Pandit Nandan Mehta (26 February 1942 – 26 March 2010) was an Indian

tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

player and music teacher from

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ), also spelled Amdavad (), is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 ...

who belonged to the

Benaras Gharana Benares gharānā (Hindi: बनारस घराना) is one of the six most common styles of playing of the Indian tabla. History The Benares tabla gharana was developed a little over 200 years ago by Pandit Ram Sahai (1780–1826). At ...

Hindustani classical music Hindustani classical music is the Indian classical music, classical music of the Indian subcontinent's northern regions. It may also be called North Indian classical music or ''Uttar Bhartiya shastriya sangeet''. The term ''shastriya sangeet'' ...

. He established

Saptak School of Music Saptak means "gamut" or "the series of seven notes". It denotes the set of swaras i.e. Shadja (Sa), Rishabha (Ri), Gāndhāra (Ga), Madhyama (Ma), Panchama (Pa), Dhaivat (Dha), Nishada (Ni), Shadja (Sa) which comprise a musical scale in Indi ...

and started

Saptak Annual Festival of Music The Saptak Annual Festival of Music is an annual thirteen-day Indian classical music festival held in Ahmedabad, India. It is organised by Saptak School of Music and takes place January first to the thirteenth every year, and is attended by hu ...

in 1980.

Early life

Pandit Nandan Mehta was born on 26 February 1942 to Yashodhar Mehta, a writer and lawyer, and Vasumati, a painter and daughter of Sir Chinubhai Baronet. His grandfather Narmadashanker Mehta was a reputed

Vedanta ''Vedanta'' (; , ), also known as ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six orthodox (Āstika and nāstika, ''āstika'') traditions of Hindu philosophy and textual exegesis. The word ''Vedanta'' means 'conclusion of the Vedas', and encompa ...

scholar. He was trained under

Kishan Maharaj Pandit Kishan Maharaj (3 September 1923 – 4 May 2008) was an Indian tabla player who belonged to the Benares gharana of Hindustani classical music. Early life and background Maharaj was born to a Brahmin family of hereditary musicians in Kab ...

and was a

exponent of the Banaras Gharana. He introduced Banaras Gharana to Gujarat.

Musical career

He was a Senior A Grade artist of

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

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 ...

. His performances won him acclaim. He performed extensively across the country and participated in the AIR National Programmes as well as the Akashvani Sangeet Sammelan. He also served to AIR on their Staff Selection Committee, Ahmedabad and also served on their Music Audition Board. He established

and started

in 1980.

Death

Nandan Mehta succumbed to oral cancer on 26 March 2010. His wife, Manju Mehta is a sitar player and his two daughters, Poorvi Mehta, a sitar player and Hetal Mehta, a tabla player. The gallery dedicated to his life and the

was opened in Ahmedabad in 2012.

Recognition

He was honoured by

Pandit Jasraj Pandit Jasraj (28 January 1930 – 17 August 2020) was an Indian classical vocalist, belonging to the ''Mewati gharana'' (musical apprenticeship lineage). His musical career spanned 75 years resulting in national and international fame, ...

twice (1997 and 2002) on behalf of the Mewati Gharana and was conferred the title of 'Tal Rasik Var'. "Sankalp" central body at Kurukshetra conferred on him the title of 'Sangeet Rushi' in the year 1996. Kumar Club Shastriya Group Ahmedabad also honoured him for rendering outstanding services to the field of classical music. He has been awarded the prestigious 'Gaurav Puraskar' by the Gujarat Sangeet Natak Academy for his outstanding contribution in the field of music in the year 1988. He was also honoured on 'Vishwa Rang – Bhoomi day' for his contribution in the field of music in

Vadodara 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 ...

, and by the Medical Association in Ahmedabad. Swar Sadhana Samiti, Mumbai, awarded him 'Swar Sadhana Ratna' in the year 2004. He was also honoured by 'Kala Gurjari' Bhavnagar, Sangeet Kala Niketan, Jaipur. He was also honored by Madhuvan, Bhopal for his contribution in the field of music in the year 2005. He was conferred the title 'Shreshth kala Acharya'. Dr.H.L.Trivedi, Director, Kidney Institute has also honoured him for rendering outstanding services in the field of Classical music and conferred the title 'Bhagwan Mahavir Karuna Sewa Sanman' in 2007. He was awarded "Sangeet Ratna Chudamani" by Divya Jivan Sangh Shivanand Ashram Ahmedabad in 2008 by Naval Kishore Sharma, Governor of Gujarat. He was awarded

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 2007.

References

External links

Saptak
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehta, Nandan 1942 births 2010 deaths Musicians from Ahmedabad Tabla players Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award 20th-century Indian male classical singers