The Maestro
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty is poised nearly as a cult figure among all the legendary Indian Classical Vocalists of today. Although considered a scion and doyen of the Patiala-Kasur Gharana (style), primarily representing Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Sahib’s gayaki, he can equally portray even the most subtle features of other major classical gharanas of India like Indor, Delhi, Jaipur, Gwalior, Agra, Kirana, Rampur and even Carnatic music of South India. This is perhaps because of his wide exposure to various genres and their maestros and musicologists besides his own gurus. His father, late Shri Ajit Kumar Chakraborty, Shri Pannalal Samanta and Shri Kanaidas Baigari were the ones, with whom his initial orientation happened, before he was warmly accepted by the ultimate and the greatest Guru of all times, Padmabhushan Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh. His training was then continued under Ustad Munawar Ali Khan (son of Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan).
Besides that, he had learnt from several other maestros like Ustad Latafat Hussain Khan, Pt. Nibruttibua Sarnaik, Vidushi Hirabai Barodekar and in Carnatic styles from Professor, Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna, that kept enriching his musical expression and repertoire. Despite having such pure classical “taleem” in the Dhrupad-Khyal genre, he is amazingly adroit and a trend setter, in rendering all the lighter forms like Thumri, Tappa, Geet, Bhajan, Keertan, Folk, Film/Non-Film and modern songs, in several different languages, like Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Tamil, Telegu, Persian and even in English, which all together, has given him the single distinguished recognition of being an absolutely one-of-a-kind musical personality, in the music scene of India today.
He graduated top of his class in music, both in B.A and M.A from the prestigious Rabindra Bharati University in Kolkata and joined the ITC Sangeet Research Academy in 1977. Being the academy’s very first outstanding scholar, he became their only gold medalist fellow, a member of their Experts’ Committee and a senior Guru where he still serves as a prime mover in all its promotional courses to date.
Recipient of as many as 4 prestigious national awards – by the President of India – Padma Shri (2011), Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (Delhi, 1999-2000), The Kumar Gandharva Samman (National Award, 1993) and the Best Male Playback Singer (Bengali Film “Chhandaneer”1990) – he has also received felicitations from both the former and present Chief Ministers of his own State, West Bengal.
In April and May of 2012 the Maha Sangeet Samman and the Bangavibhusan Samman, two of the State’s highest awards, were also conferred to him.
He is the first Indian classical vocalist to be invited by Pakistan and China and by BBC for their Golden Jubilee Celebration of India’s Independence.
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty has performed in innumerable concerts and is perhaps the busiest classical vocalist of his generation today. He regularly, annually participates in all the major prestigious music conferences & festivals – all over India and abroad. He has performed in some of the most prestigious venues around the world like the Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, New Orleans Jazz Preservation Hall – in the US, including being the recipient of Golden Key to the city of New Orleans; The Royal Albert hall and Queen Elizabeth hall in the UK, Theatre de la Ville in France; Sammukhananda, Nehru Center, NCPA in Mumbai, Shirifort auditorium in New Delhi-India, to name a very few.
Pt. Ajoy Chakrabarty has more than 100 albums to his credit, published from India, US, UK, Holland and Germany that feature pure classical and light classical numbers including thumris, dadras, bhajans and other types of devotional songs. He also has numerous recordings of Syamasangeet, Rabindra Sangeet, Nazrulgeeti and Raagpradhan that are widely popular.
Om ajnyaana-timiraandhasya jnaanaanjana-shalaakayaa, chakshur-unmilitang yena tasmai Shri-Gurave namah…
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty has always considered himself to be a disciple, and says he is still a learner when it comes to music. He believes that one, who guides us from the darkness of ignorance to the rays of enlightenment, is a true guru. And it is our parents, who are our first Gurus. On his musical journey, he was guided by his father Late Ajit Kumar Chakraborty, who was his first Guru along with his mothers Smt. Mahamaya Devi (Late) and Smt. Jayanti Chakraborty. Subsequently, he received training from Late Pannalal Samanta, Late Kanaidas Bairagi and Dr. Amiyoranjan Banerjee. Later he went under the tutelage of Guru Jnan Prakash Ghosh, the maestro and a legendary figure by all means, and one of the all time great Gurus ever born. Also, Ustad Munawar Ali Khan, son of the legendary singer Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Saheb, gave him the training of Patiala Kasoor Gharana.
Although he is a doyen of the Patiala-Kasoor gharana or style, he can equally portray the key features of all other major classical gharanas like- Jaipur, Agra, Kirana and Gwalior. This is solely because he was blessed to have close association with ITC Sangeet Research Academy and its resident great gurus of various other gharanas, like Ustad Latafat Hussain Khan (Agra), Pandit Nivruttibua Sarnaik (Alladiya Jaipur) and Smt Hirabai Barodekar (Kirana). Of late he has started exploring the Carnatic genre of Indian music from the living legend Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna, with whom he shares a close affinity since the last two decades.
He even received training from Late Chinmoy Lahiri, Angoor Bala Devi, Dhirendra Chandra Mitra, Suchitra Mitra, Maya Sen, Nirmalendu Chowdhury, Paresh Deb, Prativa Kapoor, Panchanan Bhattacharya, Chhabi Bandhopadhyay and many other stalwarts.
Despite being associated with so many gurus, Panditji considers Guru Jnan Prakash Ghosh and Baba Alauddin Khan as unique, so far the concept of Guru is concerned. This is not because of their immense musical genius, but of their altruistic contribution in the highest form of education – Humanilty.
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty has a unique perspective about “Guruism”. He strongly believes, that a true musician should not cripple himself in the shackles of a gharana’s limit. He should embellish his presentations with the distinctive gems from different gharanas. Also, in course of his journey Panditji has grown with the treasured insight and vision intermingled with his academic virtues, that led him to realize that his Guru is not one, who has musically enlightened him directly, but everyone is his Guru in someway or the other. Everyone, even his students is worth being learned from- be the medium direct or even, indirect. Likewise, Guruji believes, that even though he has not taken any direct “taalim” from them, such Gurus have always been there to guide him and give their blessings. And they are eminent musicians like —– Pt. Ravi Shankar ji, Ali Akbar Khan Saheb, Ustad Vilayat Khan Saheb, Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan Saheb, Pandit D.V. Paluskar ji, Ustad Amir Khan Saheb, Ustad Faiyaz Khan Saheb, Ustad Abdul Karim Khan Saheb, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Pandit Kishen Maharaj ji, Pandit Birju Maharaj ji, Ustad Ahmed Jaan Thirakwa, Lata Mangeshkar ji, Kishore Kumar ji, Manna Dey ji, Shree Manabendra Mukherjee, Shree Hemanta Mukherjee………….to name a few.
Apart from all the aforementioned Gurus Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty was blessed by Srimat Swami Premananda Tirthaswami even before he was born ! It was the legendary sage who predicted the musical genius hidden inside the would be born child and prophecised his accomplishments. Sri Sadananda Brahmachari Maharaj, the disciple of Srimat Swami Premananda Tirthaswami, was a lifelong friend, philosopher and guide to Panditji and today even after his demise, remains his spiritual Guru.
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty has been felicitated with many awards and accolades in his musical journey, which really deserve to go a long way in the memory lane of all music lovers and connoisseurs. Recipient of multiple prestigious awards of the highest order, Padma Shri (2011), Sangeet Natak Academy Award (Delhi, 1999-2000), Kumar Gandharva National Award (1993), National Award for Best Male Playback Singer (Bengali Film “Chhandaneer” 1990), Best Playback Singer from the Govt of Orissa (for the film “Schoolmaster“) are to name a few. He has also been felicitated by the Honorable Chief Minister of West Bengal, his own State, last year in April & May 2012, the accolades being the Maha Sangeet Samman and the Bangavibhusan Sammanana.
But despite receiving so eulogies in the form of awards, Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty considers the blessings of the Almighty, and the love of people, to be his biggest achievements so far.
Whenever a responsible and respected person passes a comment to someone young, it’s a blessing. It always encourages the younger one to fulfill the promise to develop and flourish oneself.
At a very tender age, Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty proved his excellence in the field of music and has been praised ever since by elders-youngers alike. He has been inspired by these praises throughout his musical journey and has devoted his entire life to learn, understand and celebrate music by sheer dedication and extreme hard work. All his life has been spent spreading his philosophies and concepts through music to one and all across the globe.
Starting from his own Guru, Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar, Sarod Virtuoso Ustad Ali Akbar Khan to modern age maestros like Ustad Zakir Hussain, Pandit Shankar Ghosh, virtually everybody in the field of Indian as well as world Music have praised his unquestionable talent and formidable achievements.
His musical genius is not only confined to the musicians, but has compelled dignitaries from other fields to acknowledge and appraise him. Famous film makers like Satyajit Ray, Tapan Sinha, all-time great writer Premendra Mitra, internationally recognized sports personalities like Saurav Ganguly, P. K. Banerjee, leading corporates like Sushim Mukul Dutta are only to name a few.
shrutinandan
Creation is the ultimate gift of God. And man is God’s best creation, because man can do what God’s other living creations cannot do— express. And it is only through music, that man can express his emotions, as his mind is transcribed and translated through Music. Man cannot create anything, but man can express any conception based on the Divine Creations. What builds up human soul, his attitude, his behavior, is nothing but…‘Music’. Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty is ever grateful that he could visualize Music as a way of life, or as life itself. It is these philosophies which were cocooned in his thoughts, and which led to the birth of ‘Shrutinandan’.
Shrutinandan is a word comprising of two very ancient Indian concepts of life and living, ‘Shruti’ – the auditory perception of the Universe and ‘Nandan’ – the visual appreciation of the Universe. Hence at Shrutinandan one doesn’t learn only music but also gets guidance of how to perceive life.
Panditji had conceptualized Shrutinandan even before it became a reality. Shrutinandan not only concentrates on music training but also creates an environment to kindle and develop proper humanity through music. Shrutinandan is truly a Musical Kingdom, welcoming pupils from all walks of path.
Shrutinandan is a word comprising of two very ancient Indian concepts of life and living, ‘Shruti’ – the auditory perception of the Universe and ‘Nandan’ – the visual appreciation of the Universe. Hence at Shrutinandan one doesn’t learn only music but also gets guidance of how to perceive life.
Panditji had conceptualized Shrutinandan even before it became a reality. Shrutinandan not only concentrates on music training but also creates an environment to kindle and develop proper humanity through music. Shrutinandan is truly a Musical Kingdom, welcoming pupils from all walks of path.
endeavor even when Panditji was a full fledged Guru Member of ITC Sangeet Research Academy.
In fact the building that stands today here at 70, Uday Shankar Sarani, Kolkata is actually a physical replica of the concept envisaged long ago by none other than Panditji himself.
To Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty,Music is the only way of life. He realized early on, how strong, lasting and universal, the impression music can create, in souls of humans, irrespective of any boundaries that may otherwise divide them. The language of “sur” is common among all cultures. Varied colors of emotions expressed through music, create a tremendous impact on the human soul. It even contributes to the building of one’s character and its philosophical perspective. The concept of Shrutinanadan came as a realization that the innate musical nature in a student should be recognized early and the music teacher should be able to unleash the flow of it within the student, to make them realize their full musical potential, by living and breathing it, in every single aspect of their lives.
He had a very scientific and structured approach towards changing the age old, traditionally free styled teaching, of this rather abstract subject. The name Shrutinandan is a very thought out expression of conjugation of the two very important aspects of musical sound – a sound that is beautiful – and therefore synonymous to good music. The name was conceived by Smt. Chandana Chakrabarty, our beloved Guruma.
“Shruti” means the auditory perception and “Nandan” is that what is aesthetically pleasing in nature. Thus the organization is dedicated in imbibing the very essence of creating and nurturing beautiful musical minds of aspiring musicians.
Shortly after receiving the Kumar Gandharva National Award from the Govt. of Madhya Pradesh, Shri Budhhadeb Bhattacharya, the then Chief Minister of West Bengal, expressed his wish to felicitate Panditji with a land for building the institution. Panditji became absolutely determined to fulfill this dream, and was then supported by Shri Sushim Mukul Dutta, the then Chairman and Managing Director of Hindusthan Lever. With his magnanimous help, Panditji could realize this dream, and the beautiful building of Shrutinandan testifies to this reality. Also this context will remain unfinished if the name and contribution of Pandit Vijay Kumar Kichlu, former Executive Director of ITC Sangeet Research Academy is not mentioned. He personally supported Panditji throughout to realise this endeavor even when Panditji was a full-fledged Senior Guru Member and of ITC Sangeet Research Academy.
In fact, the building that stands today here at 70, Uday Shankar Sarani, Kolkata is actually an exact replica of the concept envisaged long ago by none other than Panditji himself.
To date Shrutinandan has produced more than fifty top quality young musicians that are performing at national level all over India and abroad.
Talented students are not made- they are born. But if this talent is not nurtured, then that talent eventually becomes valueless. Shrutinandan is nurturing the natural talents of its students musically and scientifically, and some of them are as follows:
- Anol Chatterjee
- Anuvab Khamaru
- Archi Banerjee
- Asmani Kundu
- Bitaan Das
- Deepabali Dutta
- Jimut Roy
- Manali Ghosh
- Rupam Chakraborty
- Sagnik Mitra
- Shreya Majumdar
A disciple is the one who learns under the tutelage of his or her ‘Guru’ with dedication, sincerity and regularity. On the other hand, the person who willingly imparts the knowledge to his or her ‘Shishya’ (disciple) is considered as the ‘Guru’. Gradually, bondage of respect and faith starts to develop between the ‘Guru’ and the ‘Shishya’.
However, all the students who learn under the guidance of the ‘Guru’ should not be considered as disciples or ‘Shishya’, as the words ‘student’ and ‘shishya’ (disciple) are not same. Similarly, the words ‘disciple’ and ‘Legacy’ are not synonymous. It is only when the bondage between the ‘Guru’ and his ‘shishya’ is more strengthened; the concept of ‘Legacy’ emerges. When a Guru unconditionally gives his knowledge and education to his student, it is only then he has found his true ‘Shishya’.
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty has bequeathed his concepts, philosophies, experiences and education of Music to some of his disciples in no different way, and they are the true torchbearers of him and therefore, of Shrutinandan. The musical bequest has brought some of his talented disciples into the limelight and they are now accomplished performers in their own ways.
music for all
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty is one of the most respected figures among all other renowned Indian Classical Vocalist. But he did not stop there at this point for his own fame and name only. He believes man cannot live alone in society, and what man gains through his experiences and journey in life, should share and particularly pass on to his next generation. Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, therefore, had thought of posterity, and had created a scientific process of ‘musical relay’, to keep the tradition of Indian Music intact. Besides, he feels that it is a social responsibility and contribution, to pass over the tradition, philosophy and concept to the next generation. Therefore since his early days, along with his own development he has also taken active participation in shaping young talents. Some of them through their sincerity and hard work have proved themselves already and have become a success story for Panditji himself and Shrutinandan. Some of the well known professionally established disciples are:
Kavita Krishnamurthy, Srikato Acahrya, Monomoy Bhattacharya, Purbayan Chatterjee, Snehashish Majumdar, Debashish Bhattacharya, Brajeswar Mukherjee, Anol Chatterjee, Deborshee Bhattacharya.
There are some budding young talents also getting nurtured by him. They are : Sayani Palit, Kaustuv Kanti Ganguli, Saket Sahu, Prateek Srivastava, Ayan Sengupta and Abir Hussain to name a few. Each one of them are higher-grade performing scholars and artists of Shrutinandan concept but they all need blessings of the Almighty, Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, and of all people, and are waiting for their turn to come to lime light.
Deviating from the established styles of guidance for music, Shrutinandan has conceived an exclusive process of teaching which does not put up with the long-established methods only. Created by Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty himself, the distinctive idea of taking the music teaching beyond the point of compulsion of physical proximity between a learned and a learner, which Shrutinandan has evolved, is the first of its kind. This exclusive technique fulfils one’s dream of learning authentic music, irrespective of the distance between the shishya and the Guru.
These classes are conducted online by Panditji himself and assisted by some of his personally hand picked disciples, twice a month, on a regular basis. During the sessions which are broadcasted live in this website, he interacts with the members and ensures that each and every student of the Online Class gets benefitted from it. After each live session, the classes remain uploaded in the website for a particular period of time exclusively for the students’ development. Interested students can register themselves from anywhere in the world for this unique opportunity and once in a lifetime experience by clicking on the link below:
Music appreciation classes are taken by Panditji, where he emphasizes on how to understand and appreciate music. These sessions are meant for any individual, and Panditji not only imparts knowledge of music, but also teaches how to distinguish quality music.
Music Appreciation class is taken by Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty in three categories –
1) For all guardians to develop the uninterupted improvement of their children. This class, however is compulsory at Shrutinandan!
2) For good, talented non-professional musicians
3) For professional performers of the country to develop their improvising capability and overall performance
Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty is one of the most respected figures among all other renowned Indian Classical Vocalist. But he did not stop there at this point for his own fame and name only. He believes man cannot live alone in society, and what man gains through his experiences and journey in life, should share and particularly pass on to his next generation. Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, therefore, had thought of posterity, and had created a scientific process of ‘musical relay’, to keep the tradition of Indian Music intact. Besides, he feels that it is a social responsibility and contribution, to pass over the tradition, philosophy and concept to the next generation. Therefore since his early days, along with his own development he has also taken active participation in shaping young talents. Some of them through their sincerity and hard work have proved themselves already and have become a success story for Panditji himself and Shrutinandan. Some of the well known professionally established disciples are:
Kavita Krishnamurthy, Srikato Acahrya, Monomoy Bhattacharya, Purbayan Chatterjee, Snehashish Majumdar, Debashish Bhattacharya, Brajeswar Mukherjee, Anol Chatterjee, Deborshee Bhattacharya.
There are some budding young talents also getting nurtured by him. They are : Sayani Palit, Kaustuv Kanti Ganguli, Saket Sahu, Prateek Srivastava, Ayan Sengupta and Abir Hussain to name a few. Each one of them are higher-grade performing scholars and artists of Shrutinandan concept but they all need blessings of the Almighty, Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, and of all people, and are waiting for their turn to come to lime light.
studio
Pt. Ajoy Chakrabarty had always nurtured the dream of having a recording studio which would be an instrument for him to freely create and record music, instructional or otherwise, without having to be at the mercy of some other organization to publish it. Finally his dream was realized on 14th November, 2011.
This state-of-the-art studio was conceived and designed by the most respected sound recording engineer of India, the revered Mr. Daman Sood, Mumbai.
Inaugurated by Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and blessed by maestro Ustad Zakir Hussain, this studio is looked after by young and dynamic Ananjan, Pt. Ajoy Chakrabarty’s son and an accomplished sound engineer (Digital Academy, Mumbai). A music designer by profession, Ananjan is dedicated to the constant development of the studio. Besides him, Shrutinandan also has its own sound-recordist, Mr. Anupam Das, who is also equally responsible for the improvement of the studio.
For more technical specifications please download the brochure by clicking the link below.
media
Indian Raaga Music
Film Song
Devotional
Songs of Rabindranath
Songs of Kazi Najrul Islam
Celebrities visit in Shrutinandan
Panditji Live at different events
Panditji with celebrities
Family Album
tour and schedule
This is the Requirmements of the Live Concert of Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty. This includes the dimentions and other settings of the stage, the arrangements for the Green Room and all the requirements of the Live Sound System including Microphones, Mixers, Stage Monitors and Loudspeakers.
For any further clarifications please contact the mentioned contact numbers and email address in the below document.
Jnanbriksha
