On June 25, 2022, Chinmaya Maruthi hosted a Sitar concert by Rishab Rikhiram Sharma. A child prodigy and the last student of the Sitar Maestro Ravi Shankar, Rishab accompanied by Nitin Mitta on the Tabla mesmerized the audience with his brilliant performance.
“Our family makes musical instruments. My father made the instruments for Pandit Ravi Shankar. When I was young, I started to learn from my father. Panditji heard a recording of my recital when I was 11 and asked to see me. He announced that he would take me on as a student. I had no idea what an amazing honor and responsibility it was to be his student. I am dedicating my concert today to Guru ji “ said Rishab Sharma as he started to play Rag Behag.
He is also working on Sitar and Mental Health. He started the event out with a short breathing exercise. “Covid was hard on all of us. I lost my grandfather at that time. He was my biggest fan. Sitar really helped me tide through difficult times†said Rishab.
As he started to play, one could see his entire self immersed in the playing and one could see why Pandit ji was so taken with this young man. Nitin Mitta provided spectacular accompaniment. The entire family is very musical. Rishab’s mother. Manju Sharma then took the stage and presented a few Bhajans. She was accompanied by Rajesh Pai on the Tabla and Balakrishnan on the Keyboard. Rishab and his mother came together at the end to present a couple of songs.
“I was fascinated by how instruments are made and I went and met Rikhi Ram. That is when I found out about Rishab. I was absolutely blown away by his incredible talent and wanted to present him to the Boston audience. I am sure we will continue to see more of him in the future†said Dr. Dwaraknath who was instrumental in bringing this concert to Andover.
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