India was well-represented at the 2024 Grammy Awards, with five Indian musicians achieving recognition at the ceremony in Los Angeles. Among the winners were tabla maestro Zakir Hussain and flautist Rakesh Chaurasia, who both received prestigious awards.
Zakir Hussain emerged as India’s biggest winner, securing three Grammy Awards, while Rakesh Chaurasia received two. The other members of the fusion group ‘Shakti’, including Shankar Mahadevan, Ganesh Rajagopalan, and Selvaganesh Vinayakram, each won one Grammy at the event held at the Crypto.com Arena.
‘Shakti’, the fusion group, clinched the 2024 Grammy Award for the Best Global Music Album with “This Moment.” The album, released to critical acclaim in June 2023, marked the group’s first studio album in over 45 years and featured collaboration with legendary British guitarist John McLaughlin.
In addition to the group’s success, Zakir Hussain individually received two more awards: Best Global Music Performance for ‘Pashto’ and Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for ‘As We Speak.’
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Hussain’s previous Grammy wins include achievements in 1991, 1996, and 2008, spanning various categories and collaborations. Rakesh Chaurasia, the nephew of flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia, earned his two Grammy Awards as part of the ensemble with American banjo player Bela Fleck and American bassist Edgar Meyer for “Pashto” and “As We Speak.”
The “As We Speak” team, which comprised Hussain, Meyer, Fleck, and Chaurasia, also earned a nomination for Best Instrumental Composition for Motion.
Ricky Kej, a three-time Grammy winner from Bengaluru, characterised 2024 as the year of India at the Grammys. Kej won his third Grammy the previous year for the album ‘Divine Tides.’
The Best Global Music Album nominees included “Epifan as” (Susana Baca), “History” (Bokant ), “I Told Them…” (Burna Boy), and “Timeless” (Davido). Nominees in the Best Contemporary Instrumental Album segment featured “On Becoming” by House Of Waters, “Jazz Hands” by Bob James, “The Layers” by Julian Lage, and “All One” by Ben Wendel.
Notably, sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar was the first Indian musician to receive a Grammy Award in 1968 (Best Chamber Music Performance). Over the years, several Indian musicians, including Zubin Mehta, Anoushka Shankar, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, L Shankar, and T H Vinayakram, have also been recognized with Grammys in various categories.
Edited by Megha Reddy
