FIJI, March 19, 2015 (Fiji Times): Reciting tales from Hindi religious books through song has long been the domain of tambura bhajan masters armed with decades of experience tucked under their belt.This form of traditional Hindu music is normally performed by mature men devoted to the study of Hindu scripture. But this Saturday, a 17-year-old Lautoka boy will defy the norm when he takes on two of the country’s tambura bhajan legends — Anmol Chand from Nadi and Praveen Mani from Ba — in a showdown at the Waiyavi Kaliman Temple in the Sugar City.
Arjun Pawan Sami, a Fiji National University student, is no stranger to the bhajan business. Since 2004, such as a seasoned professional boxer, the teenager has ducked and weaved his way through hundreds of musical bouts against men with decades of life experience and talent on their curriculum vitae. And at every event, he has emerged victorious. “I’ve been doing this since I was 5 years old and singing tambura bhajans has taken me to countries I had only dreamt of visiting, so I want to pursue studies in marketing and to get a good job and do music on the side,” the Fiji National University student shared.