Mangaluru: Thousands of miles away from home, Ashwin Baliga has built a musical journey that spans continents, genres and audiences. But this Navratri, the US-based Hindustani classical vocalist has travelled to Mangaluru to be part of his family’s century-old tradition of worship, music and devotion.Baliga will perform at the 100th year of Navratri puja celebrations hosted at ‘Veera Venkatesh Prasad’, the residence of N Ekanath Nayak and his wife, Mangalagauri Nayak, at Vitobha Temple Road. The celebrations are being held under the guidance of their cousin, N Gokuldas Nayak, and with the blessings of Srimad Sudhindra Thirtha Swamiji and Srimad Samyamindra Thirtha Swamiji of Kashi Math.Started by the late Niddodi Babayya Nayak and continued by the late N Vittal Nayak and his family, the annual tradition has completed 100 years. From 7 pm to 9 pm every day during Navratri, the celebrations feature bhajans, keerthanas and cultural programmes, followed by puja, aarati and distribution of prasadam. The home had even welcomed legendary musicians, including the late Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.For Baliga, who is connected to the family through his wife, the occasion is less about a performance and more about being present for a milestone in the family’s spiritual journey. “Mangala Nayak met me after a concert in Feb in Udupi and requested me to perform at their family’s centenary celebrations and I immediately obliged. It will be my honour and blessing to perform at this historic event,” he said.Baliga will perform on Sunday, presenting bandishes—melodic compositions set to a classical framework—dedicated largely to the Goddess. His repertoire for the evening will include devotional compositions in Brajbhasha, Kannada, Hindi and Marathi.Trained under acclaimed vocalists Pandit Milind Chittal and Mahesh Kale, Ashwin aims to expand the reach of classical music by making it more accessible—by offering translations and contextual explanations that help audiences appreciate the meaning and nuances of compositions.Baliga is the lead vocalist of VIBRAHA, an electronic-classical band, and a member of the National Sufi Ensemble in Washington DC. His performances have taken him to venues and festivals in India, the United States, Sri Lanka, Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada. In a collaboration with sound healer Brian Eubanks, he recorded and released Raga Bath on Spotify, blending Hindustani improvisation, including alaaps, with the sounds of frequency-specific bowls to create a meditative listening experience.Baliga is also a recipient of the Pandit RV Sheshadri Gawai Award for promoting and performing Hindustani music across geographies. His contribution to preserving the tradition includes ‘Gayana Ganga’, a compilation of Kannada-language bandishes composed by Pandit R V Sheshadri Gawai. The publication helped revive interest in a musical legacy that had remained out of print for three decades.
