Dare to dream

For over a decade, Kaushiki Chakraborty enchanted audiences with her impeccable command over Hindustani classical music, performing in sold-out venues across India and abroad. Yet, behind the applause, she found herself constrained by the rigid frameworks of rhythms and ragas, yearning for a freer space to explore music that spoke of life, nature, and human emotion.

This desire found wings when Kaushiki met Bollywood composer Shantanu Moitra, the creative force behind award-winning films like ‘Parineeta’, ‘Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi’, ‘Lage Raho Munnabhai’, and ‘3 Idiots’. Together, they envisioned PANKH, a musical journey that broke the boundaries of classical form, blending Eastern and Western rhythms and bringing a full orchestra to the stage.

The twelve-city tour was more than a concert—it was a storytelling experience. Each song drew inspiration from Shantanu’s travels, life encounters, and human stories. From the evocative tribute to the River Ganga in ‘Bhagirathi’ penned by Swanand Kirkire, to the hauntingly emotional ‘Baithi Hoon Mein Nain Bichaye’, inspired by the longing of a mother in Kashmir, the program intertwined music with deeply human narratives. Shantanu’s personal experiences during the pandemic also shaped the tour’s emotional core. His journey to perform symbolic last rites for loved ones lost to Covid, accompanied by thousands of photographs of the grieving, resonated in the music. Kaushiki added personal reflections through songs honoring her mentors, including her ‘Dada Guru’ Pandit Jnan Prakash Ghosh, and close associates Ustad Zakir Hussain, Ustad Rashid Khan, and tabla maestro Shubhankar Banerjee.

As the curtains fell, Kaushiki shared the emotional toll of realising this dream: sleepless nights, financial risks, and the relentless planning that went into bringing PANKH to life. She credited the unwavering belief and support of Shantanu, her band, and her well-wishers for transforming the ambitious vision into reality. The grand finale saw a beautiful merging of performers and audience, a moment of classical and contemporary harmony that left everyone spellbound.

PANKH was not just a musical tour—it was Kaushiki Chakraborty’s flight into a liberated musical universe, where life, stories, and melodies soared together.

(Rickraj Nath on Guitar,Rahul Wadhwani on Keyboard, Lakhinandan Lahon on Flute and Sridhar Parthasarthy on Mridangam were part of a larger ensemble of musicians on stage.)