Team Swaranjali

The Pioneers

PRAMODINI RAO

Pramodini Rao has been an active member of the Chinmaya Mission from her childhood and has grown up in an atmosphere of music and spirituality. Gifted with a good voice, she has used it in the service of the Lord, and is a favourite singer at any Chinmaya Mission function. She has also chanted the Bhagawad Geeta for Pujya Gurudev, Swami Chinmayananda, during his yagnas in Mumbai.

The foundation for Pramodini’s bhajan singing was laid by her mother, Smt. Susheela Acharya, who herself has received accolades for her melodious compositions from none other than Pujya Gurudev. Pramodini is following her mother’s footsteps by way of teaching bhajans for Chinmaya Mission members, and is one of the founder members of the Chinmaya Swaranjali, Mumbai.

A Sangeet Visharad from Bhatkhande University, through Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai, she took advanced training from Smt. Shampa Pakrashi and Smt. Usha Deshpande.
 

• Won prizes at various intra- and inter-college competitions in the Bhavgeet and Bhaktigeet categories; Felicitated with the title, ‘Gaana Kokila’ by the BSKB Association, Mumbai.
  
  

• An integral part of the CHYK Soul-Song Nites – light-and-sound shows performed by the Chinmaya Yuva Kendra, right from the year 1981.
  
  

• Performed at BSKBA, Mysore Association in Mumbai, Sabrang’s ‘Raaga in all its Glory’, Maniben Nanavati Women’s College, Sri Krishna Temple, Udipi, and various centers of the Chinmaya Mission.
  
  

• “PARIKRAMA” – A Journey through Spiritual India, a two-hour audio-visual musical, presented by the Chinmaya Swaranjali to a packed audience in Chembur Fine Arts in 2004, was co-directed by Pramodini.
  
  

• Performed in yet another audio-visual musical, “Ai Mann Ho Jaa Magan” at KC College in 2005, along with Shri Himanshu Nanda.
  
  

• Pujya Swami Tejomayanandaji has recently selected her to be the Director of the proposed school of dance and music, Chinmaya Naada Bindu, Kolwan, Maharashtra, which is due for completion in the near future.
   

• 2 successful attempts to raise funds for this school were jointly coordinated by Pramodini, along with other key persons: a) Aan Baso Raghuraayi – a program by Chinmaya Swaranjali at Powai in March 2007 and b) Dancing Drums – Mega-program by the leading percussionist, A Sivamani and his troupe at Shanmukhananda Hall, Asia’s largest auditorium, in December 2007, both in the presence of Swami Tejomayanandaji.
   

• Pramodini has moved from Mumbai to Chinmaya Vibhooti to take position of her new office in January 2008, along with her husband, Shri Chittaranjan B Rao.

Cassette and CDs

• Amrutavarsha and Srimata (most bhajans composed by Smt. Susheela Acharya)
   

• Anandavarsha (Hindi bhajans of Swami Brahmananda)
   

• Kritagnynata (Guru bhajans by Smt. S Acharya and others)
   

• Ganesha Vaibhava (Kannada bhajans composed by Smt. S Acharya)
   

• Life Beat (bhajans for children written and composed by Pramodini).
   

• Shravanamangalam (Bhajans by Swami Brahmananda, Meerabai and others).

Besides music, her interest lies in Training. She has conducted and assisted in Bala Vihar Sevaks’ Orientation courses in Mumbai, Vijayawada and Kolkata. She has jointly organised and conducted music workshops as well as several bhajan workshops.

Watch Pramodini on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8j8wYtZKzA
 

HIMANSHU NANDA

A student of Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, Himanshu Nanda is a young and dynamic flautist and a member of the Chinmaya Mission. A capable organizer, he has brought order into the music wing of the Mission in Mumbai and is primarily responsible for the birth of Chinmaya Swaranjali.

A Sangeet Visharad from Gandharva Maha Vidyalaya, he has earlier taken formal training from Sri Narendra Panda and Sri Padma Charan Patra, both of Orissa. He has been a recipient of many awards in inter-collegiate music competitions and some special awards like, Best Musician and Talent of the Year, from institutions in Orissa. Himanshu has represented Orissa at programmes in Sonipath, Hyderabad and Goa. He has also been honoured with a student scholarship from Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia. Recently he was conferred with a title "Sur Mani" by Sur Singar Samsad, Mumbai.

Himanshu has performed at the International Science Seminar at I.I.T Bombay; at CHYK conferences in Siddhabari and Calicut; at Goa during a Youth Exchange trip, at Dream Fest organized by Dreamers, Cuttack, besides accompanying Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia at the Kala Ghoda festival and at Shanmukhananda Hall, Mumbai;. He has also accompanied the renowned Oddissi dancer, Rani Mukharjee, at the Haridas Sangeet Sammelan.

Himanshu is associated with renowned dancers like Smt. Sitaradevi (Kathak), Smt. Archana Joglekar (Kathak), Javeri Sisters (Manipuri), Rani Mukharjee (Oddissi), etc., and has been among the visiting faculty for music in IIT, Mumbai. Presently, he is pursuing advanced training in music from Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia at theGurukul.

Himanshu conceived and composed a Musical Orchestra based on different ragas, depicting the journey of a spiritual seeker, titled “Chinmaya Vani Vadya Vrinda”, during the year-end Programmeme of the Chinmaya Mission in Mumbai in 2002. He also co-directed “PARIKRAMA” – A Journey Through Spiritual India, a two-hour audio-visual musical in 2004, and performed in “Ai Mann Ho Jaa Magan”, another audio-visual musical in 2005.

Himanshu has rendered flute accompaniment for cassettes like “Gurudakshina”, “Tulsi Ramayan” - by Swami Tejomayananda, “Life Beat”- a special audio cassette/CD for children, and video films like “Many Moods of the Master” – on Swami Chinmayananda and “Sandeepanies”.

Watch Himanshu on YouTube:-

Raga Des
http://youtube.com/watch?v=biPd0oYo4zM

Raga Maru Bihag
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3f4zafJA0_k

Raga Bhoopali
http://youtube.com/watch?v=YDfQNdHUDtk

Raga Mishra Khamaj
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ck2acxcw4g

Raga Bihag
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=un2iR3uj_lQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCg2stGWsyc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwYUhhArGkA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEPkeHQSM9k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyPrjg4LYgo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YvnMy-Mk-w

Raga Yaman
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9OYRXzrsVY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gn8zUlWn-E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBKAhdzCnS4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=db_TT6beesQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nqOQA-GGiU

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