BRHAD-KALA Autumn 2026 Concert Series - Shambhava Srikanth/Sivani Saraswatula

BRHAD-KALA, in association with Kala Bharati Orpington, is pleased to present a double bill of Veena and Vocal concerts for Autumn 2026, featuring Veena player Shambhava Srikanth from Portland, Oregon, USA and Carnatic vocalist Sivani Saraswatula from Germany. Join us for an evening of rich melody and rhythm as these gifted performers share the soulful depths of South Indian classical music, continuing Orpington's growing tradition of celebrating Carnatic arts now in its third year of curation.

PROGRAMME

4pm: Shambhava Srikanth - Veena, Sriram Shriananda - Mridangam

5.15pm: Sivani Saraswatula - Vocal, Mathangi Uthayakumar - Violin, P. Kirupakaran - Mridangam, Kajan Kugendran - Kanjira

About the Artists 

Shambhava Srikanth - Veena

Shambhava Srikanth is a long-time disciple of Sreevidhya Chandramouli and Chandramouli Narayanan, and has studied Veena and Voice in the Karaikudi Veena tradition since early childhood. He has performed multiple times in his hometown of Portland, Oregon, in the United States, and is looking forward to his first concert in Chennai this December.

Sriram Shriananda - Mridangam

Sriram Shriananda learnt the Mridangam under the tutelage of Shri P Kirupakaran and performed his Mridangam arangetram in January 2011 at the age of 13. Following his arangetram, Sriram has accompanied many young artists in the UK at their vocal, Veena and Bharatanatyam arangetrams and participated in a variety of Carnatic concerts. More recently, Sriram has performed at the prestigious Darbar Festival.

Sivani Saraswatula - Vocal

Sivani studied mechanical engineering and worked in IT for several years before moving to Germany, where music took center stage in her life. Her path as a musician found early recognition when she won a Telugu reality singing show, Padutha Theeyaga, in India, judged and hosted by the late Padma Vibhushan S.P. Balasubramanyam.

Since then, Sivani has built a career as a vocalist — Carnatic, and also as a versatile singer who moves easily between Indian classical, devotional, and traditional folk music, across many languages and genres, a range that has become her signature as an artist. She has performed across Germany, Switzerland, the USA, and India, and has also lent her voice to playback singing in Telugu and Kannada films. She brings her Carnatic roots into fusion collaborations with jazz musicians in Germany, and has also recorded for a Carnatic jazz fusion album. Alongside her performing career, she also teaches vocal music. Over the years, her work has been driven by a deeper intent — building audiences for Indian classical arts in Germany.

Sivani has been deeply involved with the Isha Foundation since 2009, holding great reverence for her guru, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev. She has been part of various programs and numerous initiatives over the years, including the global Save Soil movement, which spanned 25 nations advocating for soil regeneration.

Apart from her musical journey, Sivani is also a Bharatanatyam dancer. She has been part of the board of Klassischer Indischer Tanz Deutschland (KITD e.V.) since its inception nearly four years ago — the first association of its kind for Indian classical dancers in Germany, created by dancers, for dancers, bringing the community together under one umbrella.

Through it all, Sivani remains deeply grateful to her parents and her gurus — Vidwan Shri D. Raghavachary, the late Shri D. Seshachary (Hyderabad Brothers), Vidwan Shri Malladi Sreeramprasad (Malladi Brothers), Dr. Vyzarsu Balasubramanyam, Dr. Uma Devi, M. Gopalakrishna and K. Ramachary (light music), and Smt. Geetha Ganeshan (Bharatanatyam) — for shaping her as an artist.

Mathangi Uthayakumar - Violin

Mathangi Uthayakumar is a Carnatic Violin artiste from London, initially learnt from Bangalore Shri Balu Raguraman and currently under the tutelage of legendary violin maestro Padmashri A. Kanyakumari. Mathangi also learnt Carnatic Vocal initially from Late Smt. Saraswathy Packiarasa and currently learning from Kalaimamani Sikkil C Gurucharan. Mathangi’s initial interest in music stemmed from Pannisai (Thevaram, Thirupugazh) classes with Othuvar Sami Thandapani. Mathangi, alongside her sister Sambavi, perform solo and duet concerts regularly across the UK, and  India during the December season.

P Kirupakaran - Mridangam

P Kirupakaran hails from a family of musicians, learning vocal under his father Vallipuram Paramasamy. He began his Mridangam tutelage under Shri. M. Sithambaranathan and Shri. S. Mahendran at Anaamalai Isai Tamil Manrum, Nallur. He furthered his training under the esteemed Mridanga Maestro Guru Karaikudi R. Mani, developing such intricate and sympathetic techniques of playing Mridangam. He has participated in Ruphavahini, the Sri Lankan TV broadcasting channel, Norwegian TV, the BBC and Greater London Radio.

Kajan Kugendran - Kanjira

Kajan Kugendran began his musical journey at the age of four under the tutelage of Shri Padmanabn Jayaram and later came under the guidance of the late Shri Kandiah Anandanadesan. He is currently taking further training under Shri Anirudh Athreya. Specialising in mridangam and kanjira, Kajan has developed into a versatile percussionist who has accompanied many artists such as Lalgudi Krishnan, lalgudi Vijayalaskmi, kruthi bhatt and Kamalakiran Vinjamuri just to name a few.

About BRHAD-KALĀ

BRHAD-KALĀ is an initiative by Brhaddhvani Global Centre for Music-UK. Its primary objective is to bring performers, teachers, students, and communities together through a series of chamber performances highlighting the importance of culture, heritage, tradition, and the interconnectedness of art forms. Chamber performances are intended to be held in private houses or small community spaces for audiences to interact with artistes which will enhance their appreciation and knowledge for the performing arts vital for its survival in society. 

BRHAD-KALĀ provides a platform and support for emerging and professional artistes to share their experience and knowledge of their art form to students and the wider community through performances and workshops. The platform will also encourage students to showcase their journey of learning music to an audience. 

Brhaddhavni’s vision and mission in India for over 3 decades has been to ensure the performing arts is accessible to all irrespective of their background, gender, age, religion, caste, and economic circumstances. BGCM-UK is committed to propagating this vision and mission in the UK.

About KALA BHARATI

Kala Bharati, Orpington is a group of local enthusiasts who are keen to encourage Indian classical arts in the southeast.