An erudite musician with a holistic vision                    

By Shailaja Khanna

Born on 13 September 1932, doyen of the Kirana gharana, “Swarayoginee” Prabha Atre cuts a dignified figure. Known for her erudition and novel approach to her music, the Padma Bhushan awardee is soft-spoken and gentle. An author, teacher, scholar—she wears many hats with élan.

Recipient of several accolades – Padma Shri in 1990, the Central Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1991, Padma Bhushan in 2010, and the Central Sangeet Natak Akademi’s Tagore Fellowship in 2011 being the most prominent, vidushi Prabha Atre has been a trailblazer in many ways. Representing the Kirana gharana at a time when the more ebullient style of Bhimsen Joshi of the gharana had caught the public’s imagination, Prabha Atre chose to swim against the popular tide of perception of her gharana.