KOLKATA: On a chilly Wednesday evening at the open-air Ektara Mukta Mancha at Rabindra Sadan premises, Kolkata witnessed a spellbinding performance as the legendary flautist Pt Hariprasad Chaurasia wove magic through his flute. His melodies, serene and soulful, transported the audience into a meditative state on day 1 of the Classical Music Conference 2025.
“I speak through the flute,” the maestro said during the festival’s inauguration. With his characteristic humour, the octogenarian remarked on the late-night timings of most classical music conferences, recalling how, in Kolkata, audiences, at times, doze off during such events — himself included at times. Yet, even in their drowsy state, they never fail to applaud and request encores.
The two-day event, organised by the West Bengal Information and Cultural Affairs department in collaboration with Paschim Banga Rajya Sangeet Akademi, drew a packed crowd on Wednesday. Pt Chaurasia performed alongside the tabla virtuoso Pt Samar Saha, joined by the veteran flautist’s talented disciples Vaishnavi Joshi and Vivek Sonar. For over an hour, the 86-year-old legend mesmerised the audience, expressing his desire to return to Kolkata and perform again. Stalwarts like Haimanti Shukla, Tejendra Narayan Majumdar, Pt Tanmoy Bose and Pt Debojyoti Bose were in attendance to enjoy Pt Chaurasia’s performance. Legendary Pt Amiya Ranjan Bandyopadhyay, the exponent of the Bishnupur gharana and the oldest performing classical musician in India, praised the growing opportunities for young artistes and the increasing number of music schools at the inauguration ceremony. However, he lamented the declining ability of audiences to recognise the instruments being played. Responding to this concern, state tourism minister Indranil Sen announced plans for Paschim Banga Rajya Sangeet Akademi to launch a music appreciation course. The two-day programme will also feature Pt Kumar Bose, Pt Swapan Chaudhuri, Pt Tarun Bhattacharya, Kabir Suman and others.
The event featured an exhibition on Bengali ragas, showcasing luminaries such as Ramsankar Bhattacharya, Surendranath Bandopadhyay, Gyanprakash Ghosh, Ravishankar, Bahadur Khan, Sandhya Mukhopadhyay and Sipra Basu, which received immense admiration from music lovers.
Following the success in Kolkata, similar conferences are planned in six districts, including Chandannagar, Durgapur, Medinipur, Siliguri, Behrampur and Suri, bringing classical music to a wider audience.