Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain won 3 Grammys at the recently concluded 66th edition of the music awards. He has been nominated seven times so far and his wins at one of the biggest international stages have been cherished by Indians. The maestro spoke to the media recently and talked about the reach of Hindustani classical music internationally and its widespread appeal. 

 

Zakir talks about Hindustani classical music's international appeal

Speaking to the media, Zakir, fresh off his Grammy wins, spoke candidly about the love and admiration that Hindustani classical music has been receiving through the years. He said that Bollywood music has just started to come up in the international arena but classical music is right yup there in the ranks with western jazz, pop and rock music.  

He said, "Purbayan Chatterjee and Niladri Kumar do 60-70 shows in a year. If you will search on the internet you will come to know how much people listen to Hindustani classical music. Our music at this time is world's most premium music, like Western classical, jazz, rock and pop. Hindustani classical music is one of the world's most popular music forms. Bollywood has started to come up now in the world. When a Bollywood program happens in internationally, Indians gather to listen to it. In the US, when a Hindustani classical concert happens, even Americans show up. I would encourage you all to see how much fame and glory our classical music artists have attained."  

Hussain's terrific run at 66th Grammys

At this Grammys, which were held in Los Angeles, Hussain earned his first honour in the best global music album category for This Moment as part of the fusion music group Shakti, which includes founding member, British guitarist John McLaughlin, vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan and percussionist Selvaganesh Vinayakram.

He won two other awards for the Best Global Music performance for Pashto and Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for As We Speak, along with flautist Rakesh Chaurasia, American banjo player Bela Fleck and American bassist Edgar Meyer.