PM Modi congratulates Zakir Hussain, Rakesh Chaurasia, others on Grammy win

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated Zakir Hussain, Rakesh Chaurasia, Shankar Mahadevan, Ganesh Rajagopalan, and Selvaganesh Vinayakram on winning big at the 2024 Grammy Awards.

In an X post, the prime minister praised the five artists for making India proud at the Los Angeles-based musical extravaganza.

"Congratulations @ZakirHtabla, @Rakeshflute, @Shankar_Live, @kanjeeraselva, and @violinganesh on your phenomenal success at the #GRAMMYs ! Your exceptional talent and dedication to music have won hearts worldwide.

"India is proud! These achievements are a testament to the hardwork you keep putting in. It will also inspire the new generation of artists to dream big and excel in music," Modi said.

Flute player Rakesh Chaurasia, nephew of legendary flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia, thanked the prime minister for his wishes. The musician won two Grammys as part of the ensemble of American banjo player Bela Fleck and American bassist Edgar Meyer for "Pashto" and "As We Speak".

"Thank you very much Honourable PM @narendramodi ji. Your wishes truly mean a lot. I feel extremely happy and proud as an Indian to bring 2 Grammys home.. A surreal and overwhelming feeling. Thank you to all for your love and blessings," he wrote in his reply to Modi.

While tabla maestro Hussain was India's big winner with three Grammys, Rakesh Chaurasia picked up two. Singer Mahadevan, violinist Rajagopalan and percussionist Selvaganesh, Hussain's collaborators in the fusion group Shakti, won one Grammy each at the event held at the Crypto.com Arena Sunday night.

Besides his best global music album award for Shakti's "This Moment", Hussain won two other awards -- the best global music performance for "Pashto" and best contemporary instrumental album for "As We Speak".

"This Moment" features the four Indians as well as its founding member, the legendary British guitarist John McLaughlin. The album, which released to critical acclaim in June 2023, is the group's first studio album in more than 45 years.