Masterclasses strike a chord

With Christina Aguilera’s upcoming singing masterclass drawing flak, we look at whether Indian celebrity masterclasses are getting it right

Among the many extraordinary things that an Internet connection can now get you, online masterclasses by celebrities known to be aces in their respective fields have been experiencing a surge in popularity recently, courtesy some of the biggest names in each arena gracing them with their expertise. From Kevin Spacey and Serena Williams to Madhuri Dixit Nene and Shankar Mahadevan, fans the world over are thronging to videos of the high profile tutor of their choice for virtual lessons in their respective craft. The fad’s popularity is not without its share of debates and detractors, however — Christina Aguilera’s upcoming singing masterclasses have been receiving a fair amount of flak from vocal performance professionals, among whose several bones of contention one is that she isn’t professionally qualified enough to be teaching complicated vocal techniques. And this, despite her multiple Grammy award wins and sparkling career in music. Desi folk give us their take on the subject and weigh in on whether Indian celeb masterclasses are getting it right.

“If a celebrity has decided to start something like this online, he or she is definitely aware of what he or she is doing and only with enough education in a subject would he or she go ahead with deciding to teach it in the first place,” affirms television actor Karan Patel, who feels that each of the celebrities — Indian and otherwise — to headline these online masterclasses is accomplished enough in their field to merit being taken seriously, even in the capacity of a teacher. Television actors Deepika Singh and Shaleen Bhanot agree. Deepika opines, “What Christina is doing will make specialised vocal techniques that she has perfected over her own training through years of singing, accessible to literally anyone with an Internet connection for a nominal price.”

Shaleen adds, “The way fingers are being pointed is actually a little alarming, to be honest. If someone like her, who is a Grammy awardee, decides to share her skills with the world, why should anything stop her She has enough achievement and experience on her side, and that’s all that matters.”

Karan adds, “The intention is definitely noble and I really don’t think it is fair to corner her or any of the other celebs coming up with masterclasses because all of them have worked very hard to establish themselves in their respective industries — something they would not have been able to do if they didn’t possess the skills necessary to excel in them. And that, in my eyes, qualifies them to pass on what they have learned not only through training but also through experience.”

Dancer and actress Samentha Fernandes offers a wider perspective as she points out that aside from experience, being technically sound is crucial to being the right person to teach an art form. Talking about dance in particular, she says, “The Internet is a beautiful thing if used right. Online dance classes by celebs are a great initiative as a concept — they can go a long way in motivating people who can’t afford real time dance classes or just don’t have the time to join them, precisely because the tutors are celebrities they’re familiar with and possibly idolise at some level. As a dancer I love the fact that so many different dance forms are actually being taken to everyone’s doorstep, but as a dancer I also feel that the tutor needs to be technically very sound along with being experienced to teach. Look at Dance With Madhuri, for instance. When Madhuri teaches Bollywood, I know for a fact that no one will question her because she has all the knowledge and skill required to teach it. But if she began taking online classes in Hip-Hop, that would just be wrong.” Having different, specialised instructors for different forms, then, is one step the Bollywood diva seems to have taken for the best while setting up her online dance academy. Samentha cautions, however, that a major drawback nevertheless is the lack of visual input from the student’s end. “It’s a different thing when someone is teaching you in person. Here, the instructor can’t see what you’re doing right or wrong and there might be occasions where you might not even realise what you’re doing is wrong. This way, the polishing of skills aside, the chances of injuries become very high,” she says.

Singer-composer Shankar Mahadevan’s online music academy seems to have addressed this point sufficiently, however, in its inclusion of virtual classrooms and audio input from the student for the purpose of assessment and advancement from one level to another. Shambhavi Verma, a Delhi University student who enrolled for the academy’s Hindustani Classical programme a few months ago shares that the careful structuring of the syllabus as well as the availability of virtual classrooms that include live interactions with a vocal instructor as well as fellow students makes the entire process as efficient as any real time music class. “Every bit of the time and energy I invest into the classes is worth it, and the best part is that they don’t require much of either of the two. The virtual classes are 45-minutes long, the same as any real time music class, and I have so many self-help aids to prepare for them at my own pace too. The theoretical aspect of Hindustani Classical is also really well addressed, in terms of the way all the ragas were introduced to me as a beginner. I found the way they have designed their curriculum very user friendly for someone like me — simple, clear and easy to understand. And their instructors are really good too. The most important thing for me, however, is that I actually get to send them recordings of my singing to receive vocal feedback from them about how I’m doing, what I need to improve on and so on. That, I think, is extremely important for any learning process to be complete and it’s great to see them being able to facilitate it even via virtual platform,” she avers.