Sitarist Rishab Rikhiram Sharma highlights music, meditation & mental health

New Delhi: India's classical music tradition may be centuries old, but sitarist Rishab Rikhiram Sharma has turned it into an innovative personal tool for navigating modern mental health challenges.

Speaking at the ET Now Global Business Summit during a session which blended conversation with performance, he reflected on how music helped him get through a difficult period during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"I think music was very instrumental, no pun intended," he said. "But I think it was a combination of therapy, music and working out that really helped me get out of that phase that I was in during Covid... I feel like music has been keeping me and my mental health in check."


This personal experience spurred Sharma to create immersive sitar-led experiences focused on mental well-being.

At his concerts, the format goes beyond performance. "At our shows, we start with a breathing exercise, then we lead on to the meditation, then we do alaap, jod and jhala, which is Dhrupad music, a very ancient tradition in our culture," Sharma explained.

His shows then transition to Bollywood melodies, patriotic themes and original compositions, among others. "We've crafted this set which is more like a community experience than just being a concert," he said.

Audience feedback has reinforced his belief in music's emotional power. "We receive so many testimonies and so many personal experiences, like people having emotional releases at the shows," he said. "Whatever happens, happens in that moment."

Regarding his concerts, the sitarist said, "You'll never see the first half of my show repeated twice. It's completely improvised."

Asked whether that unpredictability sends audiences into a trance, he said, "I think it's a two-way street. It's a journey for both of us because I don't know what I'm going to play."

The science behind the music

Sharma is also exploring the science behind sound. He remarked that ongoing scientific research is examining brainwaves and electrocardiogram (ECG) responses to sitar recitals.

"There is some ongoing research that we are doing, where we are recording brainwaves, ECG reports and monitoring them... what happens when you listen to the sitar," he said. "It's still a work in progress. It'll be a couple of years before we can get real, actual data."

This year marks a significant milestone in his touring journey. After cancelling five shows last year due to the India-Pakistan conflict, he is mounting a scaled-up comeback tour. "This is sort of a comeback from last year," he said.

The 10-city pan-India tour, with Delhi and Mumbai already sold out, will continue to focus on "breathing, meditation, just taking a pause," in what he describes as an antidote to an overstimulated world.

Beyond genres

Though devotional music now plays a larger role in his repertoire, Sharma resists being boxed into a single genre. "Don't get me wrong, I'm super hip-hop myself," he admitted, adding that he listens to Kanye West and Playboi Carti.

But he believes the growing youth interest in devotional music reflects broader shifts. "Gen Zs are drinking less. They are focusing more on health... I think this was a natural by-product," he noted.

Still, he maintains perspective. "I never claimed to be a therapist," he said. "I can only speak from my experiences, how it has helped my mental health. Try it. If it works for you, it works. If it doesn't, it doesn't."

As the evening closed with chants of "Om Namah Shivaya" and a live rendering of "Shiv Kailash", Sharma left the audience not with spectacle, but with stillness: a reminder that in an age of noise, pause itself can be powerful.

"We are so overstimulated all the time," he said, "These experiences come like a pause for you."