Young brilliant Indian classical musicians and dancers gathered at the home of Kuntala Das in Harvard Square to give her a very special birthday party on Dec 8, 2012 featuring a grand music and dance showcase.  Shakeel Avadhany, CEO of Levant Power and a talented Tabla player coordinated the event that featured a wide range of art forms. 

The event opened with a percussion ensemble featuring Ishwin Dembla, Shakeel Avadhany, Akshay Navaladi.  The young men trained under maestros like Swapan Chaudhary, Zakir Husain and Akram Khan dazzled the audience with their masterful solos and joint presentations.  A Bharatanatyam presentation followed the Tabla Dancer Amudha Pazhinsamy, presented Tanjavur Shankar Iyer’s Ranjanimala and the famous Husseni Javali  Netrandi Nerathile .  

The showcase continued with a Sitar presentation by Sonny Lalchandani, a student of Peter Row.  Tina Mann, a brilliant Ghazal singer from California presented a few wonderful Ghazals. Shakeel Avadhany and Swarup Swaminathan provided the accompaniment on Tabla and Harmonium.   Sareena Avadhany, a student of Chitresh Das presented a short Kathak excerpt.  Swarup Swaminathan, a student of Kedar Naphade, presented a Harmonium solo. He was accompanied by Akshay Navaladi on the Tabla.  The grand finale was a beautiful Bollywood presentation by the Nazar team. 

The evening was a sheer delight for classical music and dance aficionados.  All performers were young Indian Americans who had spared no pain to excel at their chosen art form. They were talented and passionate.  To see young people come together and put such a fantastic program without the involvement of a senior “aunty” or “uncle” was a clear indication that Indian classical music and dance has taken firm roots in New England. 

In addition the young men and women were on track to have very successful professional careers.  We hope that they all become extremely successful so that they create New England Sabhas that can keep Indian classical music alive and well for generations to come.