The Gundecha Brothers are Indian classical singers of the dhrupad genre of the Dagar vani. From 1985 to 2019 the duo consisted of brothers Umakant Gundecha and Ramakant Gundecha and were awarded the Padma Shri for art for 2012. Following the death of Ramakant Gundecha in 2019, his son Anant began to perform with Umakant in the Gundecha bandhu.
Early life and background
They studied at the local Madhav Music College. Umakant has a post-graduate degree in music and economics and the younger Ramakant in music and commerce. They moved to Bhopal in 1981 for training in Dhrupad music under Zia Fariduddin Dagar and his brother Zia Mohiuddin Dagar. Both gurus were second cousins of the two major Dhrupad forces in the second half of the 20th Century; two duos known as the senior Dagar Brothers and the junior Dagar Brothers respectively. Ramakant Gundecha died in Bhopal on 8 November 2019 from a heart attack at the age of 57 and is survived by his wife and son. He was cremated on 9 November 2019 in Bhopal.
Career
After training for four years, they performed in public for the first time in May 1985, at the Uttaradhikar dance and music festival in Bhopal. They have worked to expand the dhrupad repertoire by incorporating texts by Hindi poets such as Tulsidas, Padmakar and Nirala. The Gundecha Brothers also sing the Dhrupad compositions of India's senior Kathak exponent Mahamahopadhyay Dr. Pandit Puru Dadheech, in particular, his famous Shankar Pralayankar composition. They have set up a Dhrupad institute outside Bhopal where they teach students from all over the world. They run a music school in the Dhrupad tradition, according to the guru-shishya style of teaching that was prevalent in India for teaching of the arts.
Recordings and fellowships
They have recorded many cassettes and CDs by H.M.V, Music Today, Rhythm House, IPPNW Concerts Berlin, Navras and Audio Rec London. They have also sung for many television channels in India and have been broadcast on British, U.S., German and French Radio as well. As well as being an integral part of all of India's prestigious music festivals, the Brothers have also performed at many important international music festivals and institutions in Europe, U.S.A, Australia, Singapore, Bangladesh, U.A.E and Hong Kong. They have received M.P. Govt. Scholarship from 1981 to 1985, National Fellowship from 1987 to 89, Ustad Allauddin Khan Fellowship in 1993, Sanskriti Award in 1994 and Kumar Gandharva Award in 1998 by Govt. of Madhaya Pradesh and Dagar Gharana Award by Mewar Foundation in 2001.
