Pawan Dogra

Pawan Dogra, 22, was inspired by his maternal grandmother who used to sing. His mother also used to sing. During his childhood, he developed a mild interest in singing. Further, he used to see his uncle which increased that spark. He was resonated by classical singing of India and that’s why he did his graduation in Music. But due to financial reasons, he couldn’t pursue music as a career. He is currently studying Masters in Sociology in Indira Gandhi National Open University, India. He considers Pawan Katoch Ji as his guru. But after he saw the music and songs of Himachal Pradesh, his motherland, he felt a different yet strong attachment to it. Under the guidance of Kashmiri Lal, he learned more about Pahadi songs. Kashmiri Lal told him of the rich culture of Himachal and how important it is to safeguard it. He started playing khanjri and ruvana two years back. Today, he plays both the instrument very well. Still, he believes that it is nothing and there is a lot which he needs to learn. He loves his culture through the various colourful costumes, festivals, rituals, language and cuisine. He is very closely attached to music and being highly passionate about it he wants to conserve it anyhow. He holds a strong opinion that music of any type should be treated as original and not mixed or fused with any other type of music so that it’s authenticity and integrity persists.

• Dharamshala
• Himachal Pradesh