Sarathi Chatterjee : Grooming young Bangladeshi musical talents

Sarathi comes to train selected students twice a year. Between 2004-2007 he is here for six weeks at a stretch. Currently, he has over 100 students, mostly advanced students and some beginners.

Sarathi has been training in classical music for the last 36 years. He has produced a unique style and earned credentials as one of the foremost young vocalists in India by synthesising the great traditions of Kirana and Banaras gharanas (tradition). At the age of 18 he received the President Award for his presentation of classical music in All India Radio. Moreover, he is the recipient of Suromini award from Bombay. He is a top grade artiste of the All India Radio and Doordarshan. Besides classical music, Sarathi sings bhajans, composed by him and a few raga-based Bangla songs composed by his father.

On the potential of the Bangladeshi learners Chatterjee said, "Many students are eager to learn classical music and want to take it as a profession. With proper training they can make a remarkable contribution. To learn more on classical music, one should have ideas on different traditions. I teach them two gharanas Kirana and Banaras as well as my own style, which is a synthesis of Kirana and Banaras. "

Besides learning, the students get the scope to perform in concerts with their gurus. So far on two occasions his students have performed in his concerts. He said, "I believe this is an opportunity for the learners to prove their calibre to a discerning audience. They should take the opportunity to learn more about music genres from the renowned gurus of India."