Biography of Pt. Ravi Shankar

Born: 7 April 1920, Varanasi

Died: 11 December 2012, La Jolla, California, United States

Recipient of the prestigious Bharat Ratna Award, Pt. Ravi Shankar is perhaps the most well-known Indian musician World Wide. For a number of decades now, he has been the Cultural Ambassador of India.

Ravi Shankar was born in 1920 into a rich family. He was tutored by the founder of the 'Maihar Gharana', Baba Alauddin Khan. He collaborated with Ustad Ali Akbar Khan and Ustad Alla Rakha to introduce Indian music to the west in the 1960s. He achieved much success and fame in the west. Later he collaborated with many western musicians including George Harrison of the Beatles, Yehudi Menuhin, and Philip Glasse. He also scored music for many films including Satyajit Ray's classic film ‘Pather Panchali’.

Pt. Ravi Shankar is also the proud father of Norah Jones, the recipient of several 2003 Grammy awards. He is now working on completing the Ravi Shankar Institute for Music and Performing Arts, Delhi, through which he hopes to impart his vast knowledge to students.