Hariprasad Chaurasia is an Indian music director and classical flute player. In the year 1968, he sang a song called ‘The Inner Light,’ which was written by George Harrison for the internationally acclaimed English rock band The Beatles.
Hariprasad Chaurasia is an Indian music director and classical flute player. He was born on 1 July 1938 in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. His zodiac sign is Cancer. He is a father to three sons, Vinay Chaurasia, Ajay Chaurasia, and Rajeev Chaurasia.
Hariprasad Chaurasia’s favourites
His hobbies include writing and playing musical instruments.
His favourite actors are Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Rajesh Khanna, Rekha, Jaya Bachchan, and Madhubala.
His favourite singers are Mohammad Rafi, Kishore Kumar, and AR Rahman.
His favourite music composers are Zakir Hussain, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Kohn McLaughlin, and Jan Garbarek.
Interesting facts about Hariprasad Chaurasia
Hariprasad Chaurasia’s mother passed away when he was 6 years old. His father raised him as a single parent.
At the age of 15, he started receiving his music training from his neighbour Pandit Rajaram. Under the guidance of Pandit Bholanath Prasanna of Varanasi, he learned how to play flute for 8 years.
In the year 1957, he started working as a music composer and artist at All India Radio, Odisha.
Hariprasad Chaurasia moved to Mumbai and became a disciple of Pandit Ravi Shankar and Annapurna Devi. Under their guidance, he enhanced his performance of ragas and music compositions.
Hariprasad Chaurasia’s legacy
In the year 1968, he sang a song called ‘The Inner Light,’ which was written by George Harrison for the internationally acclaimed English rock band The Beatles.
In the year 1984, he received the Sangeet Natak Akademi award.
He was close friend of artist Shivkumar Sharma. The two came to be known as ‘Shiv-Hari’ in the world of music. The duo worked together for films like Chandni, Darr, Lamhe, and Silsila.
Working with international artists
He served as the Artistic Director of the Department of World Music at the Rotterham Music Conservatory in the Netherlands. He also founded the Vrindavan Gurukul in Mumbai, Bhubaneswar.
He has worked with many Western composers, including John McLaughlin, Jan Garbarek, Ken Lauber, Yehudi Menuhin and Jean-Pierre Rampa.
Honouring a legend
In the year 1992, the Government of India honoured Hariprasad Chaurasia with the Padma Bhushan Award. The same year, he received the Konark Award.
Hariprasad Chaurasia received the Padma Vibhushan, Hafiz Ali Khan, and Deenanath Mangeshkar Awards in the year 2000.
In the year 2013, his son Rajeev Chaurasia released a documentary film titled ‘Bansuri Guru’ that presents India’s legacy in music. The film was produced by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India.
He was awarded an honourary doctorate degree from the University of Northern Odisha in the year 2008.
One of the greatest
In 2013, he was included in NDTV’s list of India’s 25 greatest global living legends.
Several books have been published on Hariprasad Chaurasia’s life including ‘Woodwinds of Change’ by Surjit Singh, ‘Hariprasad Chaurasia and the Art of Improvisation’ by Henry Torunik.
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