End of An Era: Santoor Maestro Shivkumar Sharma no more

Mumbai: Legendary santoor maestro and internationally celebrated music composer Pandit Shivkumar Sharma passed away following a cardiac arrest here today.

He was 84 and is survived by wife Manorama and two sons, one of whom, Rahul Sharma, is also an accomplished santoor player.

The Jammu-born musician was suffering from kidney-related ailment over the last six months and was on dialysis.

Sharma, who elevated the santoor, once a little-known musical instrument from Jammu and Kashmir, to its present exalted global status, will also be remembered for the music he composed with the flute legend Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia for films such as ‘Silsila’, ‘Lamhe’, ‘Chandni’ and ‘Darr’.

Soon after reports of his demise surfaced, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed deep grief and tweeted, “Our cultural world is poorer with the demise of Pandit Shivkumar Sharma Ji. He popularised the Santoor at a global level. His music will continue to enthral the coming generations. I fondly remember my interactions with him. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti.”

 

(With agency inputs)

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