Winning Notes: Anoushka Shankar

Ten fingers are not enough to count all of Anoushka Shankar’s accomplishments. The seven-time Grammy-nominated sitarist, producer, and composer has made India proud many times over and continues to do so. The first Indian musician to perform at the Grammy Awards and the first Indian woman to be nominated, the 40-year-old sitar virtuoso’s journey in Indian classical music began when she started training under the guidance of her guru and father, Pandit Ravi Shankar. At the age of 13, Anoushka Shankar gave her first professional stage performance and since then, there has been no looking back for the accomplished artist.

In an exclusive chat with TMM, our August cover girl delved into her journey as a musician and how the past few years have changed the way she makes music.

You had a lot of plans for last year but the pandemic and lockdown changed everything. How much has that impacted your music?
We’re not out of it yet so it’s hard to analyze it with the benefit of hindsight. There were some huge professional disappointments but in the big picture, it genuinely felt okay. We all were so aware of something much bigger that was happening and I was lucky enough that my immediate family was okay. So yeah, it was a real priority checker. It is hard to speak of my music without it being more about as a person and I think that’s where any music will happen – it is based on the changes that happen to us as people.

You are someone who enjoys performing live. How much did you miss that during the lockdown?
To be honest, I’m quite split down the middle when it comes to answering that question. Yes, I perform a lot and it is such a central part of my music and something I love very deeply. However, it also meant that with every passing year I toured, I would miss what it might feel like to have a more consistent home life. I felt that being on the road for months on end didn’t really suit me anymore. Every time I get on stage and perform, it lights me up and it feels like magic but the act of everything that it requires has been a bit disillusioning over the years. So yes, getting to perform is something I deeply miss but at the same time, being healthy and getting the chance to be at one place with my family has actually been really meaningful.

You have raised many social issues, especially those concerning women, through your music or through the causes you have supported. Do you think it is the responsibility of artists to use their art to raise awareness about social issues?
Art is about connecting people to their feelings, to their hearts, and evoke a sense of empathy or transcendence. That can happen through any form of art and all forms of art have value. I wouldnever say that we have a responsibility to make a certain kind of work because all types of work are valid. However, I do believe that as humans we all have a role to play in helping our world and society the best that we can. As citizens, we all have a role in using our voices and using our vote, in using our gifts and talents in whatever ways we can to make the world the best we can.

It is very difficult for anyone to talk about things like substance abuse or sexual abuse, more so for someone who is in the public eye, yet you have done that. Where do you draw the strength from to share these experiences?
My experience has been that when I am vulnerable and when I lean into those darker parts of myself and share them, that’s where healing happens. That’s where we realize that we are not alone and that other people share the same kinds of experiences and feelings that we do. We realize we are not alone and we can help and identify those parts of ourselves that need help and support. As a well-known Indian woman, I know from my experience that there are so many things we don’t talk about. There are many people who don’t feel that they can safely ask for help or share their stories. I feel that if I share, then it becomes a part of a positive climate where that sharing becomes okay. I don’t come out and spill my guts on social media with something that’s currently bleeding. It’s about knowing that you have to keep your mask on before helping others.

You have two adorable sons Zubin and Mohan. Do they give you feedback about your music? Has motherhood changed you as an artist?
Oh ya, they are quite brutal! (laughs) Of course, parenting has changed my music and my way of making music. It is not the same it was ten years ago. Parenting has really changed my ambition because my whole value system about what makes me happy and what fulfills me has changed and so, the music I make has to be really worth it. Anything that takes me away from here has to matter in some way. It’s changed my choices progressively around what I am willing to be busy with, which in turn changes everything about the music I make and the way I make it.

Over the years, you have performed and collaborated with some of the best in the business, including your sister Norah Jones. How much is it about you wanting to associate with a particular musician and how much is it about what the song demands?
All of it really. It might be that I am starting with someone that I already have a history with and I know I write well with them. I call them in as I am writing because there’s a certain sound I know they can help me achieve. It might be that I have already got a rough piece of music and I feel it needs a certain person who then I reach out to. And sometimes, it is just a hunger to work with someone and sitting down with a blank slate with that person and see what we come up with together. All of those methods work for me. I do feel generally more inspired when I’m working with someone. I enjoy the chemistry and I think there is some magic that happens there.

You mentioned somewhere that you never tried to escape your father’s legacy. Can you tell us about that?
If he was just my father and I did something different than him, then that would be a different matter but I was given this music by him. I was trained by him and I toured with him. To deny that would be to deny myself. I never felt the need to escape. What would I be escaping from? I had my own identity and if I felt comfortable with that then I don’t think I needed to prove anything to anybody else. I am who I am and he is a part of that story.

How do you see your music evolving in the coming few years? You composed music for Mira Nair’s A Suitable Boy. Can we expect more music from you for films/web shows?
I definitely feel that I want to make another album. That’s the next thing. I want to make an album primarily with myself because I feel I need to reconnect with who I am as a musician. I do want to make music for films and television because it’s a great way to be creative. I want to make something that just feels really true to now.

Rapid Fire

Your favourite recording of your father: An Introduction to Indian Music

Favourite travel destination: I find myself fantasising about places I have been to like the Andaman Islands, Jamaica, Greece… beautiful places with different fantastic cultures

Your style statement: A mix of hippie, goth, city, traveller, feminine and flowing but also strong and edgy

Favourite cuisine: My mum’s food, also Mediterranean and Thai

A recent Indian film you really liked: Sir

A recent OTT show you watched: I just watched all of Never Have I Ever

A motto that you live by: One day at a time, one moment at a time

Apart from sitar, another instrument that you like playing/would like to learn: Piano

An album of yours that’s close to your heart: Love Letter PS

A book you are currently reading: The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates is absolutely wonderful

An actor you really like: Olivia Coleman

Words: Deepali Singh

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