Chennai: Since a young age, we are always given the options to take up careers like engineering, medicine and architecture. but never options like a painter, sportsperson, or a musician, says TR Nikhil who bagged the National winner title for drums at SIFF Young Artiste, a national-level talent competition.
‘One of the reasons could be the opportunities provided to youngsters in India in arts are very less compared to in western countries. However, since the advent of social media, youngsters like myself are provided with an ocean of opportunities,’ he adds.
On his journey from being passionate about arts to being a national winner,. the 18-year-old says, ‘It was such a wonderful journey to embark on. Never did I thinkI would become a national winner when I was younger, but the seriousness of the competition struck me midway and I started practicing harder than ever. Looking back now, I’m very thankful I took that decision.’
On his favourite musician(s), he says, ‘I cannot stop with one favorite musician because every artist is unique and talented in their way. To name a few, Sebastian Lanser, David Diepold, Virgil Donati, Matt Garstka are some musicians who highly influenced me because I resonated with their style of playing, and most importantly, watching their performances taught me to be humble, hard-working and dedicated to my art form.’