Bharati Vaishampayan - The Learning Phase

The Learning Phase

Dr. Bharati started her journey into the world of Hindustani Classical Music at the age of 12. Under the able guidance of Shri Chintubua Mhaiskar of Sangli she evolved into a promising performer.

She was awarded the National Scholarship for Higher Education in Music by the Government of India in the year 1976. Due to this she got the opportunity to further her learning under the guidance of Pandit Sudhakarbua Digrajkar of the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana. This was a very important phase in her evolution as a classical performer. Panditji gave her a vision and direction on how to perform a Raaga and how to make the performance attractive without compromising on the purity of the Raaga.

This rigorous training resulted in an opportunity to perform on the AIR Tuesday Night Concert. This turned out to be a turning point in the life of Dr. Bharati. Her performance on AIR was heard by the maestro of the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana, Pandit Nivruttibua Sarnaik. So impressed was he by the performance that he immediately wrote to Bharati and gave his blessings by accepting her as his student. Thereafter, whenever Panditji was in Kolhapur he would teach her the gems of Jaipur gayaki in his own style.

During this period Dr. Bharati came in contact with Shri Baburao Joshi of Kolhapur who trained her in the Light-Classical forms of music like Thumri, Dadra, Kajri, Jhoola and Tappa.

The blessings of her Gurus and her devotion to music led to her becoming a capable and confident performer.