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Amjad Ali in Chennai

As I read through the interesting article on sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan in the July issue of Sruti, I was reminded of his scintillating performance for the Music Academy, probably in the late 1960s or early 1970s to a packed hall. On that evening, I vividly remember the artist being led to the dais by my father Dr. V. Raghavan (then the secretary), to thunderous applause. The artist mesmerised the rasikas with his handsome, charismatic appearance and exquisite artistry. Before the start of the programme, my father gave a brief welcome speech, in response to which the sarod exponent not only expressed his great joy at performing for the august organisation but also expressed his deep admiration and respect for Dr. Raghavan. That was a touching moment.

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