EXCLUSIVE! Anoushka Shankar: Representation from the Indian diaspora in music has been increasing over the years abroad

While most celebrities and artists choose to keep mum on politics and issues around us, Anoushka Shankar is not one to adhere. She chooses music activism to voice her opinions. She recently revisited her 2013 track In her Name to pay tribute to Nirbhaya while on a three-city tour to India. The sitarist also took to Instagram to share a series of stories on how her visit was special - 10 years to her father’s (Pandit Ravi Shankar) passing, 10 years of Nirbhaya and a homecoming after three years. We caught up with her to talk of how art is her release and memories of her growing up years in Delhi.

You are back to India after three years – a lot has happened since then. The covid pandemic changed the world. How has it been after such a long time?

As you say, so much has happened in this time, which is why there’s been such a gap in my returning. It’s been a really big thing to come back after this long gap - to return and perform here, to reconnect with my listeners here, it’s been a really beautiful feeling, performing for people. Also reconnecting with friends and family after what we’ve all been through has been very emotional and very beautiful. So yes, it’s meant a lot to come back and tour over these last two weeks.

You’ve performed in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru – how was the experience?

It’s been wonderful. It is very special playing here. Each show has really special. I feel a reconnection.

What fond memories do you have of India growing up?

My training in music began here during the few years I lived in Delhi. I was 7-10 years old back then. I have really strong vivid memories of living at home with my father but also with all of his disciples as well. There was a kind of Gurukul atmosphere, around music. Even if it wasn’t me, I was hearing him teach other people or I was hearing people practice. So, there was an atmosphere of music throughout the day and even after I moved away from India, we were always coming for several months in the winter for the music season. Coming back to India and the intensity of my music experience were always connected.

You have paid tribute to Nirbhaya with a reimagined version of your 2013 song In Her Name as the horrific incident marks 10 years (on December 16). How do such incidents around the globe inspire you and your music?

Over the years, I have used music increasingly more and more as a vehicle to say things that mean something to me. In this particular situation, I had written a song in response to what happened to her at the time 10 years ago. I have released it now as a new and expanded version with words and more music, not just to mark 10 years, even though that is an important and significant date, but also to question why things don’t seem to have gotten much better in the 10 years since then. There have been and continue to be so many others like her who are subjected to such horrific violence and not just in India but the world. As a woman, that’s something I have a big emotional response to and many women I know do as well. I suppose this song is my emotional response coming out in music.

Are there any pressing issues of today that inspire you to speak up through your art?

That will come out in my music and, and it’s not something I do hugely consciously. Activism outside of music is one thing. There’s the ability to be very direct and to speak, or to sign a form or join a march or, you know, there’s so much that we can do when it comes to music. What works for me, is to be really, really authentic and really emotional about the way I put it in music, because that’s what people have the response to. And that’s where the impact will lie. You know, if I try to be very analytical or clinical in the way I use music for activism, then it can be alienating actually, because people feel like they’re being lectured at when they want to listen to me. But if you connect to their emotion, then it wakes up empathy. And that’s where the impact can happen. So, I don’t, I don’t hugely analyse the way I do that. It either has to come more from a place of feeling and organically.

We often hear remarks like ‘artists must mind their own business, or they must not be too political or raise a voice and speak on issues. But you, on the other hand, have been very vocal that way. In fact, art does have the ability to change mindsets – be it visual arts or music. Do you think artists carry this responsibility to inspire and change mindsets?

It’s not for me to speak about other people. But I think art fulfils a hugely essential and important role in life and in society. Whether it’s being political or not. So just by being an artist and making work, an artist is already doing something hugely of value. So, I wouldn’t dream of saying whether they should be doing more or not by being political, that is down to the choice of each individual and the type of art they make and the way they make art. If we’re artists, we’re also citizens, we’re also people, so that will come out in the way that it needs to in each person’s art.

We see a lot of actors coming from Bollywood taking up international projects but in terms of musicians, we have very few who have done international projects or collaborations. Do you think we need more representation when it comes to music from India, abroad?

I think we have a lot of representation from the diaspora that’s been increasing over the years. I’ve actually been really happy seeing how many people are out there making music across different genres. So, I would say it’s been growing and increasing quite beautifully.

What next album are you working on?

At the moment, I am just enjoying the release of Between Us which came out in the summer and has been nominated for the Grammy. But in the new year, I’ll be starting to work on a new record. So, it’s a really fresh blank slate, and I’ll be working on that through the year. So, I’m very much looking forward to that. But it’s an empty page right now.

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