When legendary Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar performed as part of his farewell concert series in the south Indian city of Bengaluru last month, he ambled on to the stage with a walking stick. Sporting a full beard, he joked to the audience that he hoped they recognised him.
The evening was a poignant one. Not least because at 91, Shankar, who has spent a glorious career performing around the world, and who creatively influenced The Beatles among many other legends, looked frail and delicate.
"They are full of youth and speed. I cannot run with them, but I'll try..." he joked of his musical companions following a standing ovation.
For Anoushka Shankar, his daughter and protege who performed with him that evening, his advanced age is a reality she lives with every day.
"I am frequently reminded about that," she said in an interview over the phone from London, which she currently calls home. "But at the same time, growing up with a father who was 61 years old, it also makes me appreciate every moment I spend with him even more.
"It was his last concert in Bengaluru, but it's definitely not his last."
Anoushka, 30, who has performed in Dubai a number of times, will return to the UAE on Monday at the Abu Dhabi Festival.
"There are two things that I hold very dear to me," she said. "One thing is the magical moment that happens on stage when I perform with him, which to me is a culmination of our relationship... It's something very intensive and unique.
"And I love seeing him with my son, which is always a touching moment."
The senior Shankar was already 61 when Anoushka was born to Sukanya Rajan, also a musician and his long-time friend. He was already a musical legend then, who taught George Harrison the sitar and who, for most of his life, travelled around the world. But recognising Anoushka's musical leanings early, which was rather natural, he took her under his wing and began to teach her when she was just seven.
Grammy Award
Anoushka began touring with her father early, eventually dropping out of school. By 17, she'd already released her solo album, Anoushka, and followed it up with Anourag in 2000. Three years later she was nominated for her first Grammy Award in the World Music Category for her album Live at Carnegie Hall. Rise, released in 2005, earned her another Grammy nomination, while her 2007 album, Breathing Under Water, featured vocals by, among other artists, her Grammy-winning half-sister Norah Jones. Her latest album, Traveller, recorded in Spain, was released late last year.
The Abu Dhabi stop next week will be one of many around the world as she promotes the Indian-Flamenco album.
"We've done about 40 concerts already and I think we have 20 more coming in the States," said Anoushka, regarded as one of the world's most foremost sitar players, second only to her father.
A departure from the electronica-filled Breathing Under Water, Traveller fuses flamenco tunes with Indian classical music, visiting an idea, as some music historians suggest, that the Spanish song style traces its roots to India.
‘Always loved flamenco'
But Anoushka says it's more than that. "I've always loved flamenco and had a fascination for it," she said. "People have instinctive reactions to countries and I have always felt like that about Spain.
"In Traveller, I've chosen one idea, rather than do lots of them, and developed it. This is very different from Breathing, which was heavily influenced by electronica, which was also my rebellious phase.
"Also there's been a gap of almost four years since my last album and I went through tremendous changes, which is reflected in Traveller."
Anoushka married her British director husband Joe Wright (Hanna, Atonement, Pride and Prejudice) three years ago. The couple had their first child, Zubin, in February last year. She also dabbled in acting for a bit, which she said she doesn't really want to pursue further, and also wrote columns for leading Indian newspapers.
Zubin, she said, travels with her on her world tours. "It changes priorities, motherhood...," she said, as her toddler's cries could be heard in the background.
Change is something Anoushka has grown quite accustomed to. Born in London, she spent her formative years in California and lived off-and-on in India. That's when she's not touring, which she has done since she was 14.
She and her acclaimed director husband, however, have no plans of working together.
"We definitely discuss a lot of things. It's nice that we are both artists, but it's nice that we have our own separate worlds."
One other person with whom she does share creative genes is half-sister Jones, and they have collaborated before. Jones' mother, Sue, was a concert promoter in New York when Anoushka's father met her.
"Of course we talk to each other, we're sisters!" she said, answering a question about whether they keep in touch. "But, as of now, there are no plans [for another collaboration]."
She said she finds the constant references of her as Jones' sister irrelevant.
"It's fine as a trivia, so it doesn't bother me at all. But when you're talking about a sitar player, referencing a jazz singer, I just don't think it makes sense."
For someone who has been credited with keeping an ancient musical tradition alive and relevant, Anoushka's self-worth is, everyone would agree, justified.
While there is a growing and consistent niche of an audience that appreciates her genre of music, it is struggling to keep up with contemporary and popular music, she said.
"The more the music industry becomes packaged and presented, every other genre is having to struggle to survive," she said. "It does make it difficult, especially in India where we don't have a broader market because it is so Bollywood-focused.
"In England, for instance, there are definite markets that are dedicated to mainstream music and there is also classical arts patronage, whereas in India they all compete for the same space. And because Indian music relies heavily on corporate sponsorship, young artists can't build a career unless they package themselves in a more mainstream way. I think it's unfortunate."
Time out
The Abu Dhabi gig and the remainder of the Traveller tour will be one last big tour before Anoushka takes a bit of a breather.
"Zubin being so young, it is difficult. And now that he is growing, he needs more of me," she said. "So as you can see, the changes are still happening.
"But I won't stop performing. I love travelling and touring, just maybe not the same way any more, because my priorities have changed. I don't consider it a sacrifice at all. Rather, a natural change."
Did you know?
- Anoushka Shankar authored an illustrated book called Bappi... The Love of My Life in 2002, dedicated to her father and mentor, the legendary Ravi Shankar.
- Her favourite holiday destinations are Prague, Brazil, Kerala and London. "London is home, but still it's a great place to be as an artist," she said.
Don't miss it
Anoushka Shankar will perform on Monday at the Abu Dhabi Festival at Emirates Palace Auditorium. Tickets priced Dh495 (Diamond) and Dh295 (Pearl) are available at the Emirates Palace box office or by calling 050-9076158. For more information, visit abudhabifestival.ae.
