Once interested in cricket, Samanwaya, driven by the musical environment in his family, changed his ways and started learning to play the sitar by putting his patience and persistence into practice.

Samanwaya Sarkar is an Indian classical musician, artist, and sitarist. He has been working as a music professional for more than twenty years.

Recalling his childhood, Samanwaya says he was born into a Bengali middle-class family where culture and tradition go hand in hand. He grew up in an environment driven by music and melodies. But Samanwaya shared a different interest and was more inclined towards cricket than music. When Samanwaya was just four years old, his father started giving him sitar training, at a time when he was not that keen on learning music. However, later on, Samanwaya started getting interested in the field, and he started participating in music competitions.

Discussing his struggles, Samanwaya shares that, as a four-year-old, it was challenging for him to learn and practise playing the sitar for long hours. At that time, his father pushed him and guided him to learn about the instrument. It was in the year 2000 that Samanwaya decided to make a career in the field of which his parents were highly supportive.

When asked about his mistakes, Samanwaya says that he doesn't consider committing a mistake for the first time to be a mistake. But repeating a mistake is surely a mistake, says Samanwaya. On that note, he advises everyone to learn from their mistakes and not repeat them.

Talking about his role models, Samanwaya says he does not consider a single person his role model, but he takes inspiration from people who have excelled in music, art, literature, and sports. His music guru continues to inspire him.

Samanwaya says that the fine arts are made up of four components: Scripture, technique, education, and art. He advises the younger generation to focus on the 3 Ps: persistence, practice, and patience. Samanwaya adds that these qualities together make a person successful.

Samanwaya considers music and other forms of fine art his medicine in times when he feels down.

His life mantra is ‘To live and let live.’