Shankar Mahadevan to be recognised with top university honour in UK

London: Singer-composer Shankar Mahadevan will be felicitated with an honorary doctorate from Birmingham City University (BCU) for his outstanding contribution to the field of music and the arts.

Andy Street, the mayor of West Midlands County in the UK, announced a recent trade mission event in Mumbai.

Mahadevan, part of the music composing trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and the voice behind numerous songs in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada, has been formally invited to receive BCU's highest honour at a ceremony in 2023.

"This is truly a special moment for me. It's something new and will take some time for me to digest this feeling. When I started my career, I never expected that one day I would be awarded a doctorate in music. I am looking forward to some amazing music being created between Indian musicians, whom I represent and musicians from the West Midlands. We've heard musicians from the Conservatoire perform especially for us during our visit and it was just outstanding. I saw a beautiful collaboration that will happen," the 55-year-old musician said.

The announcement comes after Mahadevan visited the BCU campus, which features state-of-the-art creative industry facilities and schools, including the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire (RBC).

He had toured the RBC with fellow Indian musicians, including tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, earlier this year and met with students, staff and partners committing to exploring links and opportunities between his Shankar Mahadevan Academy and the Conservatoire.

At the Mumbai trade mission event, BCU Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Julian Beer formally invited Mahadevan to receive the award at a ceremony next year.