Shankar Mahadevan Reacts to PM Narendra Modi's Post on Shakti's Grammy Win: 'Your Hard Work is Our Inspiration'

The reunited Shakti band won big at the Grammys 2024 for their latest release, This Moment. It bagged the prestigious award in the Best Global Music Album category. Shakti’s album, which has been released after more than 45 years, comprises eight new tracks composed by John McLaughlin, Shankar Mahadevan, Zakir Hussain, V Selvaganesh and Ganesh Rajagopalan.

As people from all walks of life congratulated Shakti band members, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also gave a shoutout to them. Now, Shankar Mahadevan has acknowledged the Prime Minister’s best wishes, calling him their inspiration. “Thank you so much sir!! Your energy and hard work is our inspiration to create and perform music from our country and make India proud all over the world !! Love you sir . Bharat Mata ki Jai !” the music maestro replied on X (formerly Twitter).

Congratulating the legendary musicians earlier, PM Modi took to the social media platform and noted that the country is proud of them. The Prime Minister also lauded the musicians’ exceptional talent and dedication to music as well as the hard work they put in.

He wrote, “Congratulations @ZakirHtabla, @Rakeshflute, @Shankar_Live, @kanjeeraselva, and @violinganesh on your phenomenal success at the #GRAMMYs! Your exceptional talent and dedication to music have won hearts worldwide. India is proud! These achievements are a testament to the hardwork you keep putting in. It will also inspire the new generation of artists to dream big and excel in music.”

Shakti sealed the top spot at the Grammy Awards leaving behind artists like Susana Baca, Bokante, Burna Boy, and Davido. Interestingly, the band members recorded their parts separately from their respective hometowns during the production of the album which was released in 2023.

All About Shakti

Shakti is a revolutionary fusion band that combines Indian classical music with jazz. It was founded in 1973 by jazz guitarist John McLaughlin in collaboration with traditional Indian musicians. Led by celebrated Indian violinist L Shankar, Shakti also had tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, percussionist Vikku Vinayakram among others.

Shakti’s original band members disbanded in 1978 to follow their solo careers for two decades. In the late 90s, the band was reformed with Shankar Mahadevan on vocals, U Srinivas on the mandolin along with Zakir Hussain, John McLaughlin and Selvaganesh Vinayakram. During this time, Shakti came up with several hit albums such as Shakti and A Handful of Beauty in 1976, and Natural Elements in 1977.

The band marked its 50th anniversary in 2023 with a massive tour across 27 cities. The tour included 17 performances in the United States and featured special solo opening acts by top artists like Jerry Douglas, Bill Frisell, Béla Fleck and John Scofield.