Raga Kiravani

Homage To Our Guru – Jugalbandi Duet For Sitar & Sarod is a collaborative studio album by sitarist Indraneel Bhattacharya and sarod player Aashish Khan. The label Chhanda Dhara released the recording on CD in 1994.

The album features a jugalbandi (duet) format that blends the North Indian classical traditions of the sitar and sarod. The second track, Raga Kiravani, spans 31 minutes and 40 seconds. The composition adheres to the structural and improvisational conventions of the Kiravani raga, a melodic framework associated with both contemplative and expansive interpretations in Hindustani classical music.

Indraneel Bhattacharya performs on the sitar, employing the instrument’s resonant strings and meend (glissando) techniques characteristic of the Etawah gharana style. Aashish Khan contributes sarod passages marked by the instrument’s deep, percussive timbre and the Senia-Maihar gharana’s emphasis on rhythmic precision and melodic intricacy. The duo’s interplay reflects the guru-shishya parampara (teacher-disciple tradition), with both artists acknowledging their shared lineage under the same mentor in the album’s title and conceptual framing.

The recording captures a live-studio aesthetic, preserving the spontaneous interaction between the two lead instruments. Accompaniment details remain undocumented in available sources, though jugalbandi performances of this era typically included tabla and tanpura support. The album’s production prioritizes acoustic clarity, allowing the distinct timbral qualities of the sitar and sarod to contrast without electronic augmentation.

Homage To Our Guru exemplifies the 1990s revival of instrumental duets in Indian classical music, emphasizing technical virtuosity and raga exploration over fusion experiments. The release date and label association position it within Chhanda Dhara’s catalog of traditional Hindustani recordings, though specific sales figures, critical reception, or subsequent reissues are not publicly verified.