K.N.Shashikiran

Born into a family of renowned musicians on the 10th of September, Shashikiran soon made his mark in the family. His grandfather, Gottuvadyam Narayana Iyengar was a legend in his times, not to mention his father 'Chitravina' Narasimhan, a musician with a vision and mission and brother 'Chitravina' Ravikiran, and an internationally acclaimed genius. His father discovered Shashikirans's talents when he was a mere toddler and nurtured it with great care. Thus, at two, he stormed the music world as a child prodigy who could identify Ragas (melodies), demonstrate complicated Talas (rhythms) and answer other technical questions pertaining to Carnatic music. He has also had the privilege of honing his musical skills under stalwarts like T Brinda, T Vishwanathan and K S Krishnamurthy

His first vocal concert was at the age of 9, when he sang in tandem with his younger sister Kiranavali. He is now an established vocalist with a vast experience of over 1000 concerts including lectures-demos, jugalbandis and fusions in prominent organizations in India, USA, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia and so on. He has been regularly featured in Radio, Television networks and commercial albums. He also has the added advantage of being a mridangist, having trained under the late Palghat Sundaram.
He obtained a Bachelor's degree in Music from the University of Madras where he ranked first. Then followed a Master's degree in Music from the University of Madras where again his talents showed as he was a Gold Medalist. He is currently working towards achieving a Doctorate on "Teaching Methodology in Carnatic Music". Alongside he also holds a diploma in Audio and Video Technology.

Shashikiran has won laurels many a time for his talent. He was awarded the Rani Sethulakshmi Bai Memorial Award in 1990, the Best Pallavi Singer for his concert at the Rasika Ranjani. Shashikiran doesn't limit his himself to field of music alone. He contributes to other websites and newspapers through articles and reviews. Sabha in Trichy which was a series featuring many eminent musicians. In 1997 he received an award for being the Best Exponent of Any Raga from the Music Academy. Also included among this never ending list of accolades are an award from the Carnatic MusicAssociation of North America in 1998 for being the Best Vocalist and finally the Bharat Nirman Excellence Award in 1999 for meritorious accomplishments in diverse fields of activity that have immensely contributed to the Nation's progress. He is the youngest person and the first musician in India to receive this honour. He was the recipient of the Ford Foundation scholarship on the "Vina Dhanammal Bani" in 1990. His recent awards are Yuva Kala Bharathi-2001 -2002 & Outstanding Young Indian by Jaysees - Special millennium Honor award.

He was the lead male vocalist in Chitravina Ravikiran's ballet, Lakshmi Prabhavam, premiered in the US, which performed to packed halls and standing ovations in over 20 cities in the USA and Canada in between March and June 1997 .

He has conducted and compered several quiz programs, participated in panel discussions and presented papers in major centres like the Rice University, Houston; Ethnomusicology Society, Indiana State University; Drew University, New Jersey.
He was featured by the National Radio, Purdue, USA and US and Singapore Television networks
He is the Founder and Managing Director for Srishti's Carnatica Private Limited along with noted Carnatic vocalist S.Sowmya and is also the Managing Trustee of Carnatica Archival Centre. He was the Former Course Director and Chief Co-coordinator for the International Foundation for Carnatic Music . His success as a concert artiste has been immense and he is a very well known young artist of the present generation. He has had over five years of successful experience in management, administration, co-ordination, public relations, concept-designing and marketing.