Shivani Mirajkar, born on 30th September 1995 in Dharwad to Rajendrakumar and Sadhana Mirajkar, is one of the most promising and upcoming Hindustani classical vocalists of India. Although not musicians themselves, her parents hold a special affinity for the performing arts – Rajendrakumar, a chemist and a yogi, is a frequent at local classical concerts while Sadhana, an LIC employee, used to dabble in Kannada and Marathi Theatre – a trait they apparently passed on to Shivani, who at the tender age of 9 years, began training with veteran Pandit Chandrashekhar Puranikmath of Dharwad,an exponent of the Gwalior-Kirana Gharanas and a recipient of the prestigious ‘Kanak Purandara’ award of the Government of Karnataka. Shivani credits Pt. Puranikmathfor having instilled in her a love and respect for the art in her formative years that would ultimately lead her to choose to pursue music as a career.

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The rich musical history of Dharwad, the scores of universities that dot its map and a culture shaped largely by its teeming student population – all factors that contribute to its reputation as a regional musical and educational hub – provided Shivani with an atmosphere that was highly conducive to pursuing her academic and musical journey. A bright student since her early years, Shivani did extremely well at Karnataka’s State Board (SSLC) Examination, but chose to forgo what could have been a lucrative career in engineering or medicine to devote herself entirely to the pursuit of music.

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In 2010, after the passing of Pt. Puranikmath, Shivani began learning from Pandit Kaivalyakumar Gurav of Dharwad, a renowned musician and guru hailing from the Kirana Gharana tradition of Hindustani music. Under his guidance, Shivani explored the intricacies of the Gharana which centre on the precise tuning and expression of notes. Since 2017, Shivani has been under the tutelage of Padmashree Pt. Ulhas Kashalkar of Pune, a prodigious representative of the Gwalior, Jaipur and Agra Gharanas. Such a diverse learning experience has allowed Shivani to imbibe the aesthetic beauty of each tradition into her own singing while being able to switch styles at will. At every performance she gives, her expansive training across different traditions simply condenses into a delightful confluence of melody and rhythm that never fails to surprise her audience.

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Endowed with a rich and resonant voice, Shivani has the ability to uncover great depths of every raaga she sings. Be it the sombre impressiveness of her Lalit or the mellifluous playfulness of her Vrindavni Sarang, one could liken the way she evokes emotion through raagas to having an intimate conversation with an old friend. Her tremendously flexible voice traverses notes across octaves with such precision and grace as to force her listeners to the edge of their seats with excitement. A standout feature of her singing is her incredibly swift Taans – which she executes with such power and precision that would make any connoisseur tip his or her hat with respect. Because of this quality she was titled ‘Gaana Saadhaki’ by Huccheshwara Mahaswami, Kamatagi, Karnataka. Although her forte is the Khyal form of singing, she believes in seeking beauty in all forms of music, a philosophy that drove her to excel in Thumri, Marathi Natyasangeet, Kannada Vachana, Bhajans ,etc styles of singing as well.

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Having learned from great and incredible Gurus, who have taught her not only the intricacies of ‘Gayki’ and performances but also to pass on this rich knowledge further, Shivani started teaching Hindustani music to students from all over the world at a young age of 19. She has taught and has been teaching over 50 students as of now, spreading the awareness and essence of this beautiful art.

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Shivani is a B-High graded artist of All India Radio and she has many awards in her crown which include

1. Dr Mallikarjun Mansur Youth Award 2021

2. Gold medal in National Level Youth Festival, 2012,

3. Kalashree Award, Karnataka.

4. Gaanavardhan, Pune,

5. Classical Voice of India, Lucknow, 2014

6. CCRT (Centre for Cultural Resources and Training).

7. Sri Shanmukhananda HDFC Bharat Ratna Dr M S Subbalaxmi Fellowship in music 2022

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She was invited for an In-Residence workshop at Rashtrapati Bhawan (by Govt of India).

She is among Top 3 winners of Naad Bhed Reality Show (for Indian classical music) organised by Spic-macay and Doordarshan. She has received standing ovation by Vidushi Parween Sultana and has been highly appreciated by the flute magician Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia along with Vidushi Vedavalli, Guru T Krishnan and Ustad Shahid Parvez among others.

Shivani has performed in many prestigious concerts in India and abroad such as

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❖ Harivallabh Sangeet Sammelan, Punjab (2016),

❖ Insync Tv Channel,

❖ NCPA (National Centre for Performing Arts), Mumbai,

❖ All India Radio, Delhi,

❖ Smriti Nandan, Bangalore, Infosys, Bangalore,

❖VIDYABHAVAN, BANGALORE

❖ JAWAHARLAL KALA KENDRA, JAIPUR,

❖ SOUTH CENTRAL ZONE CULTURAL CENTRE, NAGPUR

❖ GURU NANAK UNIVERSITY-AMRITSAR,

❖ SWARTEERTH (By Pt Jayteerth Mevundi), HUBLI

❖ SANSKAR BHARATI, FARIDABAD

❖ MYSORE DASARA, MYSORE

❖ CHALUKYA UTSAV, BADAMI

❖ NAVARASPUR UTSAV, BIJAPUR

❖ DHARWAD UTSAV, DHARWAD

❖ SWAR VILAS, BARODA,

❖ UTTARADHIKAR, DEVAL CLUB KOLHAPUR,

❖ ASHAKENDRA-TALEGAON, PUNE

❖ KALA DHAROHAR-HUBLI,

❖ NORTH ZONE CULTURAL CENTRE-PATIALA AND CHANDIGARH,

❖ USTAD ABDUL KARIM KHAN SMRITI, Miraj

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She was invited to be a delegate by the Ministry of Culture and Ministry of External Affairs in a Youth Exchange program to China, where she performed.