Ashutosh Bhattacharya | |
|---|---|
| Born | 17 March 1917 Benares, Benares State, British India |
| Died | 8 February 2004 (aged 86) Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India |
| Genres | Hindustani classical music |
| Occupation(s) | instrumentalist, music educator |
| Instrument(s) | Tabla |
Ashutosh Bhattacharya (17 March 1917 – 8 February 2004) was a noted Indian classical musician of Hindustani classical music from Varanasi, who was Tabla player and music educator, besides a practicing Ayurvedic doctor.
In 1966, he was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship the highest honour conferred by Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama.[1]
Born in a Bengali family in Varanasi (Benaras), Uttar Pradesh,[2] Bhattacharya grew up in the family of Ayurvedic doctors, where both his father and grandfather practiced Ayurvedic medicine. However, at a young age he showed musical inclination and at age 8 started learning pakhawaj from Pandit Ram Nath Mishra.[3] After a few years of training, he switched to learning tabla from Pandit Kanthe Maharaj, noted tabla player of the Benares gharana, and uncle of Kishan Maharaj.[4][5]
He started performing at the age of 21, when in 1937, he accompanied sarod maestro Allauddin Khan at the music concert in Allahabad.[6] In the coming years, he accompanied leading musicians like, Pt. Ravi Shankar,[7] Ustad Ali Akbar Khan and Ustad Vilayat Khan.[3]
Besides his musical career, he also practiced Ayurvedic medicine at his clinic in Varanasi, and taught students.[3] He died on 9 February 2004 in Varanasi, after a brief illness, at the age of 86. His son, Debabrata Bhattacharya, is a tabla player.[citation needed]