On May 10, legendary musician and santoor player Pandit Shivkumar Sharma died of a cardiac arrest. He was 84 years old.
Pandit Shivkumar Sharma has hardly left his home in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic over the last two years. He was, however, occasionally seen at events. For the past six months, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma had been suffering from kidney problems. He was also undergoing dialysis. His funeral will take place tonight.
Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, a Jammu native, began learning santoor at the age of thirteen. In 1955, he gave his first public performance in Mumbai. He is credited with making the santoor popular.
In the 1956 film Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma composed the background music for one of the scenes. Pandit Shivkumar Sharma recorded his first solo album four years later.
In 1967, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia, and guitarist Brij Bhushan Kabra collaborated on the critically acclaimed concept album Call of the Valley.
Pandit Shivkumar Sharma collaborated with Hariprasad Chaurasia on the music for several Hindi films, including Silsila, Chandni, and Darr.
