Pune: The 11th edition of ‘Taal Chakra’ lauded with soul-stirring cheers!
Pune, 31st October 2023: The 11th edition of ‘Taal Chakra’ concluded with heart-warming musical renditions of young and upcoming artists along with acclaimed veteran artists across the country at the Ganesh Kala Krida Ranga Manch recently. This three-day music festival was jointly organized by renowned Tabla artist Pt. Vijay Ghate and the Punit Balan Group.
‘Taal Chakra’ commenced with the lighting of the lamp in the due presence of Murlidhar Mohol; Ex-Mayor of Pune, Abhinav Kale; Assistant General Manager of Bank of Maharashtra, and Amol Patre; Head of Advertising and Marketing at Chandukaka Saraf and Sons Pvt. Ltd. Other dignitaries like Ankush Asabe from Venkatesh Buildcon, Sushil Jadhav; Pune Zonal Manager of Lokmanya Multipurpose, Pravin Shirse from Oerlikon Balzers, Vaishnavi Tamhane; Marketing Head at Chandukaka Saraf and Sons Pvt. Ltd., and others were also present at the event.
The first day started with the performances of Sagar Patokar and Rohit Thakur’s Tabla Duet accompanied by Abhishek Shinkar on Harmonium. They performed ‘Teen Taal, ‘Peshkar’, ‘Qayada’, ‘Relas’ along with ‘Bandishs’ from Farrukhabad, Punjab and Banaras Gharanas. The second session ‘Sur-Suranjan’ included performances by Suranjan Khandalkar and Sharayu Date accompanied by Pandurang Pawar on Tabla, Abhijit Bhade on Drums, Shruti Bhave on Violin, and Rahul Kulkarni on Keyboard. They performed ‘Bhaavgeet’, ‘Natyageet’, ‘Ghazals’ and ‘Abhangas.’
The second day began with ‘Taal Dindi’ including the renditions of Padma Shri Pt. Vijay Ghate (Tabla), Pt. Dr. Ram Deshpande (Vocal), Amar Oak (Flute), Sheetal Kolwalkar (Kathak), Gandhar Deshpande (Vocal), Omkar Dalvi (Pakhawaj), and Abhishek Shinkar (Harmonium). They performed ‘Teen Taal’ in Raag Yaman and Bhajans like ‘Shri Krishna Govind Hare Murare’ and ‘Abir Gulal Udhalit Rang.’ The second session of the second day was a presentation by renowned artist Niladri Kumar on Surbahar, Sitar and Zitar accompanied by Padma Shri Pt. Vijay Ghate on Tabla, Sridhar Parthasarthy on Mridangam, Angelo Fernandes on Keyboard and Mukul Dongre on Drums. He played Raag ‘Jaijaivanti’ on Surbahar, ‘Vilambit Teen Taal’ in Raag Darbari on Sitar and some Bollywood songs on Zitar.
The last day of the festival started with the performances of Amaan Ali Bangash, representative of the 7th Generation of a musical lineage known as Senia Bangash Gharana along with Pt. Kumar Bose of the Banaras Gharana, accompanied by Sagar Patokar on Tanpura. They performed Raag ‘Shree’ along with ‘Gat.’
The 11th edition of ‘Taal Chakra’ concluded with a renowned vocalist, grandson of Pt. Vasantrao Deshpande and a recipient of National Film Award – Rahul Deshpande’s enthralling ‘Fusion 2023’ accompanied by Milind Kulkarni on Harmonium, Anay Gadgil on Keyboard, Sarang Kulkarni on Sarod, Ishaan Ghosh on Tabla and Shikharnaad Qureshi on Djembe and Drums. He performed Thumri like ‘Jiya Mora Lage Na’ and a composition ‘Rusi Na Mane Radha.’ He also performed ‘Lagi Karejuwa Katyaar’ a Thumri from a musical play ‘Katyaar Kaljaat Ghusli’ and composition ‘Dil Ki Tapish’ from the movie ‘Katyaar Kaljaat Ghusli.’
Milin Kulkarni played the anchor for all three days. This year’s ‘Taal Chakra’ was supported by Venkatesh Buildcon Pvt. Ltd, Chandukaka Saraf and Sons Pvt. Ltd, Lokmanya Multipurpose Co-op. Society Ltd., Suhana, Bank of Maharashtra, Girikand Holidays, Oerlikon Balzers, and Wilo.
