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Wikipedia / Hariprasad Chaurasia

Hariprasad Chaurasia (born 1 July 1938) is an Indian classical flautist and composer who plays the bansuri in the Hindustani classical tradition. Starting in the late 1950s, he developed the bansuri as a concert instrument through an approach drawing on vocal and instrumental techniques of Hindustani music, and became one of India's internationally known classical musicians.

Born into a family with no professional musical background, Chaurasia initially trained as a wrestler at the insistence of his father while secretly studying music. He began his professional career with All India Radio (AIR) in Cuttack in 1957 before being transferred to Bombay in 1962, where he became active in both classical music and the Hindi film industry. He later became a disciple of Annapurna Devi of the Maihar gharana. Alongside his classical career he worked extensively as a studio flautist, formed the film-composing partnership Shiv-Hari with santoor player Shivkumar Sharma producing notable filmscores like Silsila (1981) and Chandni (1989). He also collaborated with musicians including George Harrison, Zakir Hussain, John McLaughlin and Jan Garbarek.

He received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1984, the Padma Bhushan in 1992 and India's second higest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan in 2000. In 2011 he was elected a Fellow of the Sangeet Natak Akademi, its highest honour.

Early life and education

Chaurasia was born in Allahabad (present day Prayagraj) in the United Provinces (present Uttar Pradesh). His mother died when he was six years old, after which he was brought up by his father, Chhedilal Pehelwan, who was a professional wrestler.< and his elder sister. He had to learn music without his father's knowledge, as his father wanted him to become a wrestler. Chaurasia did go to the Akhada and trained with his father for some time, although he also started learning stenography and Hindustani vocal music from his neighbour, Pandit Rajaram at the age of 15. Later, he switched to playing the flute under the tutelage of Bholanath Prasanna of Varanasi for eight years.

He has stated,

Career

Chaurasia first worked as a stenographer in Allahabad while continuing to practise music privately. He joined the All India Radio, Cuttack, Odisha in 1957 and worked as a composer and performer. This relocation helped him him to leave Allahabad and pursue music as a profession. Here after working four year he was transferred to Mumbai. Much later, while working for All India Radio, he received guidance from the reclusive surbahar player Annapurna Devi of Maihar gharana, daughter of Baba Allaudin Khan. She only agreed to teach him if he was willing to unlearn all that he had learnt until then. Another version is that she only agreed to teach him after he took the decision to switch from right-handed to left-handed playing to show her his commitment. In any case Chaurasia plays left-handed to this day.

In 1967, Chaurasia, santoor player Shivkumar Sharma and slide guitarist Brij Bhushan Kabra recorded the instrumental album Call of the Valley, it marked the beginning of Chaurasia's long professional association with Sharma. The album was widely circulated in India and abroad and became one of the best-known recordings associated with the three musicians, and a milestone in world music. AllMusic reviewer Ken Hunt advises that "If the newcomer buys only one Indian classical recording, it should be "Call of the Valley"." It is listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Starting 1970s, in a career stretching over six decades, Chaurasia toured locally and internationally extensively, as a soloist and in jugalbandi performances, performing at venues like Carnegie Hall, the Royal Albert Hall and the Kremlin.

Film music

Apart from classical music, Hariprasad has collaborated with Shivkumar Sharma, forming a composing duo called Shiv-Hari. The pair composed music for many popular movies, including Silsila and Chandni, and created some highly popular songs, such as "Dekha Ek Khwab", "Yeh Kahan Aa Gaye Hum", "Neela Aasman So Gaya" and "Rang Barse". The duo encouraged actor Amitabh Bachchan to sing in the film Silsila, including on song "Rang Barse".

Chaurasia also collaborated with Bhubaneswar Mishra, forming the pair "Bhuban-Hari" (in line with Shiv-Hari), and the pair composed music for many Odia films including Samaya (1975) and Gapa Hele Bi Sata (1976), creating numerous songs that were hugely popular in the state. These include Muje janena kaha baata (sung by Suman Kalyanpur; movie: Gapa helebi Sata); and all songs from Maa o Mamata, and many more.

International collaborations

He has collaborated with several western musicians, including John McLaughlin, Jan Garbarek, and Ken Lauber, and has composed music for Indian films. Chaurasia also played on The Beatles' 1968 B-side "The Inner Light", which was written by George Harrison. He also played with George Harrison on his first solo release, Wonderwall Music, and with Harrison, Ravi Shankar and others on the Dark Horse Records release Shankar Family & Friends (1974). In December 1986 he recorded Making Music (1987) with tabla player Zakir Hussain, guitarist John McLaughlin and Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbarek, it featured improvisations both in Hindustani and European music.

In 1997, Chaurasia participated in the revived version of John McLaughlin's Indo-jazz group Shakti, known as Remember Shakti, and took part in its series of concerts in the United Kingdom.

Musical style

Chaurasia's playing is known for its lyrical, voice-like quality and for bringing the bansuri into the extended form of Hindustani classical music, with detailed alap, jor and jhala. An key influence on his style was his training under Annapurna Devi of the Maihar gharana. As she was not a flute player, she taught him by singing the musical phrases and ideas she wanted him to learn, which Chaurasia then reproduced on the flute. Chaurasia later explained that this taught him to think of the flute simply as a medium for expressing music, rather than limiting himself to techniques specific to the instrument. Through continued experimentation, he expanded the expressive range of the bansuri while retaining an emphasis on melody, emotion and the development of the raga. The Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National academy for Performing arts, credited him with evolving a distinctive style of flute playing and establishing himself among India's leading classical musicians.

His melodic approach also helped make his music accessible to audiences beyond specialist classical music listeners. Although his career has included film music and collaborations with jazz and world music musicians, Chaurasia has maintained that experimentation should remain grounded in a strong understanding of classical music.

Teaching

Teaching became an increasingly important part of Chaurasia's later career, especially in the traditional guru–shishya model. In 2002 he established the Vrindaban Gurukul in Mumbai with support from the Sir Ratan Tata Trust, and formally inaugurated with an overnight concert around Krishna Janmashtami in 2002. A second Vrindaban Gurukul opened in Bhubaneswar in 2010.

Chaurasia's nephew and pupil Rakesh Chaurasia is also a flautist, and has been performing with artists such as Zakir Hussain.

In 1991, he was appointed as the artistic director of the Indian music section in World Music Department at the Rotterdam Conservatory of Music in the Netherlands. A role he continued even when the conservatory was incorporated into Codarts. In 2008, the Netherlands appointed him an "Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau" for his musical contribution, presented by Princess Máxima.

Personal life

Chaurasia has married twice, first to Kamala Devi, whom he married around 1957. His second marriage after a few years, was with Anuradha Roy, a classical vocalist who he met while working a AIR Cuttack. He has three sons. With first wife Kamala Devi he has two sons, Vinay and Ajay. With Anuradha, Chaurasia has a son named Rajeev. Chaurasia has five granddaughters and a grandson. Kamala Devi died in her early forties after a period of illness.

In 2010, the chronology of Chaurasia's two marriages became the subject of a legal dispute, when his sons Vinay and Ajay Chaurasia, from his marriage to Kamala Devi, filed a defamation suit in Bombay High Court (Vinay Kumar Chaurasia & Anr. v. Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia & 3 Ors. ) against Chaurasia and biographer Surjit Singh, alleging that the authorised biography Woodwinds of Change misrepresented the order of his marriages by suggesting that he married Kamala after Anuradha "Angurbala" Roy, which they argued implied that they were illegitimate. They sought ₹1 lakh in token damages and an injunction against further publication of the biography; the Bombay High Court declined to grant an interim restraint in March 2010, although the suit continued. The family dispute resurfaced in 2013 after the release of the documentary Bansuri Guru, directed by Chaurasia's son Rajeev Chaurasia. Vinay Chaurasia criticised the film for omitting his mother Kamala Devi, meanwhile their previous their lawsuit concerning Woodwinds of Change still continued. In 2026, The Indian Express similarly noted that the biographical musical Bansuri Jab Gaane Lage, written by Chaurasia's daughter-in-law Pushpanjali and produced by Rajeev, portrayed several women important to his life but omitted Kamala Devi and their two sons.

His nephew Rakesh Chaurasia is also a flautist and carrying forward the family legacy.

The 2013 documentary film Bansuri Guru features the life and legacy of Chaurasia and was directed by the musician's son Rajeev Chaurasia and produced by the Films Division Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. A 2026 stage musical Bansuri Jab Gaane Lage based on his life and career was produced by his family members.

Awards and honours

Discography

Albums

These are major albums released by Hariprasad Chaurasia

  1. 1967

  2. Call of the Valley with Shivkumar Sharma and Brij Bhushan Kabra

  3. 1978

  4. Krishnadhwani 60

  5. 1981

  6. Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute

  7. 1984

  8. Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute (different set of ragas, same album name)

  9. 1987

  10. Morning to Midnight Ragas - Morning Ragas

  11. 1988

  12. Nothing But Wind - Composed by the renowned musician "Isaignani" Ilaiyaraaja

  13. Call of the Valley

  14. 1989

  15. Venu

  16. Live in Ahmedabad '89

  17. 1990

  18. Immortal Series

  19. 1991

  20. Megh Malhar

  21. 1992

  22. Night Ragas

  23. Live in Amsterdam '92

  24. Morning to Midnight Ragas - Afternoon Ragas

  25. All time Favourites

  26. Live from Sawai Gandharva Music Festival - Video (VHS)

  27. Raga-s DU Nord Et Du Sud

  28. Immortal Series - Flute Fantasia

  29. 1993

  30. Indian Classical Masters

  31. Daylight Ragas

  32. Flute - Hariprasad Chaurasia

  33. Soundscapes - Music of the Rivers - Hari Prasad Chaurasia

  34. 1994

  35. Thumri - The Music of Love

  36. In A Mellow Mood

  37. Possession

  38. Immortal Series - Devine Drupad

  39. Classic Greats1 - Ideas on Flute

  40. 1995

  41. In Live Concert

  42. Cascades of Hindustani Music

  43. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 4 am to 7 am Raga Bhairava: Integration

  44. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 7 am to 10 am Raga Gurjari Todi: Compassion

  45. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 10 am to 1 pm Raga Vrindavani Saranga: Greater Energy

  46. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 1 pm to 4 pm Raga Multani: Affuence

  47. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 4 pm to 7 pm Raga Marwa: Coherence

  48. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 7 pm to 10 pm Raga Desh: Joy

  49. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 10 pm to 1 am Raga Abhogi: Peaceful Slumber

  50. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 1 am to 4 am Raga Sindhu Bhairavi: Gentleness

  51. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute

  52. Malhar-Chandrika

  53. Music 157 - Live in London

  54. Music - Flute

  55. Great Jugalbandis

  56. Music from the world of OSHO - Above & Beyond

  57. Prem Yog

  58. Written on the Wind

  59. Romantic Themes

  60. Saptarishi - Live at Siri Fort

  61. The Mystical Flute of Hari Prasad Chaurasia

  62. Maestro's Choice

  63. Basant Bahar

  64. Chaurasia's Choice

  65. 1996

  66. Hari Prasad Chaurasia & his Divine Flute

  67. Flute Recital

  68. Valley Recalls - In search of Peace, Love and Harmony

  69. Krishna's Flute - Master of the Bansuri

  70. Classical Encounters - A live Experience with Pt. Hari Prasad Chaurasia

  71. Fabulous Flute

  72. Pundit Hari Prasad Chaurasia

  73. In Concert - Vancouver, B.C

  74. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Flute

  75. The Bamboo Flautist of His Generation

  76. Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - Nada in Jerusalem

  77. 1997

  78. Classical Encounters - A Live Experience with Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia

  79. Great Jugalbandis

  80. The Golden Collection (Classical)

  81. Immortal Essence

  82. Golden Raga Collection

  83. Bustan Abraham - Fanar (Guest appearance alongside Zakir Hussain)

  84. 1998

  85. Samarpan-VCD Special 60th Birthday Edition

  86. The Charms Companion

  87. Morning to Midnight - Morning to Dusk

  88. Music for Reiki

  89. 1999

  90. Jugalbandi

  91. Rasdhaara

  92. Live Inside Khajuraho

  93. Live in New Delhi - '89

  94. Golden Raga Collection

  95. Musical Titans of India - Jugalbandhi Video (VHS)

  96. Pure Joy - Positive Energy Music

  97. 2000

  98. Music without Boundaries

  99. Maaya - Far East

  100. Hriday - Cuba

  101. Caravan Spain

  102. Live Concert at Savai Gandharva Music Festival

  103. Gurukul - The Guru shishya Parampara

  104. 2001

  105. Adi-Ananth

  106. Love Divine - Parables of Passion

  107. Power & Grace - Live at the Saptak Festival 2001

  108. Discovery of Indian Classical Music

  109. Flute Duet

  110. 2003

  111. Flute Deity Hariprasad Chaurasia

  112. The Greatest Hits of Hariprasad Chaurasia

  113. Salvation - Instrumental Bhajans

  114. Sounds of Silence

  115. 2015

Ajanma - Hariprasad Chaurasia (Solo album)

  1. Year unknown

  2. La Flute De Pundit Hariprasad Chaurasia

  3. Hariprasad Chaurasia - The Most Celebrated Flautist of India

  4. Charm of the Bamboo flute

  5. Kalpana - Imagination

  6. A Kaleidoscope of various ragas

  7. Krishna Utsav

  8. Kali - Classical Instrumental

  9. Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - the Living Legend of Flute

  10. Moon Light Moods - Flute Recital

  11. Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia - The Living Legend of Flute

  12. Indian Music

  13. HariDhwani

  14. Dancing Water

  15. Fusion India - Passage of India Series

  16. Being Still

  17. Dhammapada - Sacred teaching of Buddha

  18. The Charms Companion

  19. Eternity

  20. Nothing but wind (1988) - Composed by Ilaiyaraaja

  21. With Zakir Hussain

  22. Making Music (ECM, 1986)

  23. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 4 am to 7 am Raga Bhairava

  24. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 7 am to 10 am Raga Jaita

  25. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 10 am to 1 pm Raga Ahir Lalita

  26. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 1 pm to 4 pm Raga Samanta Saranga

  27. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 4 pm to 7 pm Raga Puriya Dhanashri

  28. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 7 pm to 10 pm Raga Maru Bihaga

  29. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 10 pm to 1 am Raga Gunji Kanada

  30. Maharishi Gandharva Veda - Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia - 1 am to 4 am Raga Shuddha Vasanta

  31. Contributing artist

  32. The Rough Guide to the Music of India and Pakistan (World Music Network, 1996)

Films

Hindi

Along with Shivkumar Sharma he composed music for:

Telugu

The music for the film Sirivennela (1986) was composed by K. V. Mahadevan which revolves around the role of Hari Prasad, a blind flautist played by Sarvadaman Banerjee and flute renditions by Chaurasia.

English

Some of his music was used in Mithaq Kazimi's 16 Days in Afghanistan (2007).

Biblliography

  • Vasudev, Uma (2005). Hariprasad Chaurasia: Romance of the Bamboo Reed. Shubhi Publications. ISBN 978-81-8290-042-4.

  • Singh, Surjit (2008). Woodwinds of Change: The Authorized Biography of Padmavibhushan Hariprasad Chaurasia. Richa's Enterprise. ISBN 978-81-906927-0-0.

  • Tournier, Henri (2010). Hariprasad Chaurasia et l'art de l'improvisation: Découverte pas à pas de la musique de l'Inde du Nord. Accords Croisés–Harmonia Mundi.

  • Tournier, Henri. Hariprasad Chaurasia and the Art of Improvisation* Saran, Sathya (2019). Breath of Gold: Hariprasad Chaurasia. Penguin.

  • Singh, Surjit (2010).Bansuri Samrat : Hariprasad Chaurasia (Hindi). Prabhat Prakashan. ASIN:B071XMLL7F.

See also

References