The Biography of Sunayana

Meeting Sunayana

“Who am I? Am the Rhythm…

As a child, she found shelter in music. Peace in its myriad forms. Her keen sense of rhythm was discovered early, and she was widely recognized as a prodigy in TABLA by the age of 6 in 1985, notwithstanding the fact that this instrument typically represents a male bastion. That, till today, is her source of distinctiveness. Her hands have never stopped since that.

Her training

Sunayana’s talim (training) began under the able supervision of her esteemed GURU SAMAR MITRA.As her career progressed she obtained her Shishwatya under the tutelage of PANDIT GURU SRI SHANKAR GHOSH of the legendary FARUKHABAD gharana, also the father of the Indian TABLA maestro BICKRAM GHOSH.
Through the years, Santayana’s family has been instrumental in nurturing her passion. SUNAYANA found immense inspiration her mother, RITA, a keen practitioner of classical music herself. RITA had made a name in the musical performance circles of kolkata, through the aegis of ALL INDIAN REDIO and DOOR DARSHAN (television).

Her laurels

With rhythm in her veins, Sunayana made quite a mark in the performing arts in KATHAK and VOCALS alike. However, it was in TABLA that she found her passion and highest accolades. Since 1993 she has held top positions in the cultural competitions instituted by the WEST BENGAL STATE ACADEMY OF DANCE DRAMA MUSIC AND VISUAL ART, THE DOVER LANE MUSIC CONFERENCE (TALENT SEARCH CONTEST), THE AUROVINDO INSTITUED OF CULTURE AND THE ALL BENGAL TABLA LAHARA COMPETITION. Her accomplishments and potential were recognized through various national and state level scholarships awarded by the Ministry of tourism and culture (Governments of India and the state of West Bengal) and the RAMKRISHNA MISSION INSTITUTE OF CULTURE.
Sunayana Ghosh has displayed her talent in playing difficult Tihais frequently with the accompaniment of Sitar, Sarod, Santoor, Guiter and vocals, in esteemed music Orchestras (SAMMYA DHWANIS) such as the BAHADOOR KHAN MUSIC CIRCLE AND THE ALL BENGAL MUSIC CONFERENCE. She has own appreciation from playing with legendary maestros like PANDIT DEEPAK CHOWDHURY, PANDEET MAHARAAJ BANERJEE etc. it was not long before the classical performing arts centers in India bestowed upon her the illustrious title of SANGEET BHUSHAN,SANGEET BHISHRAD AND SANGEET BHASHKAR.
In the midst of her active performances, this child prodigy has always striven to complement her talent with her education. She achieved the first position in the degree examination of the RABINDRA BHARATI UNIVERSITY percussion department in 2000, followed by a first class first gold medal with record scores in 2001 for her Bachelor of Arts (hons.) examination from the same university. A second gold medal was in the offing for her recently completed masters in Art examination, leading to a prestigious scholarship from RABINDRA BHARATI UNIVERSITY.
The highlight of Sunayana’ s career in the TABLA was her selection by the I.C.C.R as one of 10 young musicians to represent India in several music performance across PARIS, LUXEMBARG, BRUSSELS, HUMBURG, BARLIN, ARMENIA, TURKY and THE NETHERLANDS. Her potential was widely acclaimed by international audiences as well as by the national media, giving her talent a much needed international flavour.

The road ahead

Today, Sunayana seeks further opportunities to take Indian classical TABLA to the national and international arenas. She aspires to do this through an album in TABLA fusion she intend to compose soon, as well as through national and international live performances.

Photos by Mr. Arko Halder

Read the full interview with Sunayana in Issue 4 of Tom Tom Magazine

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