Two Great Ustads Together Wow Kolkata

Indo Occidental Symbiosis celebrated its completion in the business of music entertainment in style. A Company dedicated to putting together Musical extravaganzas and mainly promoting Classical Music in a big way has also taken the leap into attempting to produce classical artists though its newly inaugurated Centre of Arts, where they will try to bring back the age old practice of Guru-Shishya Parampara.

Kalamandir had a packed audience to witness for the first time ever playing together in Kolkata, two legendary artists; Ustad Zakir Hussain (Tabla) and Ustad Nishat Khan (Sitar). Incidentally Ustad Nishat Khan happens to hail from the City Of Joy and also the nephew of the Iconic Ustad Vilayat Khan.

The performance started with Ustad Nishat Khan taking “ijazat” from the stalwarts of the classical music industry seated in the first row. What followed on the sitar put me in a trance. After his first two solos the crowd was warmed up and Ustad Zakir Hussain joined in on the tabla. Magic is all I can say. The Jugalbandi that followed through highs and lows and slow and fast was like a roller-coaster ride of musical bliss.

The show reached the Everest of pace and came to an end to a standing ovation. Not to let the public go, Ustad Nishat Khan said he would do one last piece for Kolkata and he and Ustad Zakir Hussain performed a rendition of a popular Rabindrasangeet. This was just too much and the crowd was swaying to the music till it finally ended in another standing Ovation.

What I took back with me was the thought that Ustad Zakir Hussain is the God of Tabla.