It’s Dr Shankar Mahadevan now: Composer receives honorary doctorate

Besides his award-winning songs, composer-singer Shankar Mahadevan has one more feather added to his cap. The musician was conferred with an honorary doctorate by the University of Birmingham (UK) at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire on Saturday (June 24). “It feels heartening. I come from a simple middle-class background and I’d never imagined receiving this kind of recognition one day. I feel it’s my work and my love for music that have been honoured,” says the Padma Shri recipient.

Besides his wife, Sangeeta Mahadevan, and his sons, singers Siddharth and Shivam, the 56-year-old also had his Shakti (music group) fam members, tabla maestro Ustad Zakir Hussain and guitarist John McLaughlin, in attendance: “They are not just my close friends, but also philosophers, guides and mentors in my musical journey. They were on the stage with me. I couldn’t have asked for more.”

Ask if he ever expected a doctorate and the musician, who is a computer engineer, says, “I’d never imagined in my wildest dreams that I’d receive a doctorate someday. The kind of marks I’d get as a computer engineering student testified that (laughs). The magic and joy of music changed everything,” says the Dhaakad (2022) composer, who plans to throw a party for his friends and family in Mumbai soon after returning to India.

Shankar realises that the honour comes with added responsibility. “When you receive a recognition like this, it becomes a greater responsibility as a musician to work even harder to touch many more lives with your music and give them the joy of music you are cut out to do,” he ends.