July 3, 2009India Post

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Great teacher & ambassador of Indian classical music

Ethnic marvels for Desi palatesABHISHEK MUKHERJEE

Born in a small village calledSwarna in AndhraPradesh, Komali Nunna

arrived in America only after hermarriage, and made bold attemptsto entertain guests through cook-ing and decorations. The re-sults were remarkable but con-fined to a smaller circle. It is tothe benefit of the IndianAmerican community that shehas decided to expose her cu-linary skills to a wider audiencethrough this excellently pro-duced cookbook ('Entertain-ing from an Ethnic IndianKitchen'), full of mouth-water-ing illustrations.

It is not just a cookbook - itis a journey that takes us to thedepths of everything related tofood and cookery. One cangauge the author's enthusiasmfor cooking and cateringthroughout the book. As sheherself confesses, "For me, cook-ing is an art, decorating a craft andentertaining a passion. Whether itis creating a culinary feast or deco-rating a dazzling table, I do it with

the same passion and zeal." TheIndian American has indeed donejustice to her obsession.

She touches upon exhaustiveSouth and North Indian cuisines,festival based dishes and all par-

ticulars to achieve perfection inhosting extensive meals. Nunna isopen to all sorts of permutationsand combinations in cooking, asshe maintains that experimenta-

tion and creativity are imperativeto be successful in this field. Andthat is how her preparations varyfrom those of other cooks, and thatshe claims have been tastier.

Nunna has striven to hold on tosome lovely traditions and alsohas made daring efforts to includeand enrich others, essentiallythose of the society of America,which has provided her ampleprospects to experiment, amuseand savor. She cites the intricatespecifics in style and design,theme, pantry, invitation, menu,table setting, silverware, glass-ware, cocktails, linens, accesso-ries and music, etc. to infinitelyboost the charm and attractive-ness of a party.

Nunna has a lot of tips upher sleeve too, sharing finestpoints of cookery.

It is a must read for thosefor whom cooking is an inter-

est, or more than just a hobby - itwill be an unforgettable joyride andwill attempt to remove all their in-hibitions or misconceptions re-garding cooking or hosting a meal.

L egendary musician"Sarod" Maestro Dr. AliAkbar Khan, 86, passedaway at his residence in

San Francisco on June 19.Ali Akbar, born on April 14,

1922, in Comilla in present-dayBangladesh, was one of the great-est teachers and ambassadors ofIndian classical music.

He is credited with taking thismusic to the West, ahead of si-tarist Pandit Ravi Shankar, whosefirst wife was Akbar's sister, the

Allaudin Khan, who founded theMaihar Gharana, the school most

closely associated with Hindustaniclassical music the world over and

among the prominent musicians ofwhich are sitarists Ravi Shankarand the late Nikhil Banerjee.Allaudin Khan and Ustad Haafiz AliKhan, Amjad Ali's father, weregurubhais as they had the sameteacher, the veena playerMuhammad Wazir of Rampur.

Ali Akbar, Khansaheb to ad-mirers, began learning music fromhis father at three. He made waveswith his concert debut at 17 at theAll-India Music Conference in

Allahabad in 1939, an eveningthat is said to have redefinedsarod playing. He went on to com-pose several ragas, includingGauri Manjari, Lajwanti, Madhaviand Madhu Malati, and alsoscored Bengali films like JhinderBandi, Kshudhita Pashan andSatyajit Ray's Devi.

The three Ali Akbar Khan Col-leges of Music -- founded in 1956,1967 and 1985, respectively, inKolkata, San Rafael (California)and Basel (Switzerland) -- at-tracted thousands of students

from all over the world, remainingunparalleled institutions for theteaching of Indian classical mu-sic and spread of Indian culture.

"Something that I find trulyadmirable in him is that he dedi-cated the last 40 years of his lifeteaching," Pandit Shiv KumarSharma said. "Teaching the sarodto a novice when you are a mas-ter can be excruciatingly boring.But Ustadji did this tough job for40 years."

Among Ali Akbar's numerousawards and recognitions were thePadma Vibhushan, the PadmaBhushan, the MacArthur GeniusAward, two Grammy nominations,the President of India Award and,the most valuable to him, the titleof Swar Samrat (emperor of melody)bestowed by his father and guru.

But despite his phenomenalsuccess, Ali Akbar remained avery simple man -- another inher-itance from his illustrious father,a straightforward Bangaal fromEast Bengal.

sitar and surbahar exponentAnnapurna Devi.

News of Ali Akbar's death sentthe world of music into mourning.Tabla maestro Ustad ZakirHussain cancelled all appoint-ments to be present at the funeral.Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad AliKhan sai: "I have lost my elderbrother and won't be able to ex-press the loss in words."

Ali Akbar's musical pedigreewas deep-rooted. He was the sonof multi-instrumentalist Baba

NY COMES TO INDIA: Katrina Kaif, Neil Nitin Mukesh and John Abraham

meet their fans during a promotional event of their upcoming

film 'New York' in Bangalore on June 24

‘Something that I findtruly admirable in himis that he dedicatedthe last 40 years ofhis life teaching’

Ali Akbar Khan