Why the sitar, in particular?
In 1983, my whole family upped and left for Leicester, UK, where my dad started on his PhD. At school, they offered many instruments as part of the music curriculum. I picked the guitar, but the teacher was a really scary looking guy: he had a moustache and beard that made him look like the antichrist version of Colonel Sanders. Then my friends told me of the sitar teacher — a really soft, humble guy, who we could jump all over What would you have done, at age 11? My career was carved at that moment. You were quite the child prodigy, winning the 1985 Musician of the Year award from the London Carnatic Music Circle. What kind of influence did your family have on your interest in classical Indian music? My parents, Dr and Mrs Karthigesu, were always enthralled by music, especially South Indian Carnatic music. I would hear it all the time, at home: in my early days, the cassette player was on 24 / 7 — no CDs, then. No! It does not mean I am ancient. My parents always gave me that subtle
