Akshata-Pulikeshi

It gives me a nostalgic feeling when I’m thinking to write about myself. Running down those memory lanes, brings up the sweet memories of the musical environment provided by my mother during my childhood. She herself is a good singer and taught me all the old Hindi, Kannada and some Marathi songs.

I recollect my musical endeavor began at the age of 12. It all started when my dad bought a small keyboard for my mom. I just couldn’t resist the temptation and started playing that tiny Casio, hiding from the observant eyes of my dad. It took me two long weeks to play the first two lines of 'Saare jahan se accha…’ by trial and error method. From then on I was pretty comfortable playing any song I hear. This success provided the impetus to consider my passion seriously. Probably at this point my parents realized that I was interested in music and thus was my unrestricted entry into the lovely world of music.

I was born and brought up in Belgaum, Karnataka. Having finished my engineering, I worked in Bangalore for about 2 yrs as a software engineer, before landing in the US – a typical IT path so to say. It was only after coming to the US, I started learning about all the exciting new softwares, synthesizers and recording equipments. I got back into the circle of music by joining a couple of music bands here in Atlanta, GA and this is when I attempted singing on a regular basis.

About two and half years back I met my soul-mate Akshata.

Writing about yourself, I think is probably the most difficult task to do. Life was much more easier in the kindergarten days, where my parents worded the ‘Myself’ composition for me. Now I find this reflective process as a mammoth task dwarfed by my writing skills. However, I’ll still make a genuine attempt.

Born and brought up in the crowded streets of Mumbai, I moved to a more serene city of Dharwad in Karanataka to complete my professional degree in Physical Therapy. Before being blissfully married and moving to the US, I paid back my tributes to the Mumbai city by serving as a Physical Therapist for two years.

As far as my love for music is concerned, it’s been there ever since my childhood days. I remember dancing to the tunes of my favorite song ‘Ek main aur ek tu’ when I was just 3. Realizing my passion for music, my parents tried to enroll me into a formal music class. Since there were no classes in the vicinity, they ended up putting me into a dance class instead. Though not directly related to the vocal talent, learning kathak dance helped me gain the sense of appropriate beat and rhythm.

Despite the fact that I managed to bag a few accolades participating in cultural activities and orchestra during my school and college days, it made me realize that my miniscule talent was far from being a good singer. I always felt my raw talent needed grooming and nourishment and this exactly is what I'm getting from Taranaa and Taranites.

About two and half years back I met my soul-mate Pulikeshi.

Ours was a simple arranged marriage and we are very fortunate to have each other as soul-mates who share a common passion for music. We enjoy singing and we learn a lot from each other all the time. We were recently blessed with a little girl Tanvi who is now eight weeks old. The little bundle of joy has kept us busy and singing has definitely taken a back seat.

We would like to thank Taranaa and all the Taranites for supporting, encouraging and considering us for SoM title.

Your feedback and comments are of paramount importance to us and will be appreciated a lot.

Tum kya mile ‘Taranaa’
Pyar zindagi se ho gaya
Aji izzat afzai ka shukriya shukriya
In nacheezon ko aap ne kaabil to samjha.

It is a joyous moment for both of us to begin the new year celebrations on the happy note of being SoM on Taranaa.

Wish you all a very happy and musical 2007 !!!