In a poignant artistic journey spanning over a decade, celebrated sitarist and composer Anoushka Shankar has revisited and revitalised a powerful musical piece born from collective grief. The composition, originally crafted in 2013 as a visceral response to the horrific Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case in Delhi, has now been given new voice with words by renowned poet Nikita Gill. Titled 'In Her Name', the work stands as an evolving testament to the ongoing global struggle for women's safety and justice.
From Personal Pain to a Universal Anthem
Speaking about the song's origins in a 2022 interview, Anoushka Shankar revealed that the initial composition was a direct reaction to shared pain. "When I originally wrote the song, it came as a response to pain shared with women around the world," she stated. However, the passage of time and the relentless occurrence of similar tragedies against women globally transformed the piece's significance. "What has happened over these years is that different tragic events have been happening to other women in different places… There is not just one victim, but too many names, which is why we are calling it In Her Name and, sadly, it becomes more all-encompassing," she explained. This evolution reflects a saddening universality, making the song a lament for countless unnamed victims.
Music as an Empathetic Act, Not Just Protest
In a more recent conversation in September 2024, Shankar delved deeper into her creative philosophy behind such compositions. For her, music like 'In Her Name' serves as a profound emotional conduit—a way to process and express feelings about societal horrors, creating a bridge for audiences to connect emotionally. When questioned if her work constitutes a form of protest or a channel for rage, she drew a clear, nuanced distinction. "Protest is an act and rage is an emotion," Shankar clarified. She illustrated that while marching in a rally is an act of protest fueled by rage, creating music is a different kind of act stemming from the same raw emotion.
"I don't see the music as protest itself; I see it as a different form of emotion," she emphasized. Her primary goal is emotional authenticity and connection. "I want to be clear that there is no one way to do this... For me, my music will have an impact if I am emotionally connected to it." She described how external events, like the Nirbhaya case, must connect to her personal history and evoke genuine heartbreak and rage to translate into compelling art. "That rage, that heartbreak is what will be in the music. Not the analytical protest, because people won't connect to that in music," she asserted.
Connecting Hearts Through Shared Emotion
Anoushka Shankar's final reflection draws a powerful line between intellectual engagement and empathetic resonance. She posits that a protest is often a more intellectual act, while music operates on an empathetic plane. "But if I put my emotions into it, then they might connect from their emotions, and it might help something. A protest is a more intellectual act, and I feel music is an empathetic act." This philosophy underpins 'In Her Name'—a composition that seeks not to argue analytically but to make listeners feel the collective devastation and fury, thereby fostering a deeper, heart-level understanding of the ongoing crisis of violence against women. The song, reborn after more than ten years, remains a stark reminder and an emotional sanctuary, reflecting both the enduring pain and the unyielding spirit of solidarity.
