Classical Indian music innovator Salil Bhatt, son of renowned Mohan Veena player Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, recently explained to the Times of India thoughts on his cultural roots in Andhra Pradesh, in the Telangana region of India. A recent Juno Award nominee in Canada with his album, 'Slide to Freedom 2,' recorded alongside blues player Doug Cox, Bhatt was dismayed by how little attention he received in his ancestral land."When my Slide to Freedom 2 was nominated for the prestigious Juno Awards (popularly known as the Canadian Grammy), no one here seemed to think it was important," he said. "On the other hand, worldwide I did around 120 interviews. Our album was recorded in Ashcroft near Vancouver by renowned recordist Miles Wilkinson and we got a 4 star rating."
Like his father, Salil created his own instrument, the Satvik Veena, which crosses the traditional Indian veena with a steel lap guitar. He seemed slightly disconcerted about his homeland, stating that "except for Bollywood and cricket, nothing else matters in the country."
And yet Bhatt as accepted the mainstream somewhat, especially when talking about his son's musical ability and tastes. "I'm moved to tears when he plays Elton's numbers, he puts his heart and soul into it," he said, regarding his 12-year-old son's playing Elton John on his synthesizer, as well as Celine Dion, alongside the more traditional sounds of Beethoven and Mozart.
Watch a video of Salil and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt playing with Doug Cox after the jump.
