Mahesh Kale, is a San Francisco Bay Area-based Indian Classical vocalist renowned for Indian Classical (Hindustani), Semi-Classical, Devotional music, and Natya Sangeet. Kale, after winning India’s National Film Award as the Best Playback Singer, for classical piece in the film Katyar Kaljat Ghusli (2016), has firmly established himself as the face of Indian classical music of the new generation. Honed in the Gurukul system of learning from the legendary Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki, he has an illustrious pedigree, and his thrilling performances bear this out.

 

Mahesh maintains an open outlook towards music to reach out to the new generation, while retaining the traditions. He has performed with world percussionists including Zakir Hussain, Trilok Gurtu, and Sivamani, and instrumentalists like Stanley Jordan, Pedro Eustache, George Brooks and Frank Martin, in collaborative works, ably demonstrating his versatility as a composer and singer. In an effort to spread awareness and education about Indian classical music in the western world, Mahesh has given lecture-­demonstrations and talks at various academic institutions including Stanford University, Harvard University, IISc Bangalore, TEDx, and the Commonwealth Club.

 

Mahesh is one of the most sought-after performers globally and has performed extensively in India, USA, Canada, Europe, UAE, Southeast Asia, and Australia. From prestigious music conferences like the Sawai Gandharva Sangeet Mahotsav (Pune), Saptak Festival (Ahmedabad) to unlikely venues like the NH7 weekender and Stanford Jazz Festival, Mahesh is truly a global ambassador of Indian Classical Music. He is also a popular judge on the Sur Nava Dhyas Nava TV show on Colors Marathi channel.

 

Founder of Indian Classical Music and Arts Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on preserving, nurturing and celebrating Indian Classical Music, Mahesh is also a teacher and an inspiration for a motivated student body of over a hundred fifty students in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Gargi Jamdar is following