Abhishek Borkar

Profile Image

Abhishek Borkar is rapidly gaining recognition as one of India’s finest young sarod players. His father Pandit Shekhar Borkar is a renowned maestro of the instrument who also invented the surtarang ('wave of notes'), a combination of sarod and veena. He trained his sons Abhishek and Praashekh in his own tarankaar baaz playing style, which mixes the Maihar gharana of Ustad Allauddin Khan with ideas from khayal vocal music, notably including intricate ornamentation of taans (melodic lines).

The brothers grew up steeped in his unique musical fusion, and now tour the world with it while also exploring in their own directions. Abhishek, the younger, made his performance debut at 10 and released his first album at 16. His imaginative approach draws on sitarists and sarangi players as well as sarod greats such as Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. He is also an accomplished guitarist, and teaches students on both his instruments.

"The limitations of the sarod can be surpassed because music comes from the heart, and the heart never ceases to sing"

Darbar believes in the power of Indian classical music to stir, thrill, and inspire. Explore our YouTube channel, or subscribe to the Darbar Concert Hall to watch extended festival performances, talk and documentaries in pristine HD and UHD quality.

Other artists you may like

Abhisek Lahiri

Abhisek Lahiri is a gharana-blending young sarod player, who fuses ideas from the Shahjahanpur, Maihar, and Senia...

read more

Debasmita Bhattacharya

Debasmita Bhattacharya is one of India’s finest young sarod players. She balances a deep knowledge of classical forms...

read more

Wajahat Khan

Ustad Wajahat Khan is acclaimed as a sarod master, but hails from the illustrious Imdadkhani sitar gharana - his...

read more

Rajrupa Chowdhury  

“If I play Raag Yaman in Rajasthan versus in London, there needs to be a difference. There’s a different geography,...

read more

See Full Festival concerts from our extensive archive,
and hundreds of other exclusive performances with
Darbar Player

Download our app and watch on the go
New exclusive releases every month
Watch anytime, anywhere


START FREE TRIAL

Free for 3 days. Cancel anytime.
Pay £9.95/month

Follow us

Keep up to date with the latest news, events, music and musings across our social channels

YouTube latest

For hundreds more clips and shorts, vist our YT page here

Subscribe to our newsletters

Be the first to hear before events go on sale. Get the latest news and articles from Darbar