For most of us Shobha Gurtu is the mother of the world famous Percussionist Trilok Gurtu.

But she was the Tumri Queen and was equally famous among an esoteric audience just like her son among the many fans of jazz/ new age/fusion music. Born in Belgaum district of Karnataka in 1925, she trained under Ustad Bhurji Khan, son of her mothers trainer Ustad Alladiya Khan. Her mother was also her initiator into classical music. Later she stepped into the semi-classical arena of tumri, dadra, hori etc. and had extensive training in them. Through her renditions in tumri she became the voice of the uninterpretable body movements, the vibrations that defy the scope of the body resonated in her voice. When Tumri had become just another scene for the dancing girls, she appeared and changed the course of the music form and her life itself. While performing ragas which gave emphasis on shringar, the dancer in her would often peek in through gestures explaining the text of the song. She never wanted to get entangled in the web of traditions. She treaded the unusual paths of Indian classical music and chose to remain so.