Ghazals By Hariharan

Natya Tarangini Institute Of Kuchipudi Dance is presenting Andhri, in the Parampara Series of the National Festival Of Music And Dance, from 31st August to 2nd September, at the Ravindra Bharathi auditorium. This 3-day festival will feature some of the topmost dancers and musicians of the country, like Kuchipudi dancers Raja & Radha Reddy, Kathak dancer Shovana Narayan, mridangist Dr. Yella Venkateshwara Rao, tabla player Bikram Ghosh, Odissi dancer Sharon Lowen and ghazal maestro Hariharan.

Blessed with a mellifluous voice and impeccable musical skills - Hariharan was trained both in Carnatic and in Hindustani music - this Tamilian from Bombay first made his mark in an unconventional way: as a ghazal singer. He took the Indian musical scene by storm in 1996 with his phenomenally successful "Colonial Cousins" album, a collaborative effort with Leslie Lewis. This Indian-English fusion album consistently topped the Indian musical charts in 1996, and even became the first Indian act to be featured on MTV Unplugged.

Born in 1955, Hariharan grew up in Bombay, and has bachelor degrees in science and law. The son of renowned Carnatic vocalists Alamelu and the late H A S Mani, Hariharan naturally inherited his parents' musical talents. Alamelu was Hariharan's first guru, and from her he picked up Carnatic music skills. Later, in his teens, inspired by the songs of Mehdi Hassan and Jagjit Singh, Hariharan developed a passion for ghazals, and started training in Hindustani music from Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan.

In 1977, Hariharan bagged the top prize in the All-India Sur Singaar competition, and was promptly signed on by the late music director Jaidev to sing for the Hindi film "Gaman". His ghazal "Ajeeb Saane He Mujh Par Qarar" in that movie became such a hit that it won Hariharan an Uttar Pradesh state award, and his playback singing career took off.

He has sung more than 1,000 songs in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi movies. He has also released about 15 ghazals albums, including Sukoon, Aab Shaar-e-Ghazal (with Asha Bhosle), Dil Ki Baath, Horizon, Paigam, Hazir (with Ustad Zakir Hussein on tabla) and Gulfam.

Natya Tarangini is an institute of excellence devoted to the Kuchipudi dance. It's run by Padmabhushans Raja and Radha Reddy, and Kaushalya, over the last 29 years, with the aim of propagating the rich Indian heritage of a glorious music and dance tradition.

As part of its endeavor to redefine and rejuvenate this heritage in the arts, dance and music, Natya Tarangini has been organising major dance and music festivals titled the Parampara series. Under the series, Natya Tarangini has organized this series as Vaangmayee in 2004, Layaalayam in 2005 and Sambhavami Yuge Yuge in 2006, all in Delhi. This year, it is being held for the first time in Hyderabad, and is being called Andhri.

The entry to the festival is free for all. Please contact Natya Tarangini at 98662-67980 for further details.