The one thing in common that sitar player Anupama Bhagawat shares with tabla exponent Nitin Mitta, besides the fact that they both performed in the city on Saturday, is that they both are from the state and they’ve both been playing music since childhood.
“We are performing together after a very long time. The last time we did so was around 1995-96,” Nitin says.
Nitin was just 10 when he gave his first public performance. He shares, “Music runs in my family, and I’ve had the opportunity to perform with renowned artists like Pandit Jasraj and many others.”
Anupama chips in with, “I’m currently based in Bengaluru but my roots are in Andhra Pradesh. My grandparents moved to Nagpur many years ago and the family eventually moved to Bhilai. That explains my taking up the sitar.”
Like Nitin, Anupama also belongs to a family of musicians, but she points out, “They weren’t professional musicians. I’m the first one in my family to pursue a career in music.”
While both musicians spend most of their time touring, Nitin released an album few years ago, in collaboration with Grammy nominee Vijay Iyer and Prasanna. Currently based in New York, he says, “I teach the tabla and also give lectures at universities.”
