Desh Ek Raag 2: An ode to the spirit of the nation through ‘Guru-Shishya parampara’
As India marks its 79th Independence Day today, ‘ITC Ltd’ through ITC Sangeet Research Academy (ITC-SRA) proudly presents ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’, a stirring musical tribute to the nation’s spirit and its rich cultural heritage. Rooted in the timeless discipline of Hindustani Classical Music, the presentation is inspired by ‘Raag Desh’, immortalised through the patriotic strains of ‘Vande Maataram’ and enriched by collaborations with traditional Indian dance forms celebrating the diversity of ‘Bharat’.
ITC-SRA has been preserving and propagating Hindustani classical music, rooted in India’s timeless ‘Guru-Shishya parampara’. For over four decades, it has nurtured the country’s rich musical heritage, where gurus and shishyas live and learn together in an environment of deep trust and reverence, ensuring that the purity of the art form is passed down with integrity across generations.
‘Desh Ek Raag 2’ is a true embodiment of ITC’s credo of ‘Nation First: Sab Saath Badhein’, bringing together diverse creative expressions that manifest one of India’s oldest ‘parampara of Guru-Shishya’.
Sanjiv Puri, Chairman, ‘ITC Ltd’, presented the unique initiative in a ‘LinkedIn’ post. He said: “On the occasion of India’s 79th Independence Day, it gives me immense pleasure to present ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’, a tribute to our beloved nation. Anchored on the ‘Desh Raag’, this musical video captures the timeless grace, the unwavering spirit and the unity that binds all of us together as one Nation. Beautifully crafted by the gurus and scholars of the ITC Sangeet Research Academy, this musical rendition celebrates the tradition of ‘Guru-Shishya parampara’, where gurus and scholars live, learn and nurture Hindustani classical music. ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’ has expanded the creative expression through collaborations with other art forms like classical dance and has seamlessly blended Western instruments with Indian melodies. I hope all of you will watch, enjoy and share this video as we dedicate ourselves with pride to preserving the rich cultural heritage of our country.”
“‘Desh Raag’ is that unifying thread that weaves our beloved country’s enormous beauty, unmatched diversity and timeless traditions. Music truly embodies the confluence of transcendental art forms - songs, music and dance. Over the decades, ITC-SRA, with the patronage of ITC, has been a pioneer in training disciples in different Hindustani classical musical forms, including instrumental and vocal. For ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’, ITC-SRA collaborated with revered dance gurus and their shishyas representing some of the most famous Indian dance forms from across the country. This year’s initiative truly brings together all the key elements of musical art to pay tribute to the nation through the age-old ‘Guru-Shishya parampara’,” said ITC-SRA Guru, Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty.
Abir Hossain, ITC-SRA guru and the music director of ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’, said: “It’s been a true honour to work once again on this very special project ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’ for Independence Day. This is my second time creating music for such a meaningful occasion for ITC Sangeet Research Academy and I am deeply grateful to both ITC Ltd and ITC-SRA for entrusting me with this enormous responsibility once more. This year, I chose to bring together a completely new team of fresh faces, talented young scholars, faculty members and other musicians alongside gurus, veteran artistes and tutors, each contributing their unique artistry and passion to the project. Their energy and commitment have made the experience of creating it even more inspiring.”
“I’d also like to express my heartfelt gratitude to ITC Ltd and ITC-SRA for their unwavering support and encouragement. Projects like these remind me how powerful music can be in uniting people and expressing the spirit of our nation in the most time-tested as well as contemporary terms at once,” added Hossain.
Building on the success and acclaim of the first ‘Desh Ek Raag’ (2024), ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’ seeks to pay its tribute to the nation through the revered ‘Guru-Shishya parampara’ of not only ITC-SRA but also other classical art forms. This year’s initiative marks ITC-SRA’s collaboration with several Indian classical dance traditions from across the country, underscoring the essence of diversity, collaboration and the true spirit of ‘Bharat’. The intention is to reinforce the association of ‘Desh’ and ‘Raag’ with ITC and ITC-SRA in connection with India’s day of national reverence and celebration.
The 2025 initiative aims to celebrate and communicate the values and significance of the ‘Guru-Shishya parampara’ to a wider digital audience, emphasising its enduring relevance. To do so, the presentation will creatively incorporate collaborative expressions with other Indian classical art forms, recognising that many classical dance forms share the same dedication to lifelong learning, devotion and the sacred transmission of knowledge from teacher to disciple, much like Indian classical music.
‘Desh Ek Raag 2’ broadens the creative scope by including classical dance forms and western musical instruments, while keeping ITC-SRA and Hindustani classical music at the heart of the project. This year’s composition embraces diversity in both music and performance, weaving western tonalities into the textures of traditional Indian instruments - a creative interpretation of ITC’s vision for cross-cultural collaboration. Under the musical direction of Abir Hossain, the performance brings to life a ‘tarana’ composed by Vidushi Ashwini Bhide Deshpande. The event features a distinguished line-up of artistes, including Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty, Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar, Pandit Partha Chatterjee, Vidushi Subhra Guha, Pandit Uday Bhawalkar, Omkar Dadarkar, Brajeswar Mukherjee and tabla legend Pandit Suresh Talwalkar. The rendition is accompanied by Sarwar Hussain (sarangi) and modernised with the contemporary flair of western instrumentation by the band ‘Prithibi’.
‘Desh Ek Raag 2’ has been recorded at ITC-SRA’s state-of-the-art studio by Avee Bhattacharya. The music video has been directed by Chandrasish Ray, a budding Indian filmmaker and it’s presented in collaboration with the creative agency ‘Genesis Advertising Pvt Ltd’, Kolkata.
People can watch ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’ through the link: https://youtu.be/1fL_47C8TLQ?si=Zk4pj_kh2HtSfj7p
Key focus of ‘Desh Ek Raag 2’
• Tribute to Nation: The piece will continue to draw inspiration from ‘Raag Desh’, with interludes of the famous ‘Vande Mataram’ to invoke pride and reverence for our nation and its heritage in alignment with the spirit of Independence Day.
• Artistic collaborations with the heritage of Hindustani Classical Raaga Music as the central pillar: The ensemble is composed and performed by ITC-SRA’s gurus and scholars, exemplifying the depth and grace of the Hindustani classical tradition. The composition starts with the key element of ‘guru-vandana’ led by ITC-SRA gurus and supported by classical dance forms like Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi, Odissi and Kathak to reinforce the larger cultural connect of the timeless guru-shishya tradition. The Bharatnatyam dance has been choreographed by Rama Vaidyanathan, Kuchipudi by Dr Ananda Shankar Jayant, Kathak by Aditi Mangaldas and Odissi by Sharmila Biswas. The dance forms were performed by these eminent dance gurus and their disciples.
• ITC-SRA’s ‘Guru-Shishya parampara’ - Convergence of Parampara and Pragati: The musical presentation showcases how tradition continues to evolve through the living practices of the ‘Guru-Shishya’ relationship across performing art forms - vocals, instruments and dances, while embracing the contemporary.
