Thriving with the sitar

Nishit Dey, a promising sitar player, initially stepped into the field of classical music through the tabla. Born in Mymensingh, Nishit is the grandson of noted guru Pandit Mithun Dey. Nishit is a part of the fourth generation of his family lineage of classical music. He first took lessons from his father, Sanjib Dey and his paternal uncle Asit Dey, both celebrated classical music teachers of the country. At a young age, he started learning the sitar from guru Sheikh Sattar Mohammed of the Imdadkhani gharana. After Sheikh Sattar Mohammed's demise in 2009, Nishit started training with Pt  Ashim Chowdhury, one of the finest sitar players of India, based in Kolkata. He has also been under the tutelage of renowned sitarist, Pt Kushal Das at Bengal Parampara Sangeetalay. Currently, Nishit is mainly self-taught with guidance from his father, who he says motivated him to be goal-oriented and never give up.

 “Many people don't take up music professionally because they are afraid that it may never provide them with a stable source of income,” says Nishit. “However, that does not have to be a source of anxiety or fear as long as you have the talent and you know how to live within your means.”Nishit feels that owing to technological and cultural advancements in the recent years, initiatives and venues are promoting many emerging artistes who now have plenty of ways to create their own prospects.

Nishit further opened up about his approach to doing live performances. “An immense sense of thrill comes with playing and hearing the first note of an acoustic instrument like the sitar inside an auditorium full of people,” says Nishit, who performed alongside Arnab Bhattacharya, a young talent, on sarod, and Nilimesh Chakraborty on tabla yesterday at Jatra Biroti in Banani. "I always look for just one person in the crowd who is intrigued by what I am playing – once I have tracked down that person, I do the entire performance keeping them as my focus." Nishit believes that he has miles to go before he can be at par or at least close to the level of international musicians. He aspires to encourage other artistes to take up the forms of music that are native to our culture and nation and take his sitar around the world.