Santoor maestro Shivkumar Sharma marks an era

Mumbai: Pandit Shivkumar Sharma is no more. He was 84. The maestro was to perform in Bhopal next week.

Those moments of ticklish sounds wafting down from his wooden mallets tapping on Santoor are fond memories for his fans.

The maestro had been ailing for the past six months from kidney disease before he died in Mumbai following a heart-attack at 9 am today.

Trapezoid-shaped instrument was synonymous with Pandit Shivakumar Sharma after he brought it to the untrained ears of masses.

Sitting hunched over Santoor wearing bright brocaded outfits, Pandit Shivakumar would play just as his puffy white hair lolled. He would go meditative, so do the audience.

The Padma Vibhushan recipient, is learnedly the first musician to try Indian classical music on the santoor.

Indian santoor is a traditional folk instrument in Jammu and Kashmir and it has different variations including the popular Iranian Santur. Santoor is highly sensitive to stroke and glides producing delicate sounds.

He was born in Jammu and picked up vocals from his father before turning to Santoor in his teens. Over the years, Pandit Shivkumar took his music to a burgeoning global audience after his first performance in Mumbai in 1995.

He was often seen playing alongside flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia and the duo composed music for Hindi movies including Silsila, Chandni and Darr.

Shivkumar Sharma received many national and international awards including the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1986, the Padma Shri in 1991, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2001.

Tributes pour in, with Prime Miniter Narendra Modi saying that the culture world got poorer with his demise.

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee extended condolences to his bereaved family. Sarod player Amjad Ali Khan tweeted that the passing of Pandi Shivkumar Sharma marked the end of an era.