Monika's spellbinding performance of classical music

Monika Sharma performing at Visharad event

CHICAGO: Monika Sharma, a student of Sadhana School of Hindustani Music (USA), gave a scintillating performance of classical Indian music at the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago auditorium in Lemont, a south side Chicago suburb.

The program was titled "Swar Sadhana" which is to meditate upon a single musical note-the "Swar" which is 'Brahman'. Well over two hundred attendees enjoyed Monika's performance of Raags and Bhajans.  She was accompanied by Dharminder Singh on tabla and Kamelsh Desai on keyboard.

The performance which lasted for over 90 minutes was a cultural journey back to India for many while providing an affirmation that classical Indian music is alive and doing well in the United States.

A senior at Neuqua Valley High School, Monika has been learning Indian classical music from Smt. Nimrita Dholakia since the age of six.  She started attending the Sadhana School of Hindustani Music when it first opened in 2003.  It was at this point that she also started learning from Pandit Ronu Majumdar, through annual workshops, arranged by the school.

Over the years she has performed at the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago, Chinmaya Mission, as well as multicultural shows at local high schools.  She is currently teaching 1st through 4th year music students at the Sadhana School of Hindustani Music.

Smt. Nimrita Dholakia, Monika's teacher, took initiative to establish the Sadhana School of Hindustani Music in USA, with the blessings of her Guru, Pt. Ronu Majumdar, a renowned flautist. The main objective was to spread the art of India's classical and semi-classical music as well as to increase public awareness of India's musical heritage.