Anoushka Shankar, the daughter of Indian sitar maestro Ravi Shankar, has honed her popularity worldwide. She is a British-American sitar player and musician of Indian descent, as well as an occasional writer and actor. Shankar, who has already been nominated for a Grammy, will be adding one more feather to her cap with an honorary degree from the most prestigious University of Oxford in June this year.
Nine-time Grammy-nominated sitarist, Shankar who has co-composed the score for Mira Nair’s six-part series ‘A Suitable Boy’ has worked with the likes of global stars, such as Sting, Μ.Ι.Α., Herbie Hancock, Arooj Aftab and Joshua Bell.
The prestigious recognition is being conferred “in recognition of her outstanding achievements within the music industry” and Shankar’s profound influence on the global music landscape and her unwavering commitment to bridging cultural divides through her art. In a noteworthy first, Anoushka achieves the distinction of being the first musician of Indian origin to be conferred with this coveted honour.
Shankar sharing her happy moment on social media said that this is a ‘pinch-me moment’ in her life.
Sharing her excitement over this news, Anoushka Shankar said in her statement, “This is truly a pinch-me moment in my career; I never even dreamed I might receive an honour such as this, let alone from one of the most prestigious Universities in the world. I am deeply grateful to Oxford University for conferring me with an honorary degree.”
Shankar will be awarded her degree on June 19 at the world-famous university’s annual Encaenia academic ceremony alongside Warren East, Sir Demis Hassabis, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Sir Michael Palin and Professor Salim Yusuf as part of a total 2024 cohort of six honorary degrees.
On the professional front, Anoushka has released the first two instalments of her mini-album trilogy with Chapter I: Forever, For Now in October of last year followed by Chapter II: How Dark It Is Before Dawn in April this year. March 2024 saw the release of her duet A Rock Somewhere with six-time Grammy (logo) Award-winning British musician Jacob Collier as part of his latest album Djesse Vol. 4.
