Sumana Chandrashekar is a ghatam player, music researcher, writer and storyteller based in Bangalore. A student of Carnatic vocal music for over 25 years, she later found her calling in the ghatam. She has been studying the ghatam under Vidushi Sukanya Ramgopal, one of India’s most acclaimed ghatam exponents and the country’s first woman ghatam artist. In Carnatic vocal music, she has been trained under many gurus and is currently guided by Vidushi Rupa Sridhar. 

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​Straddling the worlds of practice and research, Sumana's work lies at the confluence of performance, pedagogy and cultural inquiry. Her work spans traditional Carnatic concert performances, experimental works and collaborations, and a deep engagement with the craft and cultural history of the ghatam.

 

Sumana has performed extensively in major festivals across the country as an accompanist, soloist and as part of ensembles. ​Along with her guru, she has performed at the awards ceremony of the Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi, at the annual conference of the Music Academy Madras, Museum of Art and Photography, Bangalore, Tansen Samaroh, Gwalior, Mahindra Sanatkada Festival, Lucknow, Ziro Festival of Music to name a few.

 

As a soloist, she has offered lecture performances, often blending ghatam playing with poetry and narration. Her experimental performances and collaborations reflect her interdisciplinary approach to rhythm and storytelling. 

 

Passionate about the socio-cultural history of Carnatic music, her specific research interest lies in the histories of languages, migration, and musical confluences.

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Sumana has been part of the core team that designed the music education component of the Arts Education resource book put together by the DSERT for government school teachers across Karnataka.

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She has also facilitated a ghatam making training project in Manamadurai, supported by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi.

 

Sumana is the author of  Song of the Clay Pot: My Journey with the Ghatam, a memoir that chronicles her personal and artistic journey with the ghatam.