ABOUT AISHWARYA
Aishwarya Vidhya Raghunath, popularly known as AVR is a Carnatic Vocalist from Bengaluru. Her music is a deep meditation in the art and her every concert is an experience worth remembering. She is an A-grade artiste of All India Radio and Doordarshan.
Lineage and Gurus
Aishwarya VR has the honour of being the disciple of musical stalwarts – Sangita Kalacharya (Late) Smt Seethalakshmi Venkatesan, Padma Bhushan (Late) Shri PS Narayanaswamy, Sangeetha Kala Sagaram Smt. Vegavahini Vijayaraghavan, and Sangita Kalanidhi Vidwan Shri RK Shriramkumar thus being moulded into the Semmangudi bani and the Veena Dhanammal bani.
Early life and training
She began learning music at the age of 3 under the tutelage of Smt. PS Vasantha and gave her first solo public performance at the age of 13. A consummate musician, Aishwarya’s performances have found expression in lecture demonstrations, creative collaborations and public concerts at venues of global repute both in India and around the world.
Career and key performances
From performances at niche venues such as the historically significant Vishnu Temple in Jodhpur to cultural institutions such as Madras Music Academy, Shanmukhanada Hall in Mumbai, Bangalore Gayana Samaj, Bangalore International Centre and Rabindra Mandap in Bhubaneshwar as well centres of high learning such as IISc Bengaluru, IIT Madras, University of Miami and others; Aishwarya’s endeavour has been to take the joy and magic of Carnatic music to diverse audiences across the world. In 2018, she completed a 2-month concert tour of USA and Canada with CMANA (Carnatic Music Association of North America).
Awards and Recognition
She is a highly awarded artiste; having received the prestigious “Senior Outstanding Vocalist” Award from Madras Music Academy in 2026, the Gold Medal for Pallavi singing from the Madras Music Academy, the Sub-senior Outstanding Vocalist prize for 3 consecutive years from the Madras Music Academy. She is also the recipient of important awards like the Kalki Krishnamurthy Award, M.S. Subbulakshmi Award, Yuva Purandara, D.K. Pattammal Award, Raga Laya Prabha and the prestigious Govt. of India Scholarship from the Ministry of Culture. Aishwarya Vidhya Raghunath has also been featured in numerous interviews, reviews and articles in mainstream print media like The Hindu and Deccan Herald.
Collaborations and Confluences
Aishwarya has been part of several noteworthy and imaginative collaborations. In “Meeting Rivers,” a special concert with eminent Hindustani vocalist Priya Purushothaman, the duo explored the beautiful convergences between Hindustani and Carnatic music. Another memorable experience was “Blue Planet,” a concert series curated by First Edition Arts, where Aishwarya and vocalist Brindha Manickavasakan travelled to Nagaland—performing at a dramatic cliff edge and sharing Carnatic music with new audiences. She has also collaborated extensively with the thoughtful and dynamic musician Rithvik Raja, creating work marked by musical depth and intellectual rigour. Aishwarya has also collaborated with the versatile dancer Parshwanath Upadhye, where together they ventured into presenting Carnatic concert compositions that are rarely explored in the realm of dance. As one of the foremost custodians of the Veena Dhanammalbani, she curated and presented an entire concert dedicated to Padams and Javalis, offering audiences a rare and intimate glimpse into this exquisite tradition.
More about Aishwarya
Aishwarya’s other great passion is for painting; she is proficient in oil painting, acrylic painting, water colours and charcoal drawings. In April 2017, Aishwarya’s art was recognized by Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath through the exhibition, Akanksha. She is a part of Artists for Wildlife and Nature, promoting conservation and environmentalism through her paintings that were exhibited from 2018-2020 at Venkatappa Gallery and Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath. In the year 2024, Aishwarya participated in the India Arts Festival, Bangalore. Academically, Aishwarya is a Biotech Engineer from the renowned PES Institute of Technology, Bangalore and worked for a while as an executive at Biocon. She is now a full-time musician and lives with her husband, child and two dogs in Bangalore.
