5 or 50: Age's no bar for this talent contest

Drawing inspiration from the grammys, the Indian Music Academy Jury Awards aim at putting young indian talent on the map

Drawing inspiration from the grammys, the Indian Music Academy Jury Awards aim at putting young indian talent on the map

India has always been revered as the land of music and boasts of a tradition dating back to the Vedas. With a view of nurturing young musicians, Pandit Jasraj instituted the Indian Music Academy (IMA) in 2006.

Now, they have decided to focus on young maestros who have contributed to music in the past year. The awards are open to musicians who have released an album and encompasses diverse genres.

The award function will be held in February 2010 and will give away awards in 39 categories.

"Our USP is that we focus on the entire team behind a composition, including the unsung tabla player and theu00a0 percussionist," states Durga Jasraj, co-founder of IMA.

Pandit Jasraj will be part of the final jury

Winners will be decided by a panel of eminent musicians such as Jagjit Singh and Pandit Jasraj.

Apart from this, they will also be conducting India's first national Indian music talent hunt, to provide a national platform for 5 to 45 year old musicians, from different parts of the country who are proficient in any form of music.