There are very few artistes under the sky whose name is synonymous with his creation. And Indian slide guitar specialist Pandit Vishnu Mohan Bhatt is one of them. Pronounced in the same breath, his invention finds a precious place as his middle name. Incidentally, Mohan Veena still continues to rule the realm of Hindustani classical music along with its stringed cousins for the past 20 years now.

It first hit the headlines after the sexagenarian maestro won a prestigious Grammy Award in 1994 for his soul-stirring album, A Meeting by the River, with world-renowned American guitarist, singer and composer Ry Cooder. The accolade was a cherishing global glory, most coveted by any musician on the earth. And from India’s perspective, it was indeed a place of pride and an occasion to celebrate with full vigour.
What this down-to-earth Padmashri awardee had envisioned decades ago, is being followed by today’s youngsters. They are more than keen to tweak, reshape and redesign their conventional instruments to find a new sound of beat and expression in the process. The redefined gizmos are touted as sheer blockbusters in the durbaars of current-day listeners with a discerning ear for sangeet-samajhdaari. “I had taken the body of a guitar to reassess my traditional veena. And it did bring in the intended effect. The sound-pattern changed and so were a few good technical nuances that evolved at regular intervals. It grew, altered and developed into a new-age instrument,” the artiste says modestly. Be it Niladri Kumar’s Zitar, which is a sitar converted into a guitar or Purbayan Chatterjee’s Dwo, the doppelganger of his age-old sitar or sarod exponent Pratyush Banerjee’s transformed Jyotidhwani — a stringed instrument bearing his signature touch — all carry a testimony to this modern era’s fusionistic offshoots from their parent tradition. “They are bringing name, fame as well as glamour to this fraternity and are destined to go places,” he appreciates the next-gen players.
Having scored some beautiful music for the movie The Desire — Journey of a Woman starring actress Shilpa Shetty, the Mohan Veena virtuoso tells us that this upcoming Indo-Chinese international feature film, reeled by director R. Sarath, has been already garnering critical acclaim all over the festival circuit. It has picked up a reward of excellence for outstanding music compilation from the recently held movie-fest in New Jersey, early this year. “I’ve coordinated with my younger son (composer) Saurabh Bhatt on this celluloid venture. You see, I’m more present with my name than in practice for this film, as it is Saurabh’s baby. I’ve only lent him my moral support,” he says.
The much-delayed movie delves into dance, music, art, culture and a gamut of human emotions, and traces the journey of an Indian classical dancer Goutami and her ensuing love with a Chinese artist Jai Leang, whom she meets on a travel assignment.
But how has it been to exchange notes with young blood? The Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardee explains, “Well, music is timeless and ageless. Its variety knows no bounds. But everything is neatly tied up to the tune of seven notes. So no matter how far you scale up and down the rhythmscape, you are bound to return to your original roots of saptasur. So the generation gap between my sons (Salil and Sourabh) or my grandson (child prodigy Satvik) and me is well bridged by an evergreen, eternal link of music.”
It is bewildering to note how a music genius, even at this ripe age, trots the globe tirelessly for his solo shows. “I’ve just flown in from Muscat after a recital. Before that, I was travelling for my concert tours, covering seven countries of Europe from Holland, Belgium to Hungary and Spain. This is a routine schedule for any creative instrumentalist. And honestly, for us, our youth begins at a period when we cross 50. I enjoy playing more at this seasoned age,” he confesses candidly.
One who is so inspirational to an entire generation can certainly enchant like the Pied Piper of Hamelin with his slide guitar. From folk artiste Harry Manx, the bassist of the famous American alternative rock band Counting Crow Matt Malley, to the great Australian musician Lawrie Minson, all have at some stage in their lives been a devoted disciple to Guru Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and have learnt the art of playing the Mohan Veena under his admirable auspices.
Lauding the efforts of talent hunts, searching for new singers, dancers and musicians and tapping raw talents from various corners of the country, the master musician raves, “Thanks to reality shows and the accessibility of the Internet, youngsters are coming forward in huge numbers for knowledge about music and its different genres. Plus, they are visibly agog about their rich cultural heritage. This speaks volumes for their integrity and dedication towards the national treasures. I must admit that these new trend-setting programmes have signalled the advent of a golden era in the musical sphere. Ideally, our forefathers’ legacy should be passed down to the future generation to preserve it for posterity.”
Last week, Panditji paid a whirlwind visit to Kolkata for recording an untitled album with tabla expert, Prodyut Mukherjee, under the reputed stable of Bihaan Music production. Recorded at Spandan studio, the album’s playlist will comprise a string of raagas like the sweet-melody Ramkali, usually played early morning like the more common Bhairav, thus spelling out a devotional mood. Besides, a Sufi qalaam, a romantic dhun in Kaushik Dhwani embellished with a Shringar ras (amorous emotion) and a five-minute bandish in Desh will be added to the album. “The CD will consist of three or four compositions in total. This is my first attempt to sing in a musical project. In the Sufi song, the word Saiyyan has been elaborated at length in a lighter form,” he divulges.
His short trip to Kolkata also included his tryst with a select circle of music lovers who gathered at a soiree hosted in Barrackpore, a popular sub-division town in the North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal. “I liked playing there. Moreover, Rashidbhai (eminent classical vocalist Ustad Rashid Khan) was also present at the venue. And much to our delight, he gifted us a mesmerising mehfil with encores at the behest of a judicious audience,” he acknowledges before signing off. A bonafide artiste always keeps the bonhomie alive!