Blessed with movie star looks, proven talent and the musical tradition of Gwalior’s Bangash gharana, sarod titan Amjad Ali Khan’s younger son Ayaan Ali Bangash seems all set to scale new heights in the world of instrumental classical music.

A self-confessed “average student” of Delhi’s Modern School, Ayaan Ali Bangash (26), says his passage through Delhi University as a distance learning (correspondence) student was profitable. “I was never the type to pore over books but fared well academically and acquired valuable life skills,” he says. And the proof’s in his curriculum vitae. He’s already an accomplished sarod player, composer, author and entrepreneur.

Given the benefit of a liberal, holistic education, this budding sarod maestro voluntarily works hard to achieve his personal goals. Currently his musical oeuvres include seven joint albums, including three solos: Sarod For Harmony, Live At Carnegie Hall and Strings Attached recorded with renowned cellist Mathew Barley at the Royal Festival Hall, UK in 2003. Moreover he has participated in 150 live concerts, produced a lounge music album, written a coffee-table book on his father (Abba: God’s Greatest Gift To Us) together with his brother, Amaan (27).

Winner of many young achiever awards, the multi-faceted Ayaan Ali Bangash is now broadening his horizons by composing popular film music. The recently released Hollywood feature film American Daylight includes three tracks by the Bangash brothers in its 12-track album which features compositions by well-known transnational musicians such as Elton John and John Baez.

Next on Ayaan’s agenda are compositions for two Bollywood films with big-time directors. He is also helping his family set up an Amjad Ali Khan Centre For Perfoming Arts in Chicago, scheduled to become operational this winter. A family venture to be managed by the Bangash clan, the centre will train novices and professionals in the nuances of classical music. “The idea,” explains Bangash, “is to make performers out of musicians.”

This promising musician has useful words of advice for Indian youth. “We are capable of achieving a lot provided we remain focused, manage our time well and work hard,” says the young maestro who packs in a gruelling practice schedule each day despite frequent national and international travel. “Regrettably there’s no short-cut to success. Determination and talent are vital in any field of endeavour,” says Bangash.

Play on.

Neeta Lal (Delhi)

Vishala Mishra 

A class XI student of Chennai’s well-known Padma Seshadri Bal Bhavan School (PSBBS), Vishala Mishra has added another feather to her already crowded cap by winning the prestigious National Bal Shree Award for Innovative Science for year 2005. In April she received the award from President A.P.J Abdul Kalam in Rashtrapati Bhavan, Delhi.

The Bal Shree Award is given to children who excel in any one of four categories: performing and creative arts, innovative science and creative writing and comprises a three-tier selection process. Two students each from around 30 schools in Tamil Nadu participated in the first selection round held in Chennai in June 2004. Of them only 23 were short-listed for the second round held in Pondicherry in October last year. Subsequently seven students qualified for the final round held at the National Bal Bhavan in New Delhi in December 2004.

“In the first and second rounds we had to present a science project, create something in 45 minutes out of materials provided, write a science fiction story, engage in a discussion with a three-member panel, and participate in quiz, reasoning and interview sessions. The final round, which consisted of two sessions each for five days was the most challenging,” she recalls.

Vishala’s success through the gruelling rounds of the science competition is unsurprising. An academic topper since class I, she has won proficiency prizes in almost all subjects and the best all-rounder prize every year. A voracious reader of science journals as well as fiction, she has bagged accolades in several state and national level science contests. “To create a national scientific temper, science has to be taught creatively in schools. And the best way to teach science is through experimentation. Fortunately the PSBBS management believes in experiential learning and has always encouraged me,” says Mishra.

For the future, Mishra plans a career in medicine and especially “extensive research”. Given her enthusiasm for science and her positive and proactive personality, this young innovator looks set to make a noteworthy contribution to the medical sciences.

Hemalatha Raghupathi (Chennai)

Also read: GlobalScholar-EducationWorld Young Achievers Awards 2008