Ravi Shankar Biography - Birth date, Achievements, Career, Family, Awards

Pandit Ravi Shankar was born on 07 April 1920 in Benares (now Varanasi) Uttar Pradesh. His father's name was Shyam Shankar Chaudhary and mother's name was Hemangini Devi. His father was a respected politician, lawyer and politician. He had five siblings, Uday Shankar, elder brother of Pandit Ravi Shankar who became a famous choreographer and dancer, besides his brothers were Rajendra, Devendra and Bhupendra.

Pandit Ravi Shankar suffered a heart attack in Chicago in November 1974 and his health weakened, but later recovered his body but died on 11 December 2012 (age 92) in San Diego, California, United States.

Ravi Shankar ji enrolled at Sundarlal Pathshala in Sagar at the age of 4 years. In the British Raj, this school was one of the six schools located in CP. At the age of 8 years from this school, your primary initiation was completed. After the completion of secondary initiation, Pandit Jagannath Shukla moved to Rajnandgaon and along with his brother Pandit Gajadhar Shukla became involved in running the Bengal Nagpur Cotton Mill. After running the mill for some years, he moved to Raipur. During this time Ravi Shankar Ji completed his school initiation from Raipuay High School. He was now 17 years old. He passed Inter examination from Robertson College, Jabalpur. He completed his graduation from Hislop College, Nagpur.

Pandit Ravi Shankar abandoned his dance career in 1938 to move to Maihar and study Indian classical music as Khan's effigy, living with his family in the traditional Gurukul system. Shankar began performing in public on Sitar in December 1939 and his first performance was a jugalbandi (duet) with Ali Akbar Khan, who played the stringed instrument Sarod. Shankar completed his training in 1944. After which he moved to Mumbai and joined the Indian People's Theater Association, for which he composed music for ballet in 1945 and 1946. Shankar reprized the music for the popular song "" Saare Jahan Se Achcha "at the age of 25. He began recording music for HMV India and worked as a music director for All India Radio (AIR), New Delhi from February 1949 to January 1956. Shankar founded and composed the Indian National Orchestra at AIR; In his compositions he combined Western and classical Indian instruments. In the mid-1950s he composed music for the Apu trilogy by Satyajit Ray, which was internationally acclaimed.

V.K., Director of Delhi AIR Narayan Menon introduced the Western violinist Yehudi Meinin to Shankar during Meenu's first visit to India in 1952. Shankar performed as a part of a cultural delegation in the Soviet Union in 1954 and in 1955 was invited by Menshine to perform in New York City to perform Indian classical music sponsored by the Ford Foundation. He played to a small audience and educated him about Indian music, included ragas from South Indian Carnatic music in his performances, and recorded his first LP album Three Ragas in London in 1956. In 1958, Shankar attended the 10th anniversary of the United Nations and the UNESCO Music Festival in Paris. From 1961, he toured Europe, the United States and Australia and became the first Indian to compose music for non-Indian films. Shankar founded the Kinra School of Music in Mumbai in 1962. Shankar befriended Richard Bock, founder of World Pacific Records, on his first US tour and recorded most of his albums for Bock's label in the 1950s and 1960s. The Birds recorded in the same studio and listened to Shankar's music, which prompted him to incorporate some of his elements into himself, who introduced the genre to his friend George Harrison of the Beatles. In 1967, Shankar gave a good performance at the Monterey Pop Festival.

V.K., Director of Delhi AIR Narayan Menon introduced the Western violinist Yehudi Meinin to Shankar during Meenu's first visit to India in 1952. Shankar performed as a part of a cultural delegation in the Soviet Union in 1954 and in 1955 was invited by Menshine to perform in New York City to perform Indian classical music sponsored by the Ford Foundation. He played to a small audience and educated him about Indian music, included ragas from South Indian Carnatic music in his performances, and recorded his first LP album Three Ragas in London in 1956. In 1958, Shankar attended the 10th anniversary of the United Nations and the UNESCO Music Festival in Paris. From 1961, he toured Europe, the United States and Australia and became the first Indian to compose music for non-Indian films. Shankar founded the Kinra School of Music in Mumbai in 1962. Shankar befriended Richard Bock, founder of World Pacific Records, on his first US tour and recorded most of his albums for Bock's label in the 1950s and 1960s. The Birds recorded in the same studio and listened to Shankar's music, which prompted him to incorporate some of his elements into himself, who introduced the genre to his friend George Harrison of the Beatles. In 1967, Shankar gave a good performance at the Monterey Pop Festival.