India is like home away from home: spiritual musician Acyuta Gopi

Mumbai, Aug 22 (PTI) Grammy-nominated devotional singer Acyuta Gopi, who will embark on a spiritual musical concert “Chal Man Vrindavan” in October this year, says she has been visiting India since 2009 and feels the country has become her "home away from home".

The New York-based singer will tour cities such as Hyderabad, Jaipur, Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Delhi, Indore, Ahmedabad and Lucknow from October till December. The first concert will be held in Hyderabad on Oct 4.

"It is not my first time in India. I've been coming to India since 2009. I've been here several times...So much that it feels a little bit just like home away from home," Gopi told PTI in an interview.

Asked about the places she has been to, Gopi, known for songs such as "Radhe Govinda", "Lagan Tumse Laga Baithe", "Tu Bas Gaya Kitni Dur", named Jaipur, Karauli, Rishikesh, Delhi and Vrindavan.

"The wonderful thing about India is you can find Krishna anywhere, everywhere, all over the place. I've been to Jaipur, Karauli, Rishikesh, Delhi, and Vrindavan. So everywhere I go, the wonderful thing is that I get to look for Krishna and find him anywhere, everywhere," she said.

Born to parents who have been devout members of the Hare Krishna Movement (ISKCON), Gopi said her connection with Lord Krishna was established even before her birth as she was born premature and her parents prayed for a miracle.

"And here I am. For me, that bond is something that transcends everything. Even before I had an idea of who I was, Krishna knew who I was,” she said, adding that stepping into devotional singing wasn't new as she comes from a background of spiritual singers.

She credits her older brother for being instrumental in getting her involved with 'kirtan' (devotional music).

"Even as young as 14, we were always singing in the temple. This was life. There was no other option. It's not like we were partying on a Friday or a Saturday. Most of us, if we want to go have a party, we would go have a party at a temple. The entire culture was one of Krishna consciousness. I wasn't brought up with anything else. I went to a regular school, but everything else about my life was completely bhakti-related and Krishna consciousness." Gopi said she is excited for "Chal Man Vrindavan" tour lineup.

"I am hoping that everybody will get to see a glimpse of my heart. It is a chance for us to bring festivals to places that might not have these festivals. It is a chance for us to really bring kirtan in a mode of service. We get to acknowledge all of those people that I wanted to connect with. It is the people who are serving day in, day out. They have such a love for Krishna and such a love for Bhakti. Now we get to bring Vrindavan to you." The singer was nominated at the Grammy Awards in 2016 for the album by Madi Das “Bhakti Without Border” in the Best New Age Album category. The album featured multiple artists and her special track was titled “Jamuna Puline”.

“I am after more than just people who want a trend. The moment it feels like spirituality is a trend, I'm always telling my entire team, ‘Okay, how do we switch?’ It's not just 15 minutes of spiritual fame, this is a lifetime of cultivating a relationship with divinity. (I'm not) somebody who might be interested because there is some sort of fame or a name attached with a Grammy nomination. I think it is wonderful that they are reaching out and acknowledging spiritual music.” Sharing her views on Bhajans, Gopi said she is “re-singing” the decades old songs which were part of the tradition.

“A lot of these bhajans were famous decades ago. We just stopped singing them. We stopped thinking that they were cool. For me, all I have to do is just sing them. We re-sing them. These were the lullabies. It was a time when bhajans and kirtans were what you'd sing to children when they fell asleep. You would not leave your house before praying.

"Now, it becomes almost like re-bridging the gap and bringing back, because there was such a rich culture and then everybody decided to chase after the West. But really, it's been here all along. Now I get to be in a position where we just come back and say, ‘Hey, remember? This was really good’. And maybe it just needs somebody younger to sing it again to make it seem kind of cool,” she said.

Calling herself a "fangirl of divinity", Gopi said she wants to spend time visiting more temples in India. PTI SG ATR BK BK