Dr. Pushkar Lele
M.A. (Music), PhD
Assistant Professor & Head of the Department
Brief bio-dataDr. Pushkar Lele is today one of India’s leading North Indian classical vocalists belonging to the Gwalior gharana. He has undergone rigorous studies of more than two decades with renowned and able Gurus, like Pt. Gangadharbua Pimpalkhare (disciple of Pt. Vinayakbua Patwardhan), Pt. Vijay Koparkar (Disciple of Dr. Vasantrao Deshpande & Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki), Pt. Vijay Sardeshmukh and Pt. Satyasheel Deshpande (both senior disciples of Pt. Kumar Gandharva).
He is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards like Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar Award, Dr. Vasantrao Deshpande Yuva Kalakar Puraskar, ‘Sur Mani’, Gayanacharya Ramkrishnabua Vaze Puraskar, Sudhir Phadke Yuvonmesh Puraskar, Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki Smruti Yuva Puraskar and Manik Varma Puraskar. Dr. Lele is also the recipient of the prestigious Sanatan Sangeet Puraskar, whose past awardees include the likes of U.
Shrinivas and A R Rahman. With a performing career spanning more than 35 years, Pushkar ji performs regularly all over India for private and public concerts and has performed on various prestigious music stages like the Pune Festival, Tansen Samaroha (Gwalior), NCPA (Mumbai), Nehru Centre (Mumbai), Kalidas Festival (Nagpur), Bharat Bhavan (Bhopal), Kala Academy (Goa), Prayag Sangit Samiti (Allahabad), Pt. V.D. Paluskar Jayanti Sangeet Samaroha (New Delhi), Shriram Shankarlal Music Festival (New Delhi), Bhakti Utsav (New Delhi), Delhi International Arts Festival, ICCR (New Delhi), Rajasthan International Folk Festival (Jodhpur RIFF) and IGNCA (SRC, Bangalore).
He has had successful concert tours to USA, Australia, Belgium, Netherlands, Israel, Singapore and UAE. Dr. Lele has released several commercial albums and is a learned scholar-researcher, erudite speaker-writer who teaches music through formal tutoring and appreciation modules.
He has lectured at the Stanford University (USA), NCPA (Mumbai) and Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (SRC, Bangalore), FTII Pune etc. and is an empaneled Guru at Lalit Kala Kendra, Pune.
Dr. Priyal Sathe
M.A. (Music), NET, PhD, JLPT N1
Assistant Professor
Brief bio-dataDr. Priyal Sathe is a distinguished Hindustani vocalist, performer, composer, linguist, voiceover artist, researcher, and educator with a rich background in Hindustani classical
music and a specialization in Japanese language and cultural studies.
She is an accomplished disciple of eminent gurus, including Pt. Mohan Karve (disciple of Vazebuwa), Arati Ankalikar (disciple of Kishori Amonkar), and the stalwart of the Gwalior Gharana, Pt. Sharad Sathe (disciple of D.V. Paluskar, B.R. Deodhar, and Sharadchandra
Arolkarbuwa).
As a performing artist, she is highly acclaimed for her renditions of Hindustani khayal and devotional genres, including thumri and other semi-classical forms, delivered with her adaptive voice. Her work includes multiple commercial CD releases and contributions to playback for theatrical productions, jingles, and other media projects.
In her academic role, Dr. Sathe has guided numerous research projects and serves as an external examiner for the Ph.D. program at Bharati Vidyapeeth, Pune. She actively delivers lectures, demonstrations, and workshops in both India and Japan, bridging the worlds of music and cross-cultural scholarship.
A certified expert in Japanese language, Dr. Sathe has achieved N1 proficiency (the highest level) in the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. A research scholar of the Japan Foundation, she has pioneered the training of students from Japan, India, the UK, the US, and Iran in
Hindustani classical music.
Dr. Sathe has been recognized with several scholarships and awards, including the Pt. Ratanjankar Puraskar, Pt. K.G. Ginde Puraskar, Sawai Gandharva Scholarship, and the Golden Talent Award, presented by Girija Devi and Pt. Bhajan Sopori.
Dr. Sathe’s multifaceted career reflects her dedication as a guru, researcher, and performer, inspiring the next generation of musicians and scholars while fostering cultural exchange through her global teaching and performance engagements.
music and a specialization in Japanese language and cultural studies.
She is an accomplished disciple of eminent gurus, including Pt. Mohan Karve (disciple of Vazebuwa), Arati Ankalikar (disciple of Kishori Amonkar), and the stalwart of the Gwalior Gharana, Pt. Sharad Sathe (disciple of D.V. Paluskar, B.R. Deodhar, and Sharadchandra
Arolkarbuwa).
As a performing artist, she is highly acclaimed for her renditions of Hindustani khayal and devotional genres, including thumri and other semi-classical forms, delivered with her adaptive voice. Her work includes multiple commercial CD releases and contributions to playback for theatrical productions, jingles, and other media projects.
In her academic role, Dr. Sathe has guided numerous research projects and serves as an external examiner for the Ph.D. program at Bharati Vidyapeeth, Pune. She actively delivers lectures, demonstrations, and workshops in both India and Japan, bridging the worlds of music and cross-cultural scholarship.
A certified expert in Japanese language, Dr. Sathe has achieved N1 proficiency (the highest level) in the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. A research scholar of the Japan Foundation, she has pioneered the training of students from Japan, India, the UK, the US, and Iran in
Hindustani classical music.
Dr. Sathe has been recognized with several scholarships and awards, including the Pt. Ratanjankar Puraskar, Pt. K.G. Ginde Puraskar, Sawai Gandharva Scholarship, and the Golden Talent Award, presented by Girija Devi and Pt. Bhajan Sopori.
Dr. Sathe’s multifaceted career reflects her dedication as a guru, researcher, and performer, inspiring the next generation of musicians and scholars while fostering cultural exchange through her global teaching and performance engagements.
Shripad Shirwalkar
M.A. (Music), NET, Pursuing PhD
Assistant Professor
Brief bio-dataShripad Pradip Shirwalkar is a distinguished Tabla artist, researcher, and educator
currently serving as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Performing Arts, Modern
College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Shivajinagar, Pune. He is pursuing his Ph.D. in Music at Lalit Kala Kendra, Savitribai Phule Pune University, and has qualified the UGC-NET (Music) examination. He holds a Master degree in Tabla from Lalit Kala Kendra and has also earned the prestigious Sangeet Alankar and Sangeet Visharad qualifications from Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya.
He received his foundational training in Tabla under Shri. Yogesh Sandanshiv and has been
an advanced disciple of Pandit Ramdas Palsule, the renowned Tabla maestro of the Farrukhabad Gharana. His research is being guided by Dr. Santosh Parchure, under whose
mentorship he is pursuing his doctoral studies.
With extensive teaching experience across reputed educational institutions, he has been
actively involved in higher education, music pedagogy, curriculum development, and
student mentoring. His academic interests include tabla performance, aesthetics of Indian
classical music, and the folk music traditions of Khandesh. Shripad Shirwalkar has presented and published numerous research papers at national and international conferences in UGC-CARE and peer-reviewed journals. He has actively performed as a tabla accompanist in prestigious concerts and cultural festivals.
His achievements include prestigious scholarships and awards such as the Vishnu Digambar Paluskar Yuva Scholarship, Amulya Jyoti Yuva Shishyavrutti, Dilip Gokhale Yuva Tabla Vadak Puraskar, and Keshav Venu Yuva Vadak Puraskar. He is also a three-time Gold Medallist in the Youth Festival Tabla Competition.
currently serving as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Performing Arts, Modern
College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Shivajinagar, Pune. He is pursuing his Ph.D. in Music at Lalit Kala Kendra, Savitribai Phule Pune University, and has qualified the UGC-NET (Music) examination. He holds a Master degree in Tabla from Lalit Kala Kendra and has also earned the prestigious Sangeet Alankar and Sangeet Visharad qualifications from Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya.
He received his foundational training in Tabla under Shri. Yogesh Sandanshiv and has been
an advanced disciple of Pandit Ramdas Palsule, the renowned Tabla maestro of the Farrukhabad Gharana. His research is being guided by Dr. Santosh Parchure, under whose
mentorship he is pursuing his doctoral studies.
With extensive teaching experience across reputed educational institutions, he has been
actively involved in higher education, music pedagogy, curriculum development, and
student mentoring. His academic interests include tabla performance, aesthetics of Indian
classical music, and the folk music traditions of Khandesh. Shripad Shirwalkar has presented and published numerous research papers at national and international conferences in UGC-CARE and peer-reviewed journals. He has actively performed as a tabla accompanist in prestigious concerts and cultural festivals.
His achievements include prestigious scholarships and awards such as the Vishnu Digambar Paluskar Yuva Scholarship, Amulya Jyoti Yuva Shishyavrutti, Dilip Gokhale Yuva Tabla Vadak Puraskar, and Keshav Venu Yuva Vadak Puraskar. He is also a three-time Gold Medallist in the Youth Festival Tabla Competition.