Welcome To Pandit Arvind Parikh

Musical Journey

Arvindbhai has been a performing artist for over seven decades. Only in recent years, in view of his advanced age, has he dedicated himself substantially to teaching. His talim under Vilayat Khansaheb continued throughout his performing and teaching career, from 1944 until Khansaheb’s passing in 2004.

Young Arvind showed keen sensitivity for music while yet a child of seven. His first love was the dilruba, a bow instrument. His curiosity for other instruments was no less. By the time he was 14, he could play on the violin, the flute, the mandolin and the jal-tarang, with equal facility. His systematic training in music began in sitar-playing under the guidance of a local teacher Makrand Badshah. Having convinced the sitar wizard, Ustad Vilayat Khan, in Bombay, to accept him as his shishya, , it was in 1943 that marked the beginning of a life-changing musical career for the 16-year-old.

Over the years, many musical greats influenced him to mould his musical approach. These included Ustad Amir Khan, Ustads Niyaz Ahmad and Faiyaz Ahmad Khan, Prof. B. R. Deodhar, Ustad Latafat Hussain Khan.
He has performed at in music festivals in India, Europe, USA and Asia. Arvindbhai greatly encouraged his vocalist wife Smt. Kishoribehen Parikh, who was a leading disciple of Ustads Niyaz Ahmed and Faiyaz Ahmed Khan, renowned exponents of the Kirana Gharana. His daughter Purvi Parikh, also a shishya of the Ustads, is herself an accomplished performing classical vocalist. Both Kishoribehen and Purvi have given recitals in India and several countries abroad. His son Snehal Parikh also learned to play sitar and reached high level of artistry. In fact, Arvindbhai has ensured that music pervades throughout the lives of all present 4 generations of the family.

Some of the important musicians who came home regularly were firstly the Ustads of the house, namely Ustad Vilayat Khansaheb, Ustads Niaz Ahmed and Faiyaz Ahmed Khan, and Ustad Sultan Khan. Also, virtually all the other Indian classical music greats personally known to Arvind bhai have graced his home over the years.Arvindbhai has been credited with creativity, vision, a holistic and devotional approach to music through his performances, compositions, teaching, nurturing the guru-shishya Parampara, and championing the Vilayatkhani gharana, true to its characteristics, traditions and style. (While the Vilayatkhani Gharana of Ustad Vilayat Khan’s family lineage is under the umbrella of the Etawah Gharana, the students of Khansaheb refer to the gharana by his name, to honour the enormous contributions to music made by our Ustad).

Under the Music Page of this website, you will find the vast body of work accomplished by Arvindbhai over his musical journey of over 60 years. These include CD-ROMs/DVDs on the Sitar and its Practice, the Intricacies of the Sitar, Training Manuals for Trainers and Students, numerous Ragas and Compositions, Paltas, Gats and Bandishes, (a large number being his own compositions), Raga Prakars, links to the numerous Baithaks organised by Arvindbhai, and links to the invaluable NCPA Interview Recordings of Ustad Vilayat Khan and Baithaks with other musical greats.

Today, in his 95th year, Arvindbhai still pursues his life mission for music, and has continued teaching over 45 students on Zoom even through the pandemic, till date.

Life with Vilayat Khansaheb

It was way back in the early 1940s, that young Arvind had a conscious realisation of his deep interest in music, especially instrumental music. After initially trying out various other instruments and settling finally on the sitar, his hunger to learn music on the sitar became increasingly intense and he found his refuge in listening to programmes on All India Radio, aided by a published guide, the “Indian Listener”. The radio thus became his teacher.
KNOW MORE

Cultural Ambassador

Arvindbhai has promoted the cause of and love for Indian Classical Music all over the world, through his concerts and the innumerable international music seminars convened in India over the years.

Musicians:

Throughout his musical journey, he has devoted time and effort to support and promote musicians from every part of the country, regardless of background and affiliation. He has supported needy musicians in several ways, including direct financial support and by sponsoring their concerts and travel both overseas and in India.

All his earnings from concerts throughout his life have been received directly into his charitable foundation for supporting needy musicians. Over the years, he has also used his business connections to urge corporates to include the concerts and livelihood of musicians in their CSR programs.

Organisations:

Arvindbhai served as Vice President of the International Music Council (UNESCO) from 1994-97.

He also set up and chaired numerous organisations and groups in India:

Music Forum, Mumbai: Arvindbhai set up this forum to unite all segments of the music industry: musicians, organisers, broadcasters, technicians, music critics and music afficionados.
All India Musicians Group: Arvindbhai was conceiver and Convenor of this Group, in which he brought together six of the top Hindustani Classical Music exponents, and six of the top Carnatic music exponents. The AIMG championed the introduction of greater emphasis on Indian Classical Music through Doordarshan and All India Radio, as also employment, education and support for musicians, with the then Hon. Prime Minister Shri Manmohan Singh and the Prasar Bharati.The members of the AIMG included:

Convenor: Pt. Arvind Parikh

North Indian (Hindustani) Music	South Indian (Carnatic) Music
1. Pt. Ajoy Chakrabarty	1. (Late) Dr. M Balmurali Krishna
2. Ustad Zakir Husain	2. Vid. Ravikiran Chitravina
3. (Late) Pt. Jasraj	3. (Late) Vid. T N Krishnan
4. (Late) Pt. Rajan Mishra	4. Vid. Sudha Raghunathan
5. (Late) Pt. Shivkumar Sharma	5. (Late) Vid. T V Sankaranarayanan
6 Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia	6. (Late) Vid. U Shrinivas

Observers

Shri Ashok Vajpeyi
Pt . Sajan Mishra	Delhi
Shri Vijay Kichlu	Kolkata

Several music greats generously agreed to be Patrons of the AIMG. Over the years, the music world has regrettably lost all of them.

Hindustani music	Carnatic music
1. (Late) Pt. Birju Maharaj	1. (Late) Shri M S Gopalkrishnan
2. (Late) Smt Girija Devi	2. (Late) Shri Palghat Raghu
3. (Late) Ms Lata Mangeshkar	3. (Late) Ms. D K Pattamal
4. (Late) Pt. Ravi Shankar	4. (Late) Shri R K Srikanthan

ITC Sangeet Research Academy, Western India Chapter: Annually an international seminar was held in collaboration with the NCPA, Music Forum and Indian Musicological Society. In addition, monthly concerts were organised for both established and upcoming students of music. Awards and financial supports were given to deserving musicians. This served as a monthly concert platform for upcoming students of music, attended by discerning music lovers.
Indian Musicological Society: This served to create greater awareness and support to government, industry and the media for Indian classical music.

When Arvindbhai stepped down from each of these positions, he ensured that each organisation would be able to continue its mission in capable hands.

Business Life

In 1945, Arvindbhai’s father Shri Natverlal Parikh also moved from Ahmedabad to Mumbai, and bought M/s. Lee & Muirhead Pvt. Ltd, a cargo agency with a staff of eight people, from its erstwhile British owners. After graduating in 1948, Arvindbhai joined the business, and worked at the ground level to learn the ropes, excel at the job, and then start building it upwards with new contracts, new services, a branch network, and then more companies.

Along with son Snehal and daughter-in-law Savita, he grew the company to become the nucleus of the widely diversified logistics group Lemuir Group, with 50 offices and a staff of 1300 across India. He was Chairman of the consequent joint venture DHL Lemuir Logistics Pvt. Ltd. in partnership with the global group DHL Logistics, with the joint venture employing 6000 professionals across India.

The family was also one of the three partners of the erstwhile Travel Corporation India Pvt. Ltd. (TCI), which had grown to become the largest travel and tourism company then in India.

Arvindbhai remains a Director on the board of Technova Group, his younger brother Pranav Parikh’s eminently successful group of companies.

Far away from the music world in which he has been most visible, his achievements in the business world of Indian and global logistics and travel, catapulted Arvind Bhai into leadership positions in these industries. He was a visionary, pioneer, leader and soon regarded as a doyen of the freight forwarding and logistics industry in India and overseas, also serving as President of almost every national association in the field.

He became the first ever non-European to be elected at that time, as President of the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA), the industry’s global body with over 35,000 member organisations. He was also a founder and President of the Air Cargo Agents Association of India (ACAAI), the Federation of Freight Forwarders’ Associations in India (FFFAI), the Intermodal Club, the Travel Agents’ Association (TAAI), the BrihanMumbai Customs Brokers Association (BCBA), and more.

Logistics is an extremely complex global business, with round the clock services – some client, somewhere in the world, is always awake at any time. Despite all pressures and challenges, Arvindbhai always remained calm, relaxed, and composed, with his sense of humour ever in attendance – a quality to be admired in a man doing so much.

Personal Life

Apart from business and music, the one other great love of Arvindbhai’s life has been his family. As a highly sensitive and emotional person, his concern and priority for his family has been of utmost importance. After his father’s passing, he has been regarded as the father figure and go-to person for the whole family, and indeed been its binding force.

Arvindbhai’s life has been full of meaningful and enduring relationships, which he savours till this day.
The key to his exemplary life perhaps lies in the fact that he balanced business and music equally, never needed to choose between his “hobby” and his “passion”, was never distracted, found 24 hours sufficient for a joyous day’s work, and gave stress no place to enter. Excellence has been the inevitable result. Many of his admirers have said that to have known Arvind Bhai is to have learnt a lot about how life is meant to be lived.

Smt Kishori Parikh

Late Kishori Behen was a wonderful soul, truly loved by every person around her. Her simplicity, honesty, compassion and generosity knew no bounds.

While young Arvind both attending college and learning from Ustad Vilayat Khan, he also participated in the orchestra of the prestigious musical dance-dramas organised by the Indian National Theatre (INT).

At these daily evening sessions he met his future wife, Kishori Jhaveri, who was playing leading parts in INT’s dance-dramas as a dancer and vocalist. The friendship was further strengthened as Kishori also joined Elphinstone College, two years behind Arvind’s degree course. Their friendship grew, through both music and college. They were engaged in 1947 and were married in 1949.

Kishori behen, as she was popularly known to all, had gravitated to music after becoming accomplished in Bharat Natyam and Manipuri dance. It was her mother who nurtured her interest in music and encouraged her to play the dilruba. She also loved art and painted for some time. She finally took up classical vocal music as her main pursuit.

Her main gurus were Ustad Niaz Ahmed Khan and Ustad Faiyaz Ahmed Khan, the renowned maestros of the Kirana Gharana. Under their tutelage, she rose to be acknowledged as a first-rate vocalist of the Kirana Gharana.

Their musical careers flowered, with concerts in many cities of India and overseas, featuring both Kishori’s vocal music and Arvind’s sitar recitals.

Kishori behen also had the unique opportunity of both imbibing musical thought and being mentored by Ustad Vilayat Khan, and the privilege of being guided by the sarangi legend Ustad Sultan Khan, who also became part of the Parikh musical household.

Kishori behen also taught several students, and was loved and revered as a mother figure by all.

Their daughter Purvi and son Snehal were also inducted into the world of music at an early age.While Snehal took up the Sitar, Purvi pursued vocal music and is today an accomplished vocalist of the Kirana Gharana.

Kishoribehen and Arvindbhai’s wonderful and meaningful friendship and married life spanned nearly six decades, until she left our world peacefully on 7th Sept. 2006.
For more on Kishori behen’s Musical Journey:

KNOW MORE

Early Life