Harmony in Words

Catching up with Aparna Sridhar, an editor who is bringing classical music to the forefront

- Anubha George

Aparna Sridhar is the editor and CEO of the niche magazine, Saamagaana – The First Melody, India's leading monthly on Indian classical music. The USP, though, is that the country's leading classical music artists either write, or are happy to be featured -- be it Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, the world renowned Sarod master, or Pandit Shiv Sharma, the santoor maestro. Related to the celebrated composer Thyagaraja, Aparna has music in her blood and is also an avid sports person. I recently caught up with Aparna Sridhar at her office in Bengaluru. We talked about journalism in general and music writing in particular, about life- work balance and if women can really have it all.

Tell us a bit about your journey as a journalist. 

While I trained and studied journalism, I wasn't sure that I was cut out to be a career journalist. I used to believe that journalism requires a person to be outgoing, social, good at networking and constantly in touch with people. But my two years at the helm of a classical music magazine, has taught me that journalism is not just about being there all the time, it's also about introspection, sensitivity to people, dedication to writing and being totally unbiased. 

For a while I worked as an education counsellor as I didn't like the lifestyle that comes along with journalism. Late hours, sometimes unprofessional attitudes, and the general apathy that prevails in today's journalism put me off working in a daily newspaper or magazine. But writing about music is totally different. It requires an immersion and a passion, and a little disengagement with the mundane. It is definitely more fulfilling personally, than covering routine stories.

How did Saamagaana come about?