Shujaat Khan is a sitar maestro and seventh generation torchbearer of the embellished legacy of the Imdad gharana that has produced many a virtuoso.

He is the son and disciple of the great sitarist Ustad Vilayat Khan, and his grandfather, Ustad Inayat Khan, his great-grandfather, Ustad Imdad Khan, and his great-great-grandfather, Ustad Sahebdad Khan, were all leading artists of their respective generations. He can trace his lineage all the way back to Mian Tansen, the great court musician in Emperor Akbar's court.

Born the eldest son to not just a master musician, but a temperamental and incorruptible father, Shujaat Khan's musical career began at the age of three when he began practicing on a specially made small sitar. By the age of six, he was recognized as a child prodigy and began giving public performances.

Gifted with an exceptional voice, he's known to be a fearless collaborator with different genres of musicians

Ashwini Bhide Deshpande, an outstanding vocalist of the famed "Jaipur-Atrauli" Khayal Gayaki tradition, represents the new generation of veterans worthy of wearing the mantle of the old masters.

Born into a musical family, Ashwini studied music, and academic subjects with equal fervor. After grasping the rudiments of Hindustani Classical music under the late Pt. Narayanrao Datar, she began imbibing all the traditional aspects of stylized Jaipur Gayaki under the strict tutelage of her mother, mentor and Guru, Smt. Manik Bhide.

Despite her early success and noticeable achievements, including winning the President's Gold Medal at the All India Radio Music Competition in 1977 and performing with Pandit Ravi Shankar, the switch from a career in serious science (Ashwini holds a doctorate in Biochemistry) to full time musician took many years. But when the realization dawned, there was no looking back for Ashwini.

A classicist by temperament and training, Ashwini is equally at ease with lighter varieties like Thumri-dadra and Bhajans/Abhangs. Add to this, her fluency in Sanskrit enriches her repertoire further by inclusion of stotras/stutis.

Hariprasad Chaurasia is an accomplished Indian Classical flautist. Son of a wrestler, Chaurasia began learning vocal music from his neighbor, Pandit Rajaram, as a teenager. Later, he switched to playing the flute under the tutelage of Pandit Bholanath Prasanna of Varanasi for eight years. He joined the All India Radio, Cuttack, Odisha in 1957 and worked as a composer and performer.

Much later, while working for All India Radio, he received guidance from the reclusive Annapurna Devi, daughter of Baba Allaudin Khan. She only agreed to teach him if he switched from right-handed to left-handed playing. Till date, he plays the flute left-handed.

If Chaurasia is more earthly than many of his peers, it is probably down to his background. Indian classical music is a family business: father hands on tradition to son. Chaurasia is a first generation musician with a will of iron to perspire, persist and inspire.

In spite of having achieved so much, the maestro is still giving back to the world through his own music and by nurturing outstanding talent in his school Brindavan, which is based on the gurukul system.

Aashish Khan is considered among the top handful of India's greatest living Sarod players. His pedigree of training and lineage is unquestionable, having descended from the illustrious family of great musicians.

Aashish Khan was initiated into North Indian Classical Music at the age of five by his grandfather, the legendary Acharya Baba Allauddin Khan Sahib, exponent of the Senia Beenkar and Senia Rababiya Gharana founded in the 16th Century by Mian Tansen, court musician to Emperor Akbar. He also learnt music under the guidance of his father, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, and aunt, Smt. Annapurna Devi, leading exponents of the Senia Maihar Gharana, in the Beenkar and Rababiya Anga (style) bearing the Dhrupad style of vocal music.

Aashish, a true believer and follower of the "Guru Shishya Parampara," an age old practice and one of the oldest methods of teaching Indian Classical Music in an oral, practical, theoretical and traditional manner has won the hearts and respect of many disciples and followers all over the world.

Pandit Chhannulal Mishra is a Hindustani classical singer from Banaras, a noted exponent of the Kirana gharana and especially the Khayal and the 'Purab Ang' - Thumri.

His first lessons of classical music were from his father, late Pt. Badri Prasad Mishra. Having been initiated into the nuances of music by his father, he moved from his place of birth to learn music at the feet of Ustad Abdul Ghani Khan of the Kirana gharana until the renowned musicologist, the late Padmabhushan Thakur Jaidev Singh offered to groom his adolescent prodigy into the subtleties of Indian Classical music.

Although Mishra ji evolved a eclectic vocal style, blending the ecstatic Kirana Badhat and the highly embellished features of the Patiala Gharana, his classical pieces reveal a fascinating harmony of Punjab, Purab and Gaya Styles. He has transcended the confines of gharana styles and has brought a streak of spirituality into his singing.

Sitar player and composer Anoushka Shankar is one of the leading figures in World Music today. She is deeply rooted in the Indian classical music she studied exclusively from the age of nine under her father and guru, the legendary Ravi Shankar. In her twenties, after establishing herself as one of the foremost classical sitarists on the world’s stage, she began thriving as a composer, exploring fertile ground in the crossover between Indian music and a variety of genres including flamenco, jazz, electronica and Western classical music. Among various accolades she has been thrice nominated for a Grammy® Award and was the youngest, and first female, recipient of a House of Commons Shield from the British House of Parliament in 1999.

As a classical sitarist Anoushka Shankar debuted professionally at the age of thirteen and has performed in prestigious venues such as the Royal Albert Hall and Carnegie Hall (over a dozen times), and championed her father’s orchestral works with the world’s leading orchestras under conductors such as Zubin Mehta. Before turning twenty she made three classical sitar records for Angel/EMI under the guidance of her father, and received her first Grammy® nomination, thereby becoming the first Indian female and youngest-ever nominee in the World Music category.

He was all of 6 years old when Amjad Ali Khan gave his first Sarod recital. It was the beginning of yet another glorious chapter in the history of Indian classical music. Taught by his father Haafiz Ali Khan Amjad Ali Khan was born to the illustrious Bangash lineage rooted in the Senia Bangash School of music. Today he shoulders the sixth generation of inheritance in this legendary lineage.

After his debut, the career graph of this musical legend took the speed of light, and on its way the Indian classical music scene was witness to regular and scintillating bursts of Raga supernovas. Thus, the world saw the Sarod being given a new and yet timeless interpretation by Amjad Ali Khan. Khan is one of the few maestros who consider his audience to be the soul of his motivation. In his case, the term 'beauty of the Ragas' acquires a special meaning as he has to his credit the distinction of having created many new Ragas. It is love for music and his belief in his music that has enabled him to interpret traditional notions of music in a new refreshing way, reiterating the challenge of innovation and yet respecting the timelessness of tradition.

Ustaad Amjad Ali Khan has performed internationally with his sons Amaan Ali Khan and Ayaan Ali Khan on several occasions, bringing much acclaim to Indian classical music on a global platform.