4 min readMumbaiUpdated: Feb 27, 2026 02:51 PM IST The Ravi Shankar Institute for Music and Performing Arts based in New Delhi has issued a formal statement clarifying that sitarist Rishab Rikhiram Sharma, 27, was not a disciple of the late sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar beyond a couple of lessons, pushing back against the sitarist’s assertions to the contrary. The statement, issued by Amitavaa Ghosh, Director of the Ravi Shankar Institute located in Delhi’s Chanakyapuri, said that in the system of Indian classical music, “the word ‘disciple’ carries deep meaning”, is “not symbolic” or “established through an informal moment” and is a relationship that “evolves over many years of guidance and commitment”. “A few lessons and a brief appearance in concert/video cannot be considered equivalent to that level of formal, rigorous and immersive training,” he wrote in the statement. This Centre was also a home to Shankar whenever he was in Delhi and remains one to his family. The clarification follows growing public discussion over Rishab’s references to Pandit Ravi Shankar as his guru …