When you walk into the ITC Sangeet Research Academy, located in the heart of Kolkata, you are humbled. You immediately feel the weight of history the place holds and continues to nurture to this day. It is here that Hindustani Classical Music is kept safe at a time when music is being confined to 30-second reels and fleeting glory.
The Academy was founded in 1977 and is currently approaching 50 glorious years in 2027. Over the last five decades, SRA has upheld the Gurukul system, carrying on the Guru-Sishya parampara. Since its inception, the Academy has gifted the country, as well as the world, with some incredible talent in the field of Indian Classical Music: a point further proven by the fact that Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty is the very first scholar of the prestigious ITC Sangeet Research Academy, Kolkata.
The Executive Director and Trustee, ITC SRA, Mr Saradindu Dutta, shared a bit of history with us, “ITC envisioned that we have to preserve this heritage, this legacy of Hindustani Classical Music. ITC established a charitable trust called the ITC Sangeet Research Academy in 1977. If you go back in history, during this period, the privy purse was abolished. Therefore, all the local Maharajas were withdrawing their patronage to Hindustani Classical Music. ITC stepped in at this momentous time, and they brought in a galaxy of stars here into Kolkata and set up this Academy to propagate the music.
Kolkata’s ITC Sangeet Research Academy offers taleem in both vocal and instrumental music, such as sitar, sarod, flute and sarangi, as young scholars learn from revered exponents of the field. Today, the Academy has spread its branches with over 40 scholars living in the Kolkata and Pune campuses.
ITC Sangeet Research Academy organises one of the most anticipated musical conferences in the city, the ITC Sangeet Sammelan. On December 25, when winter was tiptoeing into Kolkata, ITC SRA organised the 54th ITC Sangeet Sammelan. The city was witness to three days of spellbinding music, hosted at the Academy’s Lawns, on 5,6 and 7 December.
The highlight of the event was the presence of the legendary Begum Parween Sultana who graced the occasion alongside other eminent musicians who mesmerised the large audience with their performances: Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty (vocal), Vidushi Subhra Guha (Vocal), Ranjani and Gayatri (Carnatic Vocal duo), Vidushi Ashwini Bhide Deshpande (Vocal) and many others.
Mr Saradindu Dutta shared, “Even before 1977, ITC used to annually hold ITC Sangeet Sammelan in other cities like Bombay, Bangalore. Now, we are dedicated to the Guru-Sishya Parampara and young boys and girls go to the Gurus’ homes in order to learn”.
The inaugural ceremony of the 2025 ITC Sangeet Sammelan saw Begum Parween Sultana being awarded the prestigious ITC Sangeet Samman 2025, previously awarded to maestros such as Ustad Zakir Hussain, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri, among several others.
Accepting her award on December 5, the 75-year-old Hindustani Classical vocalist said, “I am very happy to receive this honour bestowed upon me…I have never taken music lightly, whatever I do, teach and sing…I wish everyone understood that music should be seen as a prayer…Classical Music is our parampara, and the Guru-Sishya Parampara that we see here at the Sangeet Research Academy, with scholars doing wonderful things, is beyond any praise.
Begum Parween Sultana, a leading light of the Patiala gharana, further shared her love for Kolkata and the warmth she has always received from the city. “Kolkata has given me a lot of love and praise. I love the city a lot, it is my second home. The first thing I do when I am in Kolkata is go to New Market to shop and visit Park Street for good food…Moreover, the art and culture of the city cannot be praised enough”.
During a separate interaction, Begum Parween Sultana shared that young students of Classical music must be taught with tenderness and care, and ITC SRA has been consistently showing the way. She stressed on the importance of dedication and right learning. “Learn the music properly. Imitating someone feels right only after proper training. Otherwise, people will laugh…we must provide love to children to make sure that they make progress”, said the singer.
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty spoke about the impact Kolkata has been having on the preservation and propagation of Indian Classical Music. He said, “Two places in our country are really contributing a lot to Indian Classical Music: Maharashtra and Bengal. To date, the most talented students of the discipline are being produced from here. Popularity does not define quality or talent…I feel very lucky to be part of ITC SRA because I have seen and spent a lot of time with legends of Classical music, a tradition carried on till date. This is the only place where constant development of Indian Raga music and research is being carried out”.
Later in the evening, Begum Parween Sultana took the stage as a roaring applause welcomed her. Her rendition of Ragas Puriya Dhanashree and Maluha Maand, along with a repeatedly requested performance of Bhavaani Dayaani, left the audience in awe.
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