September- October 2010

Pt. Uday Bhawalkar    

Dhrupad 'Darshan'

Uday Bhawalkar is a standard bearer for Dhrupad. Dhrupad is one of the oldest forms of North Indian classical music. He maintains this old form’s majesty and subtle nuances and has developed a personal style deeply embedded in raga ras and bhaav bringing a creative melodic touch within the precise intonation and pronunciation of the Dhrupad style.Uday believes that in total immersion in note and raga, the self disappears and music takes on its own existence - this is The principle of ‘darshan’.
He is a strong force in growing recognition and popularity of Dhrupad.
Uday-Bhawalkar
Uday spent over 12 years studying in the traditional guru-shishya parampara with Ustad Zia Fariduddin Dagar (Vocal) and Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Dagar (Rudra-Veena), the towering pillars of the Dhrupad tradition. The most significant episode of this period, which inspired Uday for life, was when Ustad Nasir Aminuddin Dagar, the eldest of the Dagar family, on first hearing Uday’s performance in 1987, blessed him with a Gold Medal.

Uday has received prestigious awards including the Kumar Gandharva Samman given by the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh (2001) and the Raza Foundation Award (2007) He has been blessed by Ustad Zakir Hussain who accompanied him on the Pakhawaj at Prithvi Music Festival at Mumbai. Pt Suresh Talwalkar and Sukhvinder Singh Namdhari have accompanied him prestigious concerts.

Uday has been performing regularly for the past 25 years at major festivals in India and abroad.