no, no joke, I actually sent this letter to my daily newspaper, The Hindustan Times. I hope it isn’t too pathetic. I received to response which is not surprising. It is vacation time and I am sure the concerned editor is out of town.
Dear Sir/Madam, I would be most grateful if this letter could be passed to the person or persons concerned with culture/entertainment.
Like all connoisseurs of Indian classical music I am disappointed in the lack of coverage in your newspaper. As a remedy I would like to propose a weekly column from Mumbai written by me. I am a vocalist myself with many years of experience, although I do not perform in public. Instead of the hackneyed style of writing on classical music from the past or the inconsequential superficiality of the occasional article that makes it to the paper now, I would suggest a different approach, serious but lively covering any aspect of music. I have my own blog devoted to classical music http://musicmumbai.wordpress.com/ and am an active participant in internet discussion groups. I have had a previous book review published in the Journal of Indian Musicological Society Journal (also posted here http://debatesangeet.blogspot.com/2008_04_01_archive.html ). I do not foresee something as analytical as this for the newspaper and not limited to only classical music. I have been living in Mumbai for the past 15 years. I attend concerts regularly and I know many of the prominent musicians. I believe there is a great interest in Indian classical music, that it is important, and Mumbai is the centre of activity. It is not dull and boring but for the modern readership requires lively writing and interesting subjects.
As a loyal long-term subscriber to the Hindustan Times I see potential in doing something different and attracting a public looking for something other than Bollywood. I will be happy to discuss it further, if you are interested.
