Pandit Chaurasia mesmerizes New Jersey with soulful medley

By Vani Doraisamy

New Jersey, October 16: What better way to enjoy a perfect Fall evening than losing yourself in the soulful music of a flute played by a maestro? And who can play it better than Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, the internationally acclaimed master of the bansuri or the bamboo flute? Music lovers of New Jersey had a first hand experience of the Chaurasia magic yesterday at the North Brunswick Township High School Auditorium when the maestro enthralled a packed audience with a bouquet of Hindustani classical and folk music compositions, in a fundraiser charity event organized by the Association for India's Development (AID), Princeton New Jersey chapter.

For nearly three hours, the maestro's music drenched the beautiful October air with carefully chosen ragas, starting with Rag Sandhyashree and ending with Rag Asaveri, to the expert accompaniment on the tabla by the highly acclaimed Subhankar Banerjee, supporting flute by Jay Gandhi and the tempura by Shyamala Rajender. The sprawling auditorium, filled to capacity, often erupted in spontaneous applause when the maestro and the table vidwan engaged each other in a duet, with the former teasing the best out of the younger musician and openly acknowledging his versatility, which moved Mr. Banerjee to tears on a couple of occasions.

Rasikas had traveled from as far as Delaware to attend the concert and many of them said that it was an experience of a lifetime. 'As a small boy, I had once heard Panditji perform in Mumbai and today I felt like I was revisiting those magical days. I will not forget this experience in a long time, ' said Bharti Chandavarkar, a New Jersey resident, herself an acclaimed Veena player.

When art is for a good cause, it doubles the satisfaction. Proceeds from the event will go to support the activities of AID, a volunteer movement committed to promote sustainable, equitable and just development in India and support initiatives in education, health, agriculture, livelihoods, community empowerment and social justice. AID is a prestigious recipient of the 'Global Contribution to India' Times of India Social Impact Award from the Prime Minister of India. During the program yesterday, enthusiastic and pro-active AID volunteers raised funds to provide 490 solar lamps to villagers in Chattisgarh, India, who have no access to electricity.

AID plans to conduct more such events in the future to support its fundraising activities, Suresh Ediga, an AID volunteer said. For the New Jersey audience which ended the day yesterday with magic from Pandit Chaurasia's bansuri, such events only hold the promise of many more unforgettable evenings to come.