Prattusa Mallik
‘Sitar explosion’ after the Monterey International Pop Music Festival 1967
What comes to our minds first when we think about Pandit Ravi Shankar is how he successfully introduced the West to the ragas of the East. And in the words of Ravi Shankar himself, his performance at the Monterey International Pop Music Festival marked its “real beginning”. On a cloudy Sunday afternoon in July 1967, Ravi Shankar performed a four–hour set at the festival, with Ustad Allah Rakha on the tabla and Kamala Chakravarty on the tanpura. The audience was mesmerised, among which were Western music giants of the time, notably guitarist Jimi Hendrix. This started, what the maestro’s biographer, Oliver Craske, would call a ‘Sitar Explosion’ in the West.
‘Collaborations’ with George Harrison
Contrary to popular beliefs, George Harrison was introduced to the sitar a while before meeting Pandit Ravi Shankar, even having played the instrument in the 1965 The Beatles‘ song Norwegian Wood. However, the musician was in awe of Ravi Shankar, finally meeting him at Bath in 1966. Despite his initial trepidation, Ravi Shankar took over the role of George Harrison’s sitar mentor. This led to a life–long friendship and what can be called a guru–shishya relationship, with the maestro even swiftly whacking The Beatles star when the latter tripped over his sitar!
In October 2010, a four–disc compilation box set Collaborations was released. This comprised three albums with Ravi Shankar’s releases, with George Harrison playing the role of the music producer and guest musician.
Concert For Bangladesh: The world’s first benefit concert
They say music can heal, and Pandit Ravi Shankar proved it in 1971. The year saw Bangladesh Liberation War, which witnessed thousands of distressed civilians fleeing to India, including some close ones of Pandit Ravi Shankar. With the aim of raising $25,000 in aid for the refugees, the sitar maestro planned what went on to become the world’s first benefit concert. While the idea was his brainchild, George Harrison became the showrunner on the maestro’s request. Apart from Ravi Shankar and George Harrison themselves, Ali Akbar Khan, Bob Dylan, Billy Preston, Eric Clapton, Leon Russell and Ringo Starr also featured in the concert. Followed by being made into a live album and a film, the Concert For Bangladesh eventually garnered an estimated sum of $12 million!
Performance at Woodstock
The 1960s and 70s were the golden age of the Hippie Revolution, the counter–culture movement that also made the West develop an interest in the culture of India. Did it make the cultural environment conducive for the growth and popularity of Ravi Shankar’s music in India? Perhaps yes, but that never stopped the sitar maestro from expressing his dislike for the use of psychedelics.
This, especially after he performed a 45–minute set at the Woodstock Festival 1969, which went to become one of his most talked–about performance among music–enthusiasts but not really Ravi Shankar’s favourite. The musician said, “That was the experience that changed my whole view, because there were half a million people... and who was listening to music? They were all stoned. Completely stoned.”
Life’s last performance
Pandit Ravi Shankar played last at a concert in Long Beach, California, in November 4, 2012. Accompanied by his daughter Anoushka Shankar on sitar and Pandit Tanmay Bose on tabla, the Bharat Ratna awardee performed on oxygen support at the age of 92. Despite the fact that he was going through multiple respiratory diseases at the time, the maestro did not miss a tune! He breathed his last about a month later, on December 11, with the world mesmerised by his art even at his final performance.