The New York-based artist won the Grammy in the Best Children’s Album category for her 2021 record ‘A Colorful World. Falu aka Falguni Shah* has won the Grammy Award for her 2021 album A Colorful World. The musician made history at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards as she became the only female Indian origin artist to be bestowed with the highest global music honour this year. Falu received the Grammy Award in the Best Children’s Album category — the only South Asian to be nominated in the group — at the ceremony held in Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena.
No stranger to the haloed echelons of music, Falu had been nominated once before at the Grammys for her 2018 record Falu’s Bazaar. Ahead of her groundbreaking win, Falu also performed the opening number at the Grammy Premiere Ceremony. With her first Grammy Award, Falu makes India proud as she celebrates diversity, acceptance and tolerance on her iconic album A Colorful World.
About winning the Grammy, Falu says,
“I’m so happy, honoured and blessed to have won a Grammy. It’s a dream come true for a girl who grew up in India, who had never thought that she could win a Grammy one day. This is a beautiful gift from God. ‘A Colorful World’ was recorded to encourage diversity, acceptance and tolerance in children
just like so many colours can live in harmony in a crayon box;
no matter humanity’s differences, we can all live together peacefully on this planet.”
Born in Mumbai, India, Falu is shaping generations as her music introduces children to the wonders of the universe. Her 2018 record Falu’s Bazaar takes families on a musical journey through South Asia while 2021’s A Colorful World has a message of inclusiveness and positivity. Her music holds the message that humanity, in its diversity, can live together in peace and harmony on the planet we call home, Earth. Falu’s artistic vision is to unite, heal and celebrate people with her music. Through A Colorful World — an album that was backed by a diverse team of musicians, producers and engineers — Falu renews her covenant to boost Indian culture at the global level. Falu created this Grammy-winning album for all the children in the world; the record also has a song called “Lullaby for Nishaad” that she dedicated to her son.
Falu adds, “We are celebrating! Once we reflect on this experience and take a moment to let it all sink in, I look forward to continuing to make music. I find am so grateful to India. I’m so blessed, thankful and honoured to be an Indian. I learned so much of what I know today in India. I’m also grateful for all I have experienced in America and for the incredible people I have been blessed to work with here. Thank you!”. A cross-cultural phenomenon, Falu received her initial music training from the Jaipur gharana where she devoted 16 hours every day, over a period of 10 years, to master the form. She also trained rigorously in the Benares style of Thumrie and semi-classical music under the wings of legendary artists like Kaumudi Munshi and Uday Mazumdar. Falu continued her musical education under the tutelage of late maestro Ustad Sultan Khan, and later with the iconic vocalist Smt. Kishori Amonkar.
The artist moved to the U.S. in 2000 when she was appointed as a visiting lecturer at the prestigious Tufts University. Seamlessly blending a signature modern inventive style with a formidable Indian classically-shaped vocal talent, Falu has since collaborated with legends like A.R. Rahman, Yo-Yo Ma, Philip Glass, Wyclef Jean, Ustad Sultan Khan, Blues Traveler, Ricky Martin, Bernie Worrell and more. She was appointed Carnegie Hall’s ambassador of Indian Music in 2006.
In 2009, she performed for former President Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama at their first State Dinner at the White House, in addition to being the featured performer at the Time 100 Gala. Her first album, Falu, was featured in Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History’s “Beyond Bollywood” exhibit as representative of the voice of Indian-American trendsetting artists. In 2015, Falu was named one of the 20 most influential global Indian women by the Economic Times of India. In 2018, she won the Women Icons of India Award.
The iconic Grammy-winning artist has crafted a tradition of excellence in her legendary career spanning more than two decades across continents. Pathbreaking and pioneering, Falu represents the epitome of Indian arts and culture as it appeals to a global audience. Falu’s music is available on all digital platforms.
