TABLA TALES

Indian Classical Music has crossed the oceans to reach far-off shores. And many Indian musicians are ensuring this journey. Tanmay Bichu is an accomplished tabla player known for his work in Indian Classical and World Music across India and the US.

- Sna Sarfare

2024 saw him charm listeners with his tabla performances in major events including a sold-out kathak performance with Smt. Shambhavi Dandekar, a collaboration with Pt. Raghunandan Panshikar in Pune, the Ustad Ali Akbar Khan Tribute concert in San Francisco, and the Ashavari Festival in California. He recently performed at the prestigious BMM Convention in the San Francisco Bay Area with names like Vidushi Ashwini Bhide Deshpande and Pandit Sanjeev Abhyankar. He will also be part of the 'Melodic Science' and 'Mystic Healing through the Vedas' concerts. Tanmay also has a Master's degree in Electrical Engineering from Georgia Tech and is a research engineer at Apple in the Bay Area.

Excerpts from the interview:

You performed at the prestigious BMM Convention in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The BMM Convention happened in the San Francisco Bay Area after 25 years. I have been an active member of the Indian cultural activities in the Bay Area since I moved here in 2016. The San Francisco Bay Area was selected to host the 2024 convention in 2022 and the planning began soon after. As soon as the dates for the Convention were finalized, the organizing committee reached out to me to block my dates since they anticipated my participation in multiple concerts that would happen. For the performance with Vidushi Ashwini Bhide Deshpande and Pandit Sanjeev Abhyankar specifically, I have been a big fan of both of them growing up. My dad also had all their cassettes and CDs which I grew up listening to.