Pandit Mani Prasad (4 November 1932 - 13 January 2023) was an

Indian classical Indian classical music is the classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It is generally described using terms like ''Shastriya Sangeet'' and ''Marg Sangeet''. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as '' Hindusta ...

vocalist from the

Kirana gharana The Kirana Gharana is a Hindustani music apprenticeship tradition (''gharana'') made popular by Bande Ali Khan in the 19th Century and his cousins Abdul Karim Khan and Abdul Wahid Khan. Evolved from the instrumental and vocal Gauharbani dhru ...

(singing style).

Early life and training

Mani Prasad was born into a family of musicians. His father, Sukhdev Prasad, had received music training from

Abdul Karim Khan Ustad Abdul Karim Khan (Devanagari: उस्ताद अब्दुल करीम ख़ान, Persian: ) (11 November 1872 – 27 October 1937)Abdul Wahid Khan Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan (1871–1949) was an Indian subcontinental singer from the Kirana gharana. He died in 1949 in Saharanpur, India.

, the founders of the Kirana gharana. Mani Prasad accompanied his father on all his tours and performances across the country from an early age. He moved from Wardha in Maharashtra to

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

in his youth along with his father. He was trained mostly by his father but was also guided by his grandfather Pandit Shakti Lal and by his uncles Pandit Shankar Lal and Pandit Gopal Prasad.

Musical career

Pandit Mani Prasad started his career early, being brought up in a musical family. He is ranked as a Top Grade 'A class' artist by the

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

and is a well recognised television artist with the

Doordarshan Doordarshan (), abbreviated as DD, is India's State-owned enterprise, state-owned public broadcasting, public television broadcaster. Established by the Government of India on 15 September 1959, it is owned by the Ministry of Information and B ...

. He has not only created some new

raga A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, fro ...

s but also composed many

bandish Bandish, cheez or gat is a fixed, melodic composition in Hindustani vocal or instrumental music. It is set in a specific raga, performed with rhythmic accompaniment by a tabla or pakhawaj, a steady drone, and melodic accompaniment by a sarangi, ...

es in existing ragas with the mudra ''Dhyan Rang Piya''. The new ragas include Dhyan Kalyan, Dhyani Todi, Shivkauns and Bhoopeshwari. Among his students are Maharaja

Ranjitsinh Pratapsinh Gaekwad Ranjitsinhrao Gaekwad (8 May 1938 – 10 May 2012) was an Indian politician. Early life and education Born 8 May 1938 at Ootacamund, Ranjitsinhrao Gaekwad was the second son of Maharaja Pratap Singh Rao Gaekwad (r. 1939–1951), and Maharani Sh ...

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city is named for its abundance of banyan ...

, Savita Devi Maharaj (daughter of thumri singer

Siddheshwari Devi Siddheswari Devi (8 August 1908 – 18 March 1977) was a legendary Hindustani singer from Varanasi, India, known as ''Maa'' (mother). Her music embodied the Banaras Gharana style, which focuses on conveying deep emotions and feelings through mu ...

), Rita Ganguly, Ramesh Jule, Ravi Jule, Pt. Vishwanath, Uma Garg,

Surinder Kaur Surinder Kaur (25 November 1929 – 14 June 2006) was an Indian singer and songwriter. While she mainly sang Folk music of Punjab, Punjabi folk songs, where she is credited for pioneering and popularising the genre, Kaur also recorded songs as ...

, and

Chandan Dass Chandan Dass (born 12 March 1956) is a popular Indian ghazal singer. Early life and training Chandan Dass began singing ghazals from the age of eight, when he started training under the tutelage of Ustad Moosa Khan. He was also trained in cla ...

. In recent years, he served as the Guru at the Dr.

Gangubai Hangal Gangubai Hangal (05 March 1913 – 21 July 2009) was an Indian singer of the '' khayal'' genre of Hindustani classical music from Karnataka, who was known for her deep and powerful voice. Hangal belonged to the Kirana gharana. She was a ...

Gurukul in Hubli,

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

where he was invited by the Government of Karnataka.

Discography

* Pt. Mani Prasad, A Concert Series by Swarashree Enterprises, CBS * Pt. Mani Prasad, MIDAS * Pt. Mani Prasad, Swaranjali * Dhyan Rang Piya, MIDAS * Love Bandish Bliss, Times Music

Honours and awards

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IAST: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama. It is the highest Indian recogni ...

in 2019 *

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

* Swarmani Award * Raseshwar Award given by Sur Singar Samsad of Mumbai * Baba

Allaudin Khan Ustad Allauddin Khan (8 October 1862 – 6 September 1972), was a Bengali sarod player and multi-instrumentalist, composer and one of the most notable music teachers of the 20th century in Indian classical music. For a generation many of his stu ...

Award * Srimati

Award * Ustad Faiyyaz Khan - Ustad Niaz Khan Memorial Award * Swar Sadhana Ratna * Sangeet Martand Samman * Sangeet Kala Ratna * Felicitation by Raagranjini * Pandit mallikarjun award

Gallery

File:PT.MP6.JPG, File:PT.MP5.jpg, File:Vid 2.JPG, File:PT.MP3.jpg, File:PT.MP2.jpg, File:PT.MP1.jpg, File:Pandit Mani Prasad 2.jpg, File:Pandit Mani Prasad 3.jpg,

Personal life

Pandit Mani Prasad died on 13 January 2023 in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prasad, Mani 1929 births 2023 deaths Hindustani singers 20th-century Indian male classical singers Kirana gharana People from Wardha district 20th-century Khyal singers Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award