SHILLONG, March 31: Praying for world peace through the musical notes of his sarod, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan on Friday expressed disappointment over the Russia-Ukraine War in an educated society in the 21st Century.
He made the observation during a programme organised by the Ministry of Culture and Spic Macay to honour the unsung freedom fighters, and those who lost their lives to Covid as part of the Azadi ka Amritkal to mark 75 years of Independence. The programme was organised at St. Edmund’s College.
Soon after taking to the stage, he declared that he is committed to peace and said that he wants the Russia–Ukraine conflict to stop for peace to return.
Stating that music is a gift of God which unites the world, he played his first number Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram (also called Ram Dhun) in tribute to the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi and hoped that his message of non-violence resonates all over the world.
He followed it up instantly with the Raga Durga and other numbers. As the music intensified the audience joined in clapping along.
Earlier, Dr N Rajam, Dr Sangeeta Shanker (both violin) and Mithilesh Jha on the tabla put up a great show as they played in perfect sync.
Principal of St. Edmund’s College, Sylvanus Lamare said that it is an attempt to bring Indian classical music closer to the people here and vice-versa.
“We want our students and the community in Shillong to get a taste of Indian classical music. There is a possibility of raising our folk culture to this level if we work on the classical line,” Lamare said.
Chairperson of Spic Macay foundation, Rashmi Malik said that their endeavour will be to bring in many more such legends to the Northeast. She promised that Meghalaya will witness such programmes happening more often. “We know that Meghalaya is deep into all kinds of music and we thought it is our responsibility to bring the legends of classical traditions to music-loving Shillong,” she said.
