Sarod genius Soumik Datta talks about how music can unite us

Soumik Datta

London-based sarod maestro Soumik Datta is busy prepping for his show, Back to the Blues, slated to be performed at the St John Smith Tour in London on March 15. He is collaborating with prominent Carnatic vocalists and Padma Shri awardee Aruna Sairam for this one, and has been on Skype calls with her for the past six months, ahead of next week's performance. "At the heart of it, what we are trying to say is that regardless of where we come from - south of India, or the UK - what connects us is expression, and that's possible through music. I am hoping what comes out of this is a sound and language that is whole and unanimous," he tells us over the phone from London.

The performance, presented by the Bagri Foundation, explores the commonalities between Hindustani classical music and contemporary jazz, and will also feature London-based percussionist Pirashanna Thevarajah on kanjira and mridangam; Cormac Byrne on Irish percussion and Al MacSween on piano. Playing the sarod, Datta is trying to weave a global soundscape around Aruna's majestic voice. How does one bridge the gap between two cultures, all the while maintaining their sanctity? Datta says that's the most challenging bit. "We need to dig deep to find those common threads that will unite the root. If it works, we will take it everywhere!"

Datta, who has learned under the tutelage of Kolkata's Pandit Buddhadev Das Gupta, is no stranger to edgy, experimental projects. Before this he had worked on Tuning 2 You, a six-part documentary, where he travelled all over India to profile traditional folk singers. He also worked on the King of Ghosts, which was inspired by the Oscar-winning director Satyajit Ray's cult film Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne. "I was overwhelmed at how King of Ghosts was received.

People really took to the music which was accompanied live by the movie. We then travelled with it to Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore... we are now going to Fez with it soon," says the 33-year-old, who grew up listening to 90s dance music and Bollywood in Kolkata, London and Mumbai. Ask him if he still loves Bollywood, and pat comes the reply, "Of course. I admire directors like Vishal Bhardwaj and Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who make music as well, and that just makes their movies so different. They understand the power of music." In 2016, he was also contacted by Jay-Z and played with him and Beyonce at the Royal Albert Hall, but refused to go on tour, as he was "too young".

Today, along with working on Back to the Blues, he is also busy planning an opera for the Royal Opera House in London. The only thing missing from this flourishing graph is performances in his homeland. "We have been trying to come to India, but it's just not working out. It's so funny - Indian music is at the root of my performances and I don't tour in India! Maybe someone will read this and try and get me there," he laughs. But Datta, like many other NRI artistes sees it as his life's mission to take traditional Indian music throughout the world. "Maybe through these experimental projects, I can try and take this music beyond the Indian diaspora. It's my duty."

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