Following the beat of his own drum- Mittal’s journey from IIT to LA’s music scene
Thursday, 04 JULY 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
By the time he graduated in September 2023, Dhruv Mittal’s reputation had grown and his teachers’ recommendations led to an audition for a faculty position at the Musicians Institute (MI) in Hollywood, which he secured. He recently shared the stage with world-renowned Santoor maestro Rahul Sharma and Tabla virtuoso Ojas Adhiya at The St. Regis in San Francisco. Being stylistically versatile and a proficient sight-reader, he was summoned as the percussionist for the Lineage Performing Arts Center’s May ’24 production of the Broadway classic “Cabaret”. Alongside this, he is all set to embark on a US tour later this year with the Los-Angeles based Hall and Oates tribute band, Private Eyes.
Mittal also earned various scholarships while he was at MI. Balancing part-time work with his studies, he thrived, becoming a versatile musician and performing at iconic venues like Whisky a Go Go. In December 2019, Dhruv was accepted into the Associate of Arts Programme in Drum Performance at MI. His musical journey began in his early years, influenced by his father, Sanjay Mittal, a faculty member at IIT Kanpur, and his mother Nalini Mittal. While growing up he was exposed to music through his father’s extensive collection of instruments and records. He started with the congas, moved on to the Tabla and transitioned to Hindustani classical music under Devanand Pathak. His passion for music deepened when he discovered drumming during middle school.
Balancing academics with his burgeoning musical interests, Mittal excelled in his studies, securing a spot at IIT Kanpur after cracking the JEE-Advanced in 2016. Despite his academic success, including ranking first in his Materials Science and Engineering department, he realised that his true calling was music. With the support of his parents, he decided to pursue formal music education.
