Tributes pour in for Pandit Ram Narayan, the maestro who took Sarangi instrument to new heights

New Delhi, ‘He played sarangi like no other’, ‘a peaceful and wonderful musician’ or the one who gave up the fame and glory of Hindi film industry for the sheer love of classical music is how eminent personalities from the field of music paid tributes to the Sarangi maestro Pandit Ram Narayan.
Narayan, widely credited for elevating the status of humble sarangi as a concert solo instrument in Hindustani classical music, died at his Mumbai residence on Saturday. He was 96.
The Padma Vibhushan awardee, who played the bowed instrument in several classic Hindi films including “Mughal-e-Azam”, “Madhumati”, “Pakeeza”, “Gunga Jumna” and “Kashmir ki Kali”, worked with the All India Radio in Lahore and Delhi during the mid-1940s, before migrating to Mumbai in 1949.
Born in Rajasthan on December 25, 1927, to a family deeply entrenched in classical music, Narayan found immense success in Bollywood before ultimately bidding farewell to the film industry to devote himself fully to classical music.
“He was playing in the film industry and there were music directors like Madan Mohan, and others, who would not record if he was not there. He gave it all up and decided to play Sarangi in concerts across India and internationally,” Narayan’s student and well known playback singer Kavita Krishnamurty told PTI over phone from Sri Lanka
Later, he recorded several albums, and made his first international tour in 1964 to the United States and Europe with his older brother Chatur Lal, a tabla player.
Calling herself fortunate for getting to learn under the tutelage of the legendary musician in the mid 1970s, Krishnamurty said Sarangi as we know today in India is all due to the hard work of Naryan.
“He was a very committed and serious teacher. I’ve learnt a lot of things about music from him. Even later, I would just go and meet him, when he would practice. He is an amazing musician. His voice was so sweet and emotional but he never sang in public. He was a peaceful and wonderful musician.
“It was an honour and a privilege to know him, and some of us were indeed lucky to learn a little bit from the great musician,” she said, adding that she and her husband, violinist L Subramaniam, would always make it a point to visit the maestro whenever they were in Mumbai.
In a post on X, music director and singer Adnan Sami said he was saddened by the demise of “one of the greatest Sarangi Maestros that the entire Indian subcontinent has ever witnessed”.
“In addition to his genius as a phenomenal artist, he was a very kind and gentle soul. His smile was infectious & he personified humility.. The Sarangi is one of my favourite instruments & Pandit ji knew how to make it Sing like no other… May his soul rest in peace & my sincere condolences to his beloved family,” the 53 year old singer wrote.
Narayan was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1976, the Padma Bhushan in 1991, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2005.
He was also felicitated with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, the Kalidas Samman by Madhya Pradesh government, and the Aditya Vikram Birla Kalashikhar Puraskar.
In 2007, a biographical film, titled “Pandit Ramnarayan – Sarangi Ke Sang”, was showcased at the International Film Festival of India .
From Maharashtra governor CP Radhakrishnan to the Sangeet Natak Akademi and Spic Macay, tributes continues to pour in for the legendary musician.
Radhakrishnan wrote on X: “I am deeply saddened to learn about the demise of internationally acclaimed Sarangi maestro Pt Ram Narayan Ji. Pt Ram Narayan took Sarangi to global heights through his masterly performances. The sound of his Sarangi touched hearts and heavens.”
Sonal Mansingh, renowned classical dancer and former member of the Rajya Sabha, remembered Narayan as a “jovial person totally dedicated to his art”.
“Pt. Ram Narayan ji was a Master of the difficult instrument Sarangi which he learnt from his early years… May his legacy continue to inspire successive generations of musicians,” she wrote on X.
While Sangeet Natak Akademi offered condolences to his family, the Society for the promotion of Indian Classical Music Among Youth said Narayan’s “artistic prowess was such that he had become almost synonymous with his instrument in the world of classical music”.
Narayan is survived by his three children sarod player Pandit Brij Narayan, and Aruna and Shiv, both of whom are trained musicians.
The maestro’s 39-year-old grandson, Harsh Narayan, who began training under him at the age of six, is now a renowned sarangi player as well.
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