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Audio

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Music

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Panopus Pictures

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I was working as a musical demonstrator

in tourist shops and the way I used to

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deal with musical instruments nobody

dealt

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because I used to tune all the

instruments in one kind of pitch

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so if I played one instrument,

all of the instruments used to vibrate

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and everybody loved it.

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Some tourists wanted me to teach them

to play music

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and one of them got interested to bring

me to Europe

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and he gave me the ticket.

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When I arrived I was so excited but I

had only two dollars in my pocket.

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Okay now our winner is a truly

inspiring individual,

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who despite suffering a severe disability

has gone on to achieve outstanding success.

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Through his music he has collaborated with artists from across the world

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saying he wants to bring

understanding between cultures.

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He's worked with the likes of 

Stevie Wonder, Annie Lennox, and Shakira.

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So the winner of the GG2 achievement

through adversity award

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goes to Baluji Shrivastav,

musical director and founder

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of the Baluji Music Foundation.

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Mr. Dhanoday Shrivastav

for services to music.

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Baluji

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Okay prince!

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Prince!

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We've got two princes!

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Baluji the great king

and Madam the great queen

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You look as though you're both getting married today

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- What?

- Wedding, shaadi

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- There's a hook here

- Thank you

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- I need....

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- What do you need?

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- Someone who dresses me up like you.

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Hmm, yes now I feel like an artist yes.

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Do I?

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I was six days old when my mother had a

dream that I was in a palace and

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lots of princes were dancing

and playing music, singing,

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there was a lot of music.

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In India we believe that whatever comes

on the 6th day of a child's birth

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the child becomes like that.

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And probably I think that's why I have

become blind because if I didn't become blind,

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I wouldn't be a musician.

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When I was eight years old I touched this beautiful

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instrument which I didn't know the name of it,

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I just liked the shape.

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The shape of the instrument is so beautiful.

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My father, he used to read me episodes about

Yogi's and lots of devotees.

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I was told that if I meditate I'll become sighted again.

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And I used to meditate on the roof of the house without clothes, for eight to ten hours.

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My brother got married first

who is my younger brother.

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And my parents didn't even

 think about my marriage.

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They wanted me to become a hermit.

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And I just didn't know what to do.

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That was my life.

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I was born in a village.

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When I was eight months old

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I had an eye infection

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and a woman suggested that she has cured

  her eight children so she can cure me too

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and she gave me

medicine which she put inside the eyes,

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she shouldn't have put it inside the lid.

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She put the bandage on for three days.

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And after three days one eye came out

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and the other eye was slowly gone too.

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And then she told my mother who was 15 years old, it's a dirt just throw it away.

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This is called Inner Vision Orchestra

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and people keep asking me:

"what is inner vision?"

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You have inner vision

I have got inner vision.

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And we have got inner vision so much

that we can see without without seeing.

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So sometimes I say: I can't see you,

how can you see me?

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So what I'm trying to say is

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please close your eyes and listen to us.

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When I came to the UK

I heard different kinds of music

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Turkish, Greek, Indian, Pakistani.

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I was thinking that, if I can hear that kind of music

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and that kind of people live here, why can't

we have blind people from all over the world here.

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And I've formed an orchestra

called Inner Vision.

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We listen to each other, we concentrate

on music and we can improvise.

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So it's like a conversation

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That's not me playing

it's Baldev playing.

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Kin-a-kay, kin-a-kay, kin-a-kay

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This is the sound of the cymbals.

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And then dholak plays

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baka-daka-ding-dang

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God with the three legs.

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Which one is it?

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There are two pumpkin ones over here

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Yeah that's one of them,

but I need the cover.

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Okay so, this is the pumpkin one with

the decorative go

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and this is the one with the plain gourd.

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When I was in Paris,

our friends introduced me to Linda.

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She wanted to learn Indian music.

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She sang and I played Sitar.

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I liked her singing.

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A love at first kiss

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Love at first bite.

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Once I stayed in Europe,

I had to restart my market

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and Linda was very good

she wrote 123 letters about me

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and someone wanted me to play

in their concert in Centre Pompidou

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which was very exciting for me.

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And I asked them for the rehearsal

and they said: oh you don't need a rehearsal

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you're such a brilliant musician.

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And when I arrived there I just

couldn't understand anything,

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bang bang bang

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That music was free jazz.

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Then they said: play play

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What should I play?

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Anything you like.

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And straight coming from Indian

classical music and being introduced to free jazz

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is like throwing you in the deep end.

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And I was getting angry

and they had to take me away

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because I was swearing.

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Before I met Linda

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my perception was,

like my teachers said:

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there is no better music than Indian classical music.

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She made me aware that music is not only

in singing and playing classical music,

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music can be in everything.

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Now I can understand the impact of it

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I can understand the poetry of it.

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Without music there is nothing.

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When I saw you

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this thought came to me

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life is strong sun

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and you are soothing shade.

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When I saw you

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this thought came to me

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I mean Linda.

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She approached me and I'm with her

and I'm very glad that she did.

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With a blind person there are so many

responsibilities that come

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and I have entered in somebody's life

who is a talented musician herself

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and I have taken all.

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I went to India to my birthplace

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and this woman who made me blind,

she was there.

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I touched her feet and I said I'm very

grateful that you made me blind

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I thought that way, I didn't just say it.

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because if she didn't do it

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I wouldn't see this world.

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Improvisation comes from the heart

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which speaks yourself

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You are breathing music

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you are throwing music

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you are giving your feeling to everyone

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you are the composer

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you are the musician

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you are the music.

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Featuring Baluji Shrivastav and Linda Shanson