Priya Purushothaman: a Dedicated Disciple

WHEN SOUTH MEETS NORTH Priya Purushothaman: A dedicated disciple Here is a rare instance of guru at New York and graduated from profiling (and celebrating) sishya. Columbia University, NY. Married Aditi Kaikini Upadhya, the author of to photo journalist Hari Adivarekar, this piece, is an established vocalist she now resides in Bengaluru). in the Agra gharana, and a teacher ADIVAREKAR HARI In those two months, she received a and musicologist based in Bengaluru. brief introduction to the style and my A daughter of the late Dinkar Kaikini, method of teaching. Realising she had a cerebral and renowned icon of her barely scratched the surface but very school of vocalism, and Shashikala keen to go deeper, Priya decided to Kaikini, vocalist and academician of take a year off after graduating from repute, Aditi Upadhya also trained in college dedicated to studying music dadra, thumri and hori with the late under my tutelage. Shobha Gurtu. She is much in demand In this year, she lived with me and my for her lecture demonstrations and family, immersed herself in the talim, workshops on Indian classical music. the culture of the art, interacted with She is a devoted guru as well. many artists who would visit our home, riya Purushothaman approached and was very fortunate to get time to me with a request to teach her spend with my father, Dinkar Kaikini. Hindustani vocal music in the Priya Purushothaman She visited him every few months and P spent time discussing musical matters summer of 2002, while she was visiting with him as well as taking lessons. Bengaluru. She had just finished her Hindustani music has a history third year at Columbia University and of south Indians who have made Using the material she gathered had come to India to visit her family. a mark in it. Here, we turn our over the years in these interactions, Like many prospective students whom attention particularly to artists male she released a book titled Living and female, of Tamil origin through Music: Conversations with Pandit I meet in the south, she had thirteen the decades years of training in Carnatic music Dinkar Kaikini in 2012, published by Popular Prakashan. that she had received while growing agreed to teach her for two reasons: up in New York. I asked her why she the family she belonged to, and the This gurukul style of training wanted to learn Hindustani music, determination and perseverance I continued for more than the initially and she told me of her interest in the saw in her eyes. (Daughter of Tamil- planned year. After experiencing both increased improvisational freedom speaking parents Ramaa and Sampath the challenges and gratification of this she felt this style would give her. I Purushothaman, Priya went to school training, she decided to continue her music training further. She travelled With her guru Aditi Kaikini Upadhya with me for concerts and learned about the skills required to be a performer in addition to the scholastic training that develops a solid foundation. I am sure this lifestyle was quite a HARI ADIVAREKAR challenge for her after living in New York all her life. But she showed absolutely no signs of any discomfort and instead just became a part of the fabric of the family. She then became our third daughter and all three of them really bonded and enjoyed their time together. 50 l SRUTI January 2015 After a few years, torn between the Through long and patient hours of course most well known for choice of following a life dedicated riyaz she puts in, working on each the codification of modern day to music in India and going back to of the aspects of Hindustani raga Hindustani raga sangeet, and those her life in the US, Priya went back to sangeet, understanding, internalising following him have adopted a New York to work for Carnegie Hall. and polishing each of them structured teaching methodology During her time there, she worked individually. This has also given her that makes an otherwise abstract art in the educational wing organising an insight into experiencing the ups form more accessible to students. in-depth workshops for young and downs of the initial years as a The belief that education is the artists with master artists in various performer, and honed her intellectual underpinning of sustaining this art musical styles. Though she gained capacity as a thinker. is at the crux of the philosophy of these great musicians. In this vein, valuable experience in this position, Priya has performed at various venues Priya decided that her heart was in we train students not only to perform in India, including NCPA - Mumbai, but to be effective teachers as well. the performance side of music, and Kalakshetra - Chennai, Jaganmohan returned to India after one and a half Priya has also been a dedicated Palace Auditorium - Mysore, teacher for the last six years, training years to resume her training which I Devnandan Ubhayker Yuva Sangeet both children and interested adults to was sure would happen. Utsav - Bangalore, India International make them good singers and informed Since then, she has been in rigorous Centre - Delhi, and more. She has also listeners. She conducts lecture- training with me and has gradually built been performing frequently in the demonstrations and workshops, and a life of her own as a young musician. US – in New York, California, Seattle, has done these at institutions such This of course would never have been and other major city centres. as the Utrecht Music Conservatory, possible without the dedication and This parampara –�� which goes back Codarts Conservatory, Rotterdam, hard work she put in. She truly has to Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande, Syracuse University, NY, and Manipal the capacity to follow the “just do S.N. Ratanjankar, and then Dinkar University in India. it” mantra so popular today without Kaikini ��–�� places a great emphasis ADITI KAIKINI UPADHYA initially questioning the process! on pedagogy. Bhatkhande is of (A Hindustani vocalist and musicologist) 51 l SRUTI January 2015.

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