END OF AN ERA
Beyond any doubt Santoor virtuoso Pt Shiv Kumar Sharma gave a new identity to the musical instrument which was used in Jammu and Kashmir since times immemorial by the Sufi saints and their companions. It is really saddening that an era has ended abruptly as the great performer from the soil had left for heavenly abode after a sudden heart attack in Mumbai. There is no doubt that he took the stringed instrument to the world arena and also created stunning music for many bollywood movies that still rules the hearts of cine-goers and music lovers. Movies which became everlasting hits include Silsila, Chandni, Lamhe, Darr, etc as the music composed by Pt Shiv outclassed all the men of standing in ‘Bombay’ film industry at that time. This is the fact that the santoor was hardly known to anyone connected with Indian classical music until Pt Shiv gave meaning to this folk instrument from Jammu and Kashmir. It was somehow popular only in Kashmir and for centuries has been used there mostly as an accompanying instrument for vocalists singing music related to the Sufi philosophy. The santoor is still used as a solo instrument in Kashmir but only to play Sufi music. The word santoor has been derived from Persian language meaning hundred strings. Pt Shiv was the son and disciple of the late Pandit Uma Dutt Sharma, who belonged to a family of priests and later turned into a musician. He lived in Jammu’ Pacci Dacci area and was trained by the legendary musician Pandit Bade Ramdasji, one of the all-time greats of the Banaras Gharana. Pandit Uma Dutt Sharma was not only a learned vocalist but also an accomplished tabla, harmonium and esraj player. Surely, with the demise of Pt Shiv a void has been created which is difficult to be filled anytime soon as an era has been lost with his departure from the material world. To him goes the credit of converting the santoor to one of the major instruments of Indian classical music.