Hariprasad Chaurasia: Journey of a wrestler to a flutist

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Jul 01 2018 11:07 AM
News Track

Known for his serene persona, Hariprasad Chaurasia is a renowned flutist who has taken Indian Classical music to another level.

Born on July 1, 1938, in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, Chaurasia lost his mother at a tender age of 6. He could not express his desire to learn music to his father who wanted him to pursue wrestling.

In an interview, Chaurasia recalled that he went to the Akharas only because his father wanted him to do so. It was for his father's sake only that he practised wrestling. He used to practise music at his friend's house.

Chaurasia began his initial vocal training at the age of 15, with Rajaram who was his neighbour. Hariprasad Chaurasia later chose to play flute and was trained for 8 yearsby Bholanath Prasanna of Varanasi. In the year, 1957, Chaurasia joined the All India Radio in Cuttack, Odisha and served as a composer and a performer. He was later trained by Annapurna Devi who was the daughter of Baba Allaudin Khan.

He was awarded with Padma Bhushan in the year 1992 and Padma Vibhushan in the year 2000.

He has also been honoured with the title of an officer, by the Dutch Royal family at Amsterdam.

We wish him health and peace in life.