Bengaluru-Bred 17-Year-Old Guitarist Manou Rao on His Multicultural Upbringing

The Franco-Indian artist has set his sights on going professional, even as he balances school and the behemoth that is social media

- ANURAG TAGAT

AT THE AGE OF 11, guitarist Manou Rao guested with Bengaluru rock favorites Thermal And A Quarter to lead through Steve Vai’s “For the Love of God,” making every note sound soulful enough that you’d probably forget he was a pre-teen at the time.

That was about six years ago and in these crucial six years of his life, Rao – who began learning tabla at age four and then guitar when he was seven – has moved on up to tours as live guitarist, collaborated with hard rock band Whitesnake’s guitarist Doug Aldrich, repped a guitar brand and a strings company at the feted NAMM Show in Los Angeles and most recently, opened himself up to tons of online collaborations with fellow young artists like drummer Sina.