NS Manjunath

Zildjian, Vic Firth, Yamaha & Gappu Artist. Namesake of the NS Cajon Series.

NS Manjunath, Manju to almost everyone who knows him, is the kind of musician whose name carries genuine weight across multiple traditions. A Zildjian Artist, a Vic Firth Artist, a Yamaha Artist, and a Gappu Cajon Artist: each of those endorsements represents a separate rigorous vetting process, and Manju holds all four simultaneously. In the world of professional percussion, that breadth of industry recognition is exceptional.

His musical range is equally exceptional. Manju's expertise spans Carnatic classical, Hindustani classical, Konnakol, and World music. A combination that places him at the crossroads of South Indian, North Indian, and global percussion traditions. Konnakol in particular, the South Indian practice of vocal percussion, is a discipline that requires years of dedicated study and that relatively few drummers pursue alongside their instrumental work. That Manju has done so reflects a musician interested in the deep grammar of rhythm, not just its surface expressions.

The list of artists he has performed alongside reads like a who's-who of Indian music at its highest levels. SP Balasubramanyam, the legendary playback singer whose voice defined generations of Indian cinema. Shankar Mahadevan, one of Bollywood's most celebrated vocalists and a classically trained musician in his own right. Sonu Nigam. Two-time Grammy winner Ricky Kej, the Bangalore-born composer who has done as much as anyone to bring Indian instrumental music to international audiences. And the great sarod player Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, whose own Grammy win placed him in the same rarefied space as Manju's other collaborators.

Gappu's relationship with NS Manjunath began in 2022 and has produced something tangible and lasting: the NS 01 and NS 02 Cajon series bear his name. Naming a product line after an artist is a significant commitment, as it signals a partnership that goes beyond appearances, one where the artist's expertise genuinely shaped what the instrument became. For customers choosing a Gappu cajon from the NS series, they are buying something developed with the direct input of a musician who knows the instrument at the highest professional level.

That is the promise embedded in those two letters on the side of the box.

At a Glance

• Zildjian, Vic Firth, Yamaha, and Gappu Cajon Artist
• Expertise in Carnatic classical, Hindustani classical, Konnakol, and World music
• Performed with SP Balasubramanyam, Shankar Mahadevan, Sonu Nigam, Ricky Kej, and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt
• Namesake of Gappu's NS 01 and NS 02 Cajon series
• Partnership with Gappu dating to 2022