Nitin Patel says that he feels as if somebody has pushed him to this destination over the past three years.
London-based photographer Nitin Patel has joined the Harmonica Club of Gujarat. Already a member of UK-based National Harmonica League, the passionate music player says that he feels as if somebody has pushed him to this destination over the past three years.
Discovering his love for the instrument at the age of six when he first blew into his uncle's mouth organ, the 67-year-old has come a long way. "My uncle who was in college then used to play the instrument. One day I blew into his harmonica. He came running and asked me if I had blown into his harmonica? I said no. I got two slaps. The second one was for lying."
That day something clicked for Patel. Two decades later when he met his uncle again in UK, the first thing he asked his uncle was that if he still had his harmonica, The reply was positive. "I had promised myself that I would play the harmonica and that too better then him. I was competing with him without him even knowing it." For Patel, the whole journey of playing the mouth organ is like meditation. "When you blow a harmonica, your body, soul and spirit becomes one."
Researching 'harmonica repairs' on the internet, Patel bumped into the Harmonica Club of Gujarat (HCG). He then met Helkar, not only a repairman but also a harmonica player himself, in Jabalpur. He then met a co-Londoner, Shirish Swami through HCG. With his encouragement he joined the National Harmonica League. And today he is back to his roots.
The man recalls how he used to listen to Madan Kumar on Akaashvani between 7-7.15. He got a chance to meet his mentor during one of the practice sessions of the club. "I had been given a faint idea about him. And then I was introduced to him."
Patel still finds it hard to believe that there are people who are more fanatical about the instrument than him. A trip to India just convinced him.
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