https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Annapurna_DeviAnnapurna Devi - Revision history2026-07-30T22:54:06ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Annapurna_Devi&diff=114780&oldid=prev>M-Mustapha at 08:20, 17 June 20212021-06-17T08:20:27Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{distinguish|text=Hindu goddess, [[Annapurna (goddess)|Annapoorna]]}}<br />
{{more citations needed|date=October 2018}}<br />
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{{Infobox person<br />
| name = Annapurna Devi<br />
| image =<br />
| caption =<br />
| birth_date = 1927<br />
| birth_name = Roshanara Khan<br />
| birth_place = [[Maihar]], [[Central India Agency]], [[British Raj|British India]]<br />
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2018|10|13|1927}}<br />
| death_place = [[Mumbai]], India<br />
| father = [[Allauddin Khan]]<br />
| spouse = {{Unbulleted list<br />
| {{marriage|[[Ravi Shankar]]|1941|1982|end=div}}<br />
| {{marriage|Rooshikumar Pandya|1982|2013|end=died}}}}<br />
| children = [[Shubhendra Shankar]]<br />
| relatives = [[Ali Akbar Khan]] (brother)<br />
}}<br />
'''Annapurna Devi''' ({{IAST3|Annapūrṇā Devi}}; 1927–13 October 2018) was an Indian [[surbahar]] (bass [[sitar]]) player of [[Hindustani classical music]]. She was given the name 'Annapurna' by former Maharaja Brijnath Singh of the former Maihar Estate (M.P.), and it was by this name that she was popularly known. She was the daughter and disciple of [[Allauddin Khan]], the founder of [[Maihar gharana]], and Madina Bibi and the first wife of the sitar player, [[Ravi Shankar]]. After her separation from Ravi Shankar, she moved to Bombay and never performed again in public. She remained a private person, yet continued to teach music for free. Her students include many notable disciples including [[Hariprasad Chaurasia]], [[Nityanand Haldipur]] and [[Nikhil Banerjee]].<ref name="Vinay">{{cite news |last1=Ram |first1=Vinay Bharat |title=A transcendental music - what I learnt from Annapurna Devi |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/annapurna-devi-musician-death-5415098/ |access-date=24 October 2018 |newspaper=The Indian Express |date=24 October 2018}}</ref><br />
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==Biography==<br />
Annapurna Devi was born on 15 April 1927 [confirmed by Lajo ji] at [[Maihar]], a small princely state of [[British India]] (now a part of [[Madhya Pradesh]], India).{{sfn|OEMI}}{{sfn|Bondyopadhyay|2005|p=22}}{{efn|1=There appears to be considerable confusion on her exact date of birth. In her authorised biography, the author notes that the circumstantial references point to Annapurna being born on the "''[[Chaitra]] [[Purnima (day)|purnima]]'' day of the Bengali year of 1334 (1927)". But he finds no reliable accounts or documented evidence in support of this and chooses not to speculate.{{sfn|Bondyopadhyay|2005|p=22}} Newspaper articles cited here choose to only mention her birth year. One source notes that she was born on 23 April 1927 but provides no basis for this.{{sfn|Lavezzoli|2006|p=52}} According to the traditional [[Panchangam|Hindu calendar]], Chaitra Purnima in 1927 fell on Sunday, 16 April 1927.<ref>{{cite web |title=1927 Chaitra Purnima, Chaitra Pournami date for Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, India |url=http://www.drikpanchang.com/purnima/chaitra/chaitra-purnima-date-time.html?year=1927 |website=www.drikpanchang.com |access-date=13 October 2018 |language=en}}</ref>}} Her father [[Alauddin Khan]] was a royal court musician at the court of Maharaja Brijnath Singh, who named the newborn girl 'Annapurna'.<ref name=exp10>{{cite news |title=Notes from behind a locked door|author=Shuansu Khurana |url=http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/notes-from-behind-a-locked-door/619877/0 |newspaper=The Indian Express|date=16 May 2010 }}</ref><br />
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Her father and guru Alauddin Khan, founder of the "Senia [[Maihar gharana]]" or "Senia Maihar School" of Hindustani classical music, was a noted musician and guru of Indian classical music. Her uncles, [[Fakir Aftabuddin Khan]] and [[Ayet Ali Khan]], were noted musicians at their native place Shibpur, in the present-day Bangladesh. Her brother [[Ali Akbar Khan]] was a legendary [[Sarod]] maestro and was considered a "national living treasure" in India and the USA.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}} Annapurna was initially instructed by her father in the sitar and vocals. She then switched to the surbahar which she played in the traditional style of a [[rudra veena]]. One of her earliest concerts of note was with the surbahar when she played in honour of the Raja of Maihar. She was rewarded with a large tract of land for her performance.{{sfn|OEMI}}<br />
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Annapurna Devi married renowned sitarist, [[Ravi Shankar]], on 15 May 1941 in [[Almora]] and divorced him in October 1982.{{sfn|Bondyopadhyay|2005|loc=Cast}} Between 1946 and 1955, Annapurna appeared on stage with Shankar in a handful of sitar-surbahar duets in [[Delhi]] and Bombay (now [[Mumbai]]).{{sfn|OEMI}} They had a son, [[Shubhendra Shankar]] (1942–1992), who was also a musician.{{sfn|Lindgren|1992}}{{sfn|Bondyopadhyay|2005|loc=Cast}}<br />
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Annapurna married Rooshikumar Pandya in [[Bombay]] on 9 December 1982.{{sfn|Bondyopadhyay|2005|loc=Cast}} Rooshikumar Pandya, who was 42 years old at the time of their marriage, was a well known communication expert and a successful sitarist in the United States. Rooshikumar had been learning sitar from her since 1973 at the recommendation of her brother, Ali Akbar Khan, who was also his guru (as was Ravi Shankar). He died in 2013 suddenly of a cardiac arrest at the age of 73.<ref>https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Every-Note-Annapurna-Devi-Plays-Is-Like-An-Offering-Rooshikumar-Pandya/articleshow/41890785.cms</ref><ref>http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/death-of-a-caregiver/1108875/</ref> Annapurna Devi died of age related issues on 13 October 2018 in Mumbai.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hindustani Classical Musician Annapurna Devi Passes Away at 91 - HeadLines Today |url=https://headlinestoday.org/national/3699/hindustani-classical-musician-annapurna-devi-passes-away-at-91/ |website=headlinestoday.org |access-date=13 October 2018 }}{{Dead link|date=September 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><br />
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==Career==<br />
Annapurna Devi became a very accomplished surbahar (bass sitar) player of the [[Maihar gharana]] (school) within a few years of starting to take music lessons from her father Alauddin Khan. She started guiding many of her father's disciples, including [[Nikhil Banerjee]] and [[Bahadur Khan]], in classical music as well as in the techniques and intricacies of instrumental performances. In 1941, age 14, she married one of her father's talented students, Ravi Shankar. She converted to Hinduism upon marriage.<ref>[http://www.hindu.com/br/2005/06/28/stories/2005062800181400.htm "Unveiling the mystique of a reclusive artiste"], ''[[The Hindu]]'' - 28 June 2005</ref><br />
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In the 1950s, Ravi Shankar and Annapurna Devi performed duets in Delhi and Calcutta, principally at the college of her brother, Ali Akbar Khan. But later, Shankar she decided not to reduce and finally stop performing in public. Her student Vinay Ram says that she was uncomfortable accepting payment for concerts, as it was her belief that it was akin to selling [[Saraswati]] (the Goddess of learning).<ref name="Vinay" /><br />
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Devi and Shankar's son, Shubhendra Shankar, (or "Subho", as he was popularly known) received rigorous training in sitar under her tutelage, until his father chose to interrupt his musical talim or training and took him to the United States. Shubhendra died at an early age, after a marriage and the birth of three children. Shubhendra did not have a solo career in classical music, but did for a period accompany his illustrious father Ravi Shankar in concerts in the USA and abroad. As per one of her students Vinay Ram, a conflict regarding the upbringing and musical teaching of Subho was the main reason for Devi and Shankar's separation, though they continued to remain in touch on amicable terms till the end.<ref name="Vinay" /><br />
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==Teaching==<br />
Annapurna Devi was an acclaimed instructor and one of the first women gurus of note in modern times. Her pupils were not restricted solely to sitar or surbahar players and encompassed various fields in Hindustani classical music.{{efn|1=Many of her students were also students of her brother Ali Akbar Khan and/or Ravi Shankar.}} They included the sitarists Debi Prasad Chatterji, [[Bahadur Khan]] (a cousin), [[Hiren Roy]], Indranil Bhattacharya, Kartik Kumar, and [[Nikhil Banerjee|Nikhil Banerji]], the [[sarod]]ists, Dhyanesh Khan and [[Aashish Khan|Ashis Khan]] (sons of Ali Akbar), Basant Kabra,Pradeep Barot and Suresh Vyas, the [[bansuri]] players, [[Hariprasad Chaurasia]] and [[Nityanand Haldipur]], the [[dilruba]] artist Dakshina Mohan Tagore, and the [[violinist]] Satyadev Pawar.{{sfn|OEMI}}<br />
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She was also the key figure of Acharya Alauddin Music Circle (an association in the memory of the late Alauddin Khan for promoting Indian classical music), in [[Mumbai]].{{citation needed|date=October 2018}}<br />
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==Honours==<br />
* 1977, she received the [[Padma Bhushan]] (India's third highest civilian honour).<ref name="Padma Awards">{{cite web|url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |title=Padma Awards |publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India |date=2015 |access-date=21 July 2015 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015193758/http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |archive-date=15 October 2015}}</ref><br />
* 1991, she received the [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]] (the highest Indian honour in performing arts).{{sfn|Dalal|2017}} She is the only surbahar player to be so honoured.{{sfn|OEMI}}<br />
* 1999, the Desikottama, an honorary doctorate degree by [[Visva-Bharati University]].{{sfn|Dalal|2017}}<br />
* In 2004, she was made a [[fellow]] of the [[Sangeet Natak Akademi]].{{sfn|Dalal|2017}}<br />
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==Notes==<br />
{{notelist}}<br />
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==References==<br />
{{reflist}}<br />
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==Sources==<br />
* {{cite book |last1=Bondyopadhyay |first1=Swapan Kumar |title=Annapurna Devi: An Unheard Melody |date=2005 |publisher=Roli Books Private Limited |isbn=9788174368553 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R6lyBAAAQBAJ |language=en}}<br />
* {{cite book |title=Annapūrṇā Devi, The Oxford Encyclopaedia of the Music of India |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780195650983 |url=http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195650983.001.0001/acref-9780195650983-e-0333 |access-date=13 October 2018 |ref={{harvid|OEMI}} |language=en |url-access=subscription }}<br />
* {{cite book |last1=Dalal |first1=Roshen |author-link1=Roshen Dalal |title=India at 70: snapshots since Independence |date=2017 |publisher=Penguin Random House India Private Limited |isbn=9789386815378 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JYswDwAAQBAJ | page=286 |language=en}}<br />
* {{cite book |last1=Lavezzoli |first1=Peter |title=The Dawn of Indian Music in the West |date=2006 |publisher=A&C Black |isbn=9780826418159 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OSZKCXtx-wEC |language=en}}<br />
* {{cite news |last1=Lindgren |first1=Kristina |title=Shubho Shankar Dies After Long Illness at 50 |url=http://articles.latimes.com/1992-09-21/entertainment/ca-781_1_shubho-shankar |access-date=18 October 2018 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=21 September 1992 }}<br />
* {{note|hindu}}''[http://www.hindu.com/br/2005/06/28/stories/2005062800181400.htm Unveiling the Mystique of a Reclusive Artiste]'', Jaya Ramanathan, [[The Hindu]], 28 June 2005.<br />
* {{cite news |title=Notes from behind a locked door (A rare interview)|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/notes-from-behind-a-locked-door/619877/0 |newspaper=The Indian Express|date=16 May 2010 }}<br />
* {{cite news |title=Raviji never left her|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2008-08-27/news-interviews/27948020_1_bhairavi-intensive-care-pandit-ravi-shankar |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130126045218/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2008-08-27/news-interviews/27948020_1_bhairavi-intensive-care-pandit-ravi-shankar |url-status=dead |work=[[The Times of India]]|archive-date=2013-01-26 }}<br />
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==External links==<br />
* {{cite magazine |title=Annapurna Devi and Ravi Shankar: The tragedy of a relationship|url=https://www.mansworldindia.com/fresh/annapurna-devi-the-tragedy-and-triumph-of-ravi-shankars-first-wife/|date=September 2000 |magazine=Man's World |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121216015655/http://mansworldindia.com/blog/?p=3030|archive-date=16 December 2012}}<br />
* [http://www.parrikar.org/vpl/?page_id=72 Annapurna Devi's music, Source: The Vijaya Parrikar Library of Indian Classical Music]<br />
* [http://www.kamat.com/database/articles/annapurna_devi.htm Annapurna Devi] by Mohan Nadkarni<br />
* http://www.bigbridge.org/BB15/2011_BB_15_FEATURES/Annapurna_Devi/APD.pdf by Louise Landes Levi<br />
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{{PadmaBhushanAwardRecipients 1970–79}}<br />
{{SangeetNatakAkademiFellowship}}<br />
{{Ravi Shankar}}<br />
{{Shankar family}}<br />
{{Authority control}}<br />
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Devi, Annapurna}}<br />
[[Category:1927 births]]<br />
[[Category:2018 deaths]]<br />
[[Category:Bengali musicians]]<br />
[[Category:Converts to Hinduism from Islam]]<br />
[[Category:Hindustani instrumentalists]]<br />
[[Category:Indian Hindus]]<br />
[[Category:Maihar gharana]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts]]<br />
[[Category:Musicians from Madhya Pradesh]]<br />
[[Category:Pupils of Allauddin Khan]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship]]<br />
[[Category:Indian music educators]]<br />
[[Category:Women educators from Madhya Pradesh]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian educators]]<br />
[[Category:Indian women classical musicians]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian musicians]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century Indian women musicians]]<br />
[[Category:Women musicians from Madhya Pradesh]]<br />
[[Category:Educators from Madhya Pradesh]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century women singers]]<br />
[[Category:Women music educators]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century women educators]]<br />
[[Category:People from Satna district]]</div>>M-Mustapha