Mr. Akhilesh Das retired from Netaji Boys High School in 2020. He devoted 35 years of his life to teach his students the intricacies of Mathematics in Siliguri, West Bengal. However, merely a month after his retirement, COVID-19 lockdowns were placed in effect. This effectively curtailed the post retirement plans of Mr. Das.
With much free time on his hands, Mr. Das decided to take home classes for Classical Music, particularly for playing Sitar, and Sarod. Indian classical music was always his first love, in his own (translated) words Mr. Das says:
My family is closely related to Bishnupur Gharana of Bengal. So, music flows in our veins. Although I was rarely as good at Dhrupads, and Ragas, as my relatives, I could play Sitar and Sarod really well.
In fact I still vividly remember the early morning music recitals that me and my elder sister used to have with our Grandfather.”
When he was young, he wanted to become a famous Classical Musician like my great-uncle Satyakinkar Bandopadhyay, who was of the same gharana. I had also entertained the notions of providing my music in the Bollywood industry. However, it was not to be.
The untimely death of my father brough me back to reality. At 19 years of age, I tried to make ends meet by performing concerts & mahfils, in the place of my father, but I was too young, and too in-experienced to take his place. Even the support of my relatives was not enough, and slowly the new offers dried up. It was then when I decided to pursue my schooling in earnest.”
Due to his hard work he was successfully selected as a Mathematics Teacher at the Government School ( Netaji Boys High School) of Siliguri, West Bengal. Even after his selection he never stopped playing, and practiced almost on a daily basis. He even occasionally performed at local (Siliguri) Kirtans, Concerts, and Natyas, sometimes even free of cost.
On being asked why he continued to play even after landing a Government Job, he replies:
I have been playing almost on a daily basis for the past 63 years. I couldn’t stop then, and wouldn’t stop now. My great grand father devoted his life to music, and so did my grandfather, and father. Although, I wasn’t able to do so, I can still pay my respects to them by playing my instruments”
Mr. Das was happy to teach a few children that appeared in his classes to learn Sitar. It was then when a student of his advised him to take his classes online through EduGorilla in order to reach more students. After a short conversation with EduGorilla representatives, Mr. Das was ready to open his own website, and app – Learn Harmonics, for learning Sitar and Sarod.
Despite my family’s devotion to the art, I always felt that Classical Indian Music was an dying art in the 21st century. One abandoned by maestros who were unable to earn enough to sustain their family.
But when I opened Learn Harmonics, I was surprised to see so many youngsters joining within a week. I almost wept with joy, as I never thought it would be possible for me to earn this much with my music talent. Now I realize that it’s not the music which is dead, but the old ways of teaching”
Nowadays, Mr. Das continues to teach 2500+ students across India through his app & website. However, it’s not the lakhs earned monthly that he regards valuable. To him the real value is in the fact that he now has a way to bring the Classical Music of India to the Indian youth.
That was the story of Mr. Akhilesh Das, and how he turned his passion into his business. Don’t wait to start your journey towards success, explore our new features & add-ons by BOOKING A DEMO.
