Sunil Ganguly

Sunil Ganguly was a renowned Indian instrumentalist from Kolkata, celebrated for his mastery of the Hawaiian electric guitar. Born on January 1, 1938, in Sonamura, Tripura, he moved to Kolkata with his family during his childhood. Ganguly's musical journey began with winning the All India Youth Guitar competition, which led to his introduction to All India Radio by Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. He trained in Western music under Oscar Jones and later in North Indian Classical music under Pt. Ajoy Sinha Roy, a disciple of Baba Alauddin Khan. This unique blend of musical influences allowed him to develop a distinctive "gayaki" style of playing, which was groundbreaking at the time.

Ganguly's career spanned over four decades, with his first album released in 1957. He created numerous albums with HMV India (now Saregama), Concorde Records, and Sagarika, featuring instrumental renditions of Hindi film songs, ghazals, Bengali film songs, Nazrul Geeti, Rabindra Sangeet, and more. Some of his notable albums include *Ghazal Chhedi Usne*, *The Classic Touch*, *Surer Jharna*, and *Magic Melody*. He was a frequent performer on Doordarshan and All India Radio, and his live shows were highly acclaimed across India. Sunil Ganguly passed away on June 12, 1999, leaving behind a legacy as one of India's most beloved instrumentalists.