Manju Mehta was not only a fine sitar artiste belonging to the Senia Maihar tradition, but she was also one of India’s most respected patrons of music. Co-founder of the country’s largest music festival, the 13-day-long Saptak, which was launched in 1980. Through this event, Manju Mehta gave back to the world of classical music what she gained from it as a practitioner.
Born on May 21, 1945, in Jaipur, Manju belonged to a family of musicians. Her parents were Hindustani vocalists. Both her brothers — Shashi Mohan Bhatt was proficient in sitar and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt in slide guitar (Mohan Veena).
While Manju initially learnt from her brother Shashi, she later trained under sitar maestro Pt Ravi Shankar, who was also her brother’s guru. Manju Mehta with guru Pt. Damodar Lal Kabra| Photo Credit:Special Arrangement Manju also learnt from the Jodhpur-based sarodist Pt.
Damodar Lal Kabra (the first disciple of Ustad Ali Akbar Khan) in the guru-sishya parampara. She often spoke about that period of intense riyaaz , practising around six hours a day, and playing the same raag over and over again. After marrying tabla maestro Pt.
Nandan Mehta, (disciple of Banaras gharana doyen Pt. Kishen Maharaj), Manju shifted base to Ahmedabad, and along with her husband built Saptak into a formidable cultural organisation. She took a decade’s sabbatical from stage performances.
After the untimely demise of her husband in 2010, she spent most of her time in managing Saptak, particularly i.