IN PHOTOS: At Mahindra Percussion Festival, Aruna Sairam, Trilok Gurtu, SNAX and others enthrall Bengaluru
The percussion festival, which was held on the first weekend of March, not only showcased some of the finest musicians in the country, but also paid tribute to tabla maestro late Ustad Zakir Hussain, a legend who redefined Indian classical percussion and inspired generations of musicians
Updated on : 05 March,2025 03:54 PM IST | Compiled by : Nascimento Pinto
The Mahindra Percussion Festival returned for its third edition on March 1 and 2 at the Prestige Centre of Performing Arts in Bengaluru. Photos Courtesy: Mahindra Percussion Festival
The third edition began with none other than Aruna Sairam’s meditative performance with the Thrillana Project. She curated a spellbinding musical ensemble with Shalini Mohan, Arun Kumar, Sangeet Haldipur, Jyotsna Srikanth, Giridhar Udupa, and B.C. Manjunath, who delivered a soulful rendition of thillanas accompanied by modern and traditional sonic instruments like violin, ghatam, tabla, and bass guitar
Ravi Chary, a sitar virtuoso with an international repertoire, infused the string instrument’s magic into the Indo-Jazz fusion album ‘Crossing’. Along with his quartet, he struck a synergistic chord on the first day of the festival with an interweaving of jazz, funk, and rock, sending ripples of pulsating energy into the audience. He was accompanied by other percussionists like Sangeet Haldipur, Satyajit Talwalkar, Gino Banks, and Sheldon D’Silva
The final act of the day very well encapsulated the spirit of this year's edition, as Trilok Gurtu performed on stage. With the Trilok Gurtu Project, a one-man percussionist, Gurtu, collaborated with other artists like Chandanabala Gullapalli, Vaibhav Wavikar, Rahul Wadhwani, Rohit Khavale, Dhruv Ghanekar, Prashant Paradkar, and Umesh Warbhuvan
The second day saw the musical duo, SNAX, comprising Ramkumar Kanakarajan and Sumesh Narayanan, take stage with their electrifying performance. The duo brought their signature styles, incorporating Tamil kuthu beats, metal, and dubstep, while performing their debut album, Thrillex. Ramkumar’s synthesis of rock, metal, and electronic drumming, accompanied by Sumesh’s energetic mridangam, was a palatable fusion for the fans of both modern and classical schools of percussion
Bringing tropical and arid percussion traditions of Kerala and Rajasthan, BeatRoute, helmed by veteran artist Ranjit Barot and theatre director Roysten Abel, gave a fitting conclusion. From the powerful mizhavu and chenda to the dynamic dhol, nagara, and khartal, BeatRoute took us on a journey through India’s diverse soundscape
