This is the first and only definitive authorized biography of a talent that emerges once a century— Shankar Mahadevan. Extensively researched and packed with endearing incidents and enduring accounts from the life of an artist who has been hailed as one of the greatest of all time. This biography captures Shankar at his most multifaceted: singer, musician, composer, friend, family man, guru and, ultimately, iconic artist and man beloved by millions. Drawing on many hundred hours of interviews with Shankar, this authorized biography paints the complete picture of a man who effortlessly glides into each of his facets with the same amount of passion and energy. Despite the fame and accolades, Shankar Mahadevan still identifies as a regular boy from Mumbai’s Chembur. His is a heartwarming tale of down-to-earth humanity, so typical of Mumbai. The candour and honesty with which Shankar narrates his journey is extremely rare for a man of his stardom. In The Musical Maverick, Shankar reveals that he trained to become a veena artiste in his childhood. While teaching him to play a kriti, his veena guru told him to also sing it in order to execute it well, thereby setting off his interest in singing. This eventually led to the formation of the legendary composer-trio: Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy. His singing career was no less spectacular, with songs like ‘Suno Gaur Sey Duniya Walo’, still a must at almost every event of national importance— sporting, cultural or otherwise. With a raga of everlasting friendship; sweet notes of an adorable childhood romance; and the drumroll for the success story of the boy who won the world with his music, this saga will leave you breathless.