Born and brought up in Mangalore, a township in Southern Karnataka;
Upendra began his musical career under Sangeeth Vidwan Shri Narayan Pai of
Mangalore.He then received further training under Pandit Madhav Gudi,a
senior disciple of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.In 1980 upendra shifted to
Pune.Since then,he has been under the vigilant eyes of his Guru and has
been receiving regular training from Bhimsenji. In 1996,on the occassion of the 7th Birth Anniversary of Saint Dnyaneshwar,Upendra was felicitated for his musical talent at the hands of the Honourable President of India,Shri Shankar Dayal Sharma.He received the 'Musician of the year Award' in the year 2000,from the Andra Pradesh Associatin of North America.He was also awarded a citation for his contribution as a classical vocalist,during the 'Millennium Konkani Sammelan',held in Chicago,in the year 2000. Upendra has been gifted with a well-seasoned,sonorous and pliant voice.His classical renditions are marked by a systematic development of a raag structure,expressive singing and powerful taans.He also excels in singing other musical genres like Ghazals,Thumris,Bhajans and light musical numbers.He has several Marathi,Hindi,Kannad and Konkani songs in his repertoire and can easily delight any type of audience - laymen or connoisseurs.From the beginning to the conclusion,he keeps his audience captivated.
Even after his tremendous success as a performer,the simplicity and
humanity of his character remains unchanged.Upendra Bhat continues to be
warm and friendly to his organizers and listeners.Listeners all over the
world can expect a lot from this dedicated and unassuming follower of
Indian Classical Music! |