Bhubaneswar: The country lost two legends of music on Sunday. Besides Lata Mangeshkar who passed away at the age of 92, Pandit Damodar Hota, eminent Hindustani and Odissi classical singer, also passed away at the age of 87 in Odisha’s capital.
Pandit Hota was a giant in the world of Hindustani and Odissi classical music: vocalist, guru, musicologist and researcher.
Born on December 25, 1935 in Puri, Pandit Hota started training in Odissi classical music under his father Gopinath Hota. He then trained under Guru Nrusinghanatha Khuntia in both Odissi and Hindustani classical music. Under the tutelage of Guru Kashinath Barika, he trained on tabla and Mardala.
A scholarship from Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi helped him continue his training under Pandit Omkarnath Thakur and Pandit Balwantrai Bhatt, a recipient of Padma Shri, from 1954 to 1960.
He obtained a doctorate from the Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya Mandal in Mumbai.
Over the decades, he trained students at various institutes and served as principal and senior faculty of classical music at Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya.
His research on Odissi classical music in the 1960s was groundbreaking as it revealed the historical roots, distinct ragas, talas, and lakshyanas of the genre.
For his research on Hindustani classical music, the Culture ministry awarded him both junior and senior fellowship.
The Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi honoured Pandit Hota in 1994-95 and in 2013-14, the Akademi gave him its highest award, Kabi Samrata Upendra Bhanja Purashkar.
