Rishab Sharma is getting Gen Z excited about the sitar
Rishab Rikhiram Sharma was in New York, half a-flat, when his beloved Nanu was admitted to the hospital in Delhi. It was at the end of 2020, in the middle of the coco-19 cocovid pandemic, without any means for him to go home. His only link with his maternal grandfather – isolated in the hospital service, with a single authorized visitor – was through FaceTime, and the Prodigy Sitar would play his favorite songs.
“After losing it, I was broken. It was the lowest point in my life,” recalls Sharma, 26, speaking of his living room in Delhi. “I was depressed and treating a lot of anxiety. I did not leave my room, I did not eat and I completely lost the will to play music. ”
Sharma finally asked for therapy to overcome his depression. In due time, he resumed Sitar, incorporating music as part of his therapeutic process. He was going to live on Instagram or clubhouse and would play his heart, imagining that his grandfather was still somewhere there, listening. Between the songs, he spoke of his loss and his mental health. “It has become this virtual room where everyone met for each other, to share our sorrow,” explains Sharma. “I started calling these Sitar sessions for mental health (SFMH) because I used my voice – Sitar – to talk about mental health.”
