Sanjit Anand plays the violin in Ranchi. Picture by Hardeep Singh

Ranchi, March 13: Sanchit Anand, a Class XI student of Delhi Public School (DPS), Ranchi, will soon regale audiences in London but at present he is gearing up to share space with renowned classical maestros from all over India.

The 17-year-old city lad, along with other vocal and classical artistes, will be the youngest among those participating in a two-day cultural programme, “Mausami Rag Utsav”, in Bokaro on March 17 and 18.

Organised jointly by the Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre (EZCC), Calcutta and the state government, the initiative was taken by the art and culture department to promote young upcoming talents.

They were selected at the behest of award-winning flutist, Chetan Joshi, on the request of the art and cultural department. “In this way we can provide a platform to budding talents,” said Harendra Sinha, assistant director of the art and cultural department. Sanchit started playing the violin when he was in Class IV. “I bought my French violin from Calcutta. I got inspired by my family members who are very involved in classical dance and music. But I decided to choose a different area in this field,” said Sanchit. He seemed confident about his upcoming performance. “I would get a chance to interact with senior classical artistes from all over the country. It’s a privilege to be chosen,” Sanchit said enthusiastically.

His guru, Sanjay Guha, a sitarist-based in London, usually visits Patna once or twice a month. “I visit him to pick up the finer nuances of the violin,” he added.

Besides, he has been receiving a monthly scholarship of Rs 400 for the past three years from the Ministry of Culture, New Delhi. “I had won a national-level musical competition in Calcutta in 2002 and had received a selection letter and thereafter continued getting the scholarship,” said Sanchit.

He has also taken part in a programme in Dehradun and performed in the state capital several times. “I have given my fifth-year exam from Parchin Kala Kendra in Chandigarh. Apart from pursuing my education, violin will be my all time passion,” he added.