their first album in 45 years.

“It was an absolute surprise,” says Mahadevan, who has been associated with the band for 24 years. He adds, “On Dhanteras, I offered my prayers to Maa Saraswati and Maa Laxmi at my sister-in-law’s place and minutes later, Selvaganesh ji called to inform me about the nomination. I called Zakir bhai to congratulate him as he’s got three nominations. When I called John McLaughlin ji, he didn’t even know we were nominated (laughs).”

Released in June, This Moment comprises eight new compositions and has been nominated in the Global Music Album category alongside Peruvian music icon Susana Baca, Creole-French band Bokanté, Nigerian musician Burna Boy and American-Nigerian singer Davido, among others.

Ask how the album worked out and Mahadevan, 56, shares, “We’re a world fusion band that’s a perfect blend of strong Indian melodic content and complex rhythms of the East with the harmonic elements of the West. We never did a studio recording as we were always touring. I am glad we created this studio album after 45 years. I feel This Moment earned a nomination as it has the true essence of Indian and Western melody and harmonic structures.”

Shakti toured India and abroad to celebrate their 50th anniversary. They released the album in June in memory of mandolin stalwart and a key member of the band, the late U Srinivas.

The musician who hangs with A R Rehman and John McLaughlin on a new venture at the Royal Opera House, which will add to the city’s music and epicurean culture
Anjana Vaswani (BOMBAY TIMES; October 15, 2017)

"The drums chose me,” says Ranjit Barot explaining his choice of instrument as he settles into a seat beside a chandelier-style table lamp at the venue of his exciting new venture. It’s modesty, perhaps, that has him borrow J K Rowling’s prose to underplay his efforts. But, in fact, while it’s no secret he’s led a charmed life — touring with A R Rahman, collaborating with Ustad Zakir Hussain, joining forces with jazz supremo John McLaughlin and performing at Davos are just some snatches from it — Barot’s success really has a more earthly foundation.

In one of his bestsellers, Malcolm Gladwell pointed out that except for very few outliers one’s achievements are, typically, the product of one’s influences and opportunities. Barot, the son of renowned Kathak dancer, the late Sitara Devi, had both. “Our living room at home was a fluid space,” he recalls, “It served as my mother’s dance workshop, my practice place, and in the evenings, it would be the venue for jam sessions. Distinguished classical musicians such as Ustad Vilayat Khan Sahab and Ustad Rais Khan Sahab would come by, the lights would be switched on and biryani would be cooked. My mother would jam with them. So, it was a living room in the true sense — the space pulsated with life.” Surrounded by such powerful musical influences as a child, by age 20, Barot was performing alongside Louis Banks, the musical legend.

He’s conscious of his privileges, and the responsibility these impose, Barot tells us. “Culturally and ideologically I inherited so much nourishment from my mother, I had to make sure I lived up to all of that — this got into my DNA very early, so even though I am lazy, I have a self-governing system that doesn’t allow me to be sloppy, and I very much want to pay this forward,” he says. His role at music composer Ashutosh Phatak’s brainchild, the True School of Music, affords one opportunity to do so. “I teach a course on artistic development there, and mentor some of the brightest kids — there’s some special talent there, and the plan is to produce their work and give them a platform to showcase their skill.”

Phatak is in fact seated within earshot. At a table nearby, he, businessman Nakul Toshniwal and a small team iron out the details of their soon-to-be-launched venture, a live music venue at the recently restored, and jaw-droppingly beautiful Royal Opera House. With a sound-proof auditorium designed to deliver superlative acoustics, a charming al fresco area edged with wrought iron screens and ornamented with pretty plants, and three floors dedicated to hospitality (yes, there will be booze), the project will allow Barot to build on his ambition even further.

It’s a necessary addition to the city’s music scene, Barot explains. “If music is full of character, it forces the audience to listen, and you would think that’s the goal, but I have heard producers say, ‘Make me music that people can talk over,’ dichotomous as that sounds. I feel we have notional ideas of what music should be, but there’s no benchmark for Indian music and I would like to establish that through this project,” he says. “I feel very strongly that in the context of your career and your life, you must be an agent of change. It’s a lonely path because when you’re outspoken, you won’t endear many people — but you may empower many others,” says Barot. The philosophy is so close to his heart, it’s also been encapsulated in a song titled Chingari, written by Manoj Yadav for Musafir, an album Barot plans to release early next year.

Could it also be the reason why Barot seems to have distanced himself from the Indian film industry, despite the tremendous success of some of the albums he contributed to, like Fiza (2000) and Main Hoon Na (2008)? “A lot of that world depends on your people skills and how you can deal with the industry,” he says. “I think the industry was braver once, but it started getting tighter and tighter and I think music directors have less say now in what they should be doing. Besides, I think there are enough good composers out there servicing the industry, and I have my hands and plate full.”

Barot returns to the topic of The Quarter, the exciting new project he’s co-founded with Phatak, Toshniwal and restaurateur Nico Goghavala. It’s a venture that will undoubtedly be a dreamcome-true for SoBo’s music aficionados, many who still lament the closure of Blue Frog. “It’s great to be a performer, but to have a legacy, that’s fantastic. I’ve never been part of anything like this; never been in a partnership, because I’m so pigheaded and must live my life on my own terms. I need to be with like-minded people.” His reflection isn’t laced with regret. “I’m hanging out with A R Rahman and John McLaughlin, so I must be doing something right.”