Anoushka Shankar: An Unstoppable Force

The six-time Grammy nominated sitarist details her new EP ‘Love Letters,’ understanding what it means to be a woman and honoring her late father Pandit Ravi Shankar on his 100th birth anniversary

- Riddhi Chakraborty

EVERY MINUTE spent speaking with Anoushka Shankar is a learning experience. Most of the time it’s you who discovers something new about life from her and sometimes it’s the other way around and she’ll like something you’ve pointed out. Subject matter oscillates from research papers about unfair representation to lamenting the shitty almond milk that ruins one’s chai. I realize that it kind of hits the same way seeing her onstage does: pretty damn unforgettable.

It’s a crisp February morning when we meet the six time Grammy-nominated sitar player in Mumbai at her hotel. She is on the India leg of a world tour to promote her latest EP Love Letters and is set to play in Mumbai and New Delhi the same week.

Shankar strides into the conference room we’re meeting in with a bright smile and an even brighter fuschia jacket, her grip firm as she shakes our hands and gets seated. She orders a cup of tea but wrinkles her nose after taking a sip. “I swear I’m having the worst tea since I got here like... wow,” she explains with a grimace, blaming the aforementioned shitty almond milk. She pretends to gag for added effect, sending our team (and hers) into peals of laughter; she’s hilarious in the most unexpected ways, with a razor sharp sense of wit that’s immediately charming.