The Classicist

In a time and space where items numbers and raunchy videos are synonymous with music, here is someone refreshingly different, someone who believes that classical music is what the soul truly desires. I am sitting with Sucheta Bhattacharjee; her contemporary vibe juxtaposed alongside her classical foundation, she is quite antithetical to the typical khyal singer. As we get ready for our tete-a-tete, I can almost feel the nervousness and anticipation in her stride. She is shy as a little girl on the first day of school. But a little probing about her childhood and she is all eager to tell. She starts with a googly about how she wanted to be an administrator in life, someone with great authority, maybe in the police forces! So how’d she get to where she is today? All her parents’ doing, she reveals happily. Strict disciplinarians that they were, they made sure she never gave up her quest for music and learning in her littlehood. Even today, she says, not a day goes by without them enquiring about her riyaz. Little wonder then that Sucheta takes her music so seriously.

For someone who spent almost all of her childhood listening to and appreciating greats like Vani Jairam, Ustaan Ghulam Ali Khan and Ustaad Aamir Khan, she comes across as extremely affable. She confesses that she also enjoys the younger crop of musicians like Shaan and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan.

Sucheta has been teaching music for over a decade now. During her first few years in Mumbai, she was introduced to the renowned and respected Gajendra Singh and got involved with all his reality shows, spending her time training and mentoring participants for some of the most popular shows. Soon she realised that singers today are easily swayed by the trappings of fame, and decided to open her own institute in collaboration with Gajendra Singh to teach students the real discipline of music. In her own words, “Classical music is the ocean and we are just small parts of the whole.” It’s not something that she pursues as a hobby; she’s as dedicated as a religious believer would be to his pantheon. She gives a lot of credit to her parents, her guruji Pt Mani Prasad, who instilled this dedication in her at a very small age, and finally her students who pushed her into cutting an album. She counts herself to be blessed to have listened to them and lists singing a duet with her guruji her biggest achievement till date.

Sucheta’s new album Love Bandish Bliss, which she dedicates to “lovers across the globe”, owes its unusual title to her husband filmmaker Shubho Shekhar Bhattachajee. An album which will transport you to another time and place, she claims, and I couldn’t help but agree right after a listen. When I mentioned the song Nindiya Gavayi as the one I found most charming, she revealed it to be her own composition! Some of the other gems in the album include her duet with Ustaad Rashid Khan called Saawan aayo re and her rendition of Ustaad Aamir Khan’s Aaj mora ghar aaye balma. A music video is in the pipeline, which I am told presents her in a completely nouveau avatar.  The album is certainly a collector’s delight, and has something for everyone, what with its drums and the jazz influences. Sucheta admits to be interested in playback singing, but only compositions that don’t compromise on melody. For someone hailing from the Kirana gharana, it is but to be entirely expected.

From a young girl who did musical shows on DD1 and All India Radio, to a mentor and teacher for confident little champs, to this mature music personality, Sucheta has come a long way. And yet it is only the beginning of her flight, for she believes that true dedication gives one wings. Taking after her guru who maintains that God can be reached through one’s devotion to music, Sucheta is every bit the devotee any cult would be proud to have.