Playing my sitar for strangers brought me back to myself

Born into a family of renowned sitar makers in Delhi, Rishab Sharma first picked up the instrument in 2009 when he was 11 years old. His extraordinary talent soon caught the attention of legendary Indian sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar who took him under his wing as a student in the final years of his life.

Rishab continued playing throughout his teens, even after moving to New York for university. But when his beloved grandfather died in 2020 during the global pandemic, Rishab could not leave the US to see his family, and fell into a deep depression, finding himself unable to pick up his instrument at all. Eventually, he sought professional help, and it was his therapist who encouraged him to start playing again.

Confined to his bedroom during lockdown, Rishab started live-streaming his sitar playing on social media for strangers, while talking freely about mental health struggles and grief. He called his music sessions Sitar for Mental Health.

What began as a personal way of processing his grief soon struck a chord with audiences around the world. Rishab built a devoted online following, and when lockdown restrictions lifted, he began performing in front of live audiences. The crowds grew rapidly, and today his Sitar for Mental Health experience has become an unlikely phenomenon, with Rishab playing to tens of thousands of people all around the world.

(Photo: Rishab Sharma holds his sitar and looks towards the camera. He is wearing a green silk shirt and trousers. In the background are two arches illuminated in red and blue light in the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi. Credit: Getty Images)

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Presenter: Mobeen Azhar
Producer: Zoe Gelber