The name Shridhar Phadke needs no introduction to the connoisseurs of Marathi music. For the last four decades, Shridhar Phadke, having an innate gift of composing musical masterpieces, has been ruling the hearts of music lovers. You wonder how anyone even after having won innumerable accolades for his art can remain so down to earth and so humble! Shridhar Phadke has always been the humility personified and this virtue of his makes him different from many others shining on the horizon of Indian music.

The great master of music turned 60 this month and hence it was quite pertinent for the Shridhar Phadke Gaurav Samiti to organize a grand felicitation ceremony in his honor on Tuesday.

Shridhar Phadke, son of Sudhir Phadke who was a legend in the field of music, got the legacy of music from his father and as for the academics; he is also a postgraduate in the Computer Science. The two realms being two poles apart, it is indeed remarkable the way Shridhar found his passion in both. His mother Lalita Phadke too was a talented singer. Both his parents have made a great impact on him.

He was speaking in a press interaction organized on the occasion. He said, “I had a penchant for Information Technology; it was only later that I adopted it as my profession. Music, however, has remained close to my heart as a loveable pursuit and not a profession.”

Phadke stressed that he owes a lot to his parents and gives all the credit of his achievements to them. He said, “My love for music and the ability to compose popular songs have a lot to do with my upbringing and parentage. My parents’ lives and careers were inspirational.”

However, Shridhar never got affected by his father’s success nor did his father look at him as his competitor. Father and son always shared a sweet bond of love and cooperation.

Shridhar became reminiscent at the press conference. He said, “I never started out with the intention of matching his musical prowess. I would do what came naturally to me and my father was very supportive and appreciated my style. He would initially guide me and supplement my knowledge with handy tips. He believed that the introductory tune for the mukhada’ has to be interesting and melodious for the listeners to hear the rest of the song.”

He also said, “Most importantly, he helped me form my own independent thought process. There were times when I would get stuck with a particular problem while composing and approach him for assistance. He often asked me to figure it out on my own, which chiseled my skill even further.”

Shridhar also admired some of the modern poets like Pravin Davane, Nitin Akhave, Kishore Kadam and Anil Kamble for their contribution to Marathi poetry. He said, “These poets are always eager to pen something down for me. I like them because we get along quite well with each other.”

When asked about his favorite singers Shridhar named Asha Bhonsale, Suresh Wadkar and Aarti Ankalikar Tikekar. Among his favorite today’s music directors A.R. Rehman, Shantanu Moitra and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy are a few.

Shridhar Phadke also knit his brows when journalists asked him about his take on the modern trend of remixes. He said, “Remixes can never take the place of the originals.” At the same time he emphatically said that he never feels insecure before the modern music directors and wants to work in the field for some more years.

“You cannot always remain the same. Change is bound to happen, and it is good too, which is not to say that one should rely heavily on the rhythm of the song, and not its vocals. As long as the music is soothing, it is good,” he said.

Many more felicitations are to be held in Pune in the coming future in the honor of the master.

- Yogesh Sapre