​Nikhil Narayan is a senior disciple of Carnatic flute maestro Padmashri Sangeetha Kalanidhi Dr. N. Ramani. After beginning his initial training at the age of 7 under Sri P.V. Ananthakrishnan in Los Angeles, California, Nikhil came under the tutelage of Dr. N. Ramani in 1992. Under the guidance of his Guru, Nikhil had his arangetram concert in Chennai in 1997 and won excellent reviews from the audience of eminent musicians and music critics, including chief guest Sangeetha Kalanidhi Semmangudi Sri Srinivasa Iyer. Nikhil had the privilege of being accompanied by violinist Delhi Sri P. Sunderrajan and kanjira vidwan late Sri V. Nagarajan, along with his brother Nirmal Narayan on mrudangam, during his arangetram. Since then, Nikhil has been a regular performer in Chennai and elsewhere in India during the Margazhi Music Season in December and throughout the year. Nikhil has performed in most of Chennai’s leading sabhas, including Sri Krishna Gana Sabha, Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha, Sri Thyaga Brahma Gana Sabha (Vani Mahal), Mylapore Fine Arts, Brahma Gana Sabha, Nada Sudha, Hamsadhwani, Naada Inbam (Ragasudha) and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, among other venues. Nikhil also continues to perform annually during the “Ramani's Academy of Flute” music festival founded by his late Guru and conducted in his honour in Chennai. Nikhil has performed across the United States as well, including in Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, New York, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., San Francisco and at the Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana, among other places. He has also been invited to perform for the Tamizh Isai Sangam in Colombo, Sri Lanka, as well as on radio and television for the Sri Lanka Broadcast Corporation, Sri Lanka. Nikhil was born in Chennai and has his ancestral roots in Thiruvaiyaru, Thanjavur District, Tamil Nadu. While continuing to pursue Carnatic music, Nikhil simultaneously received his post-graduate degree in law (Juris Doctor, J.D.) in 2003 from the Columbia University School of Law in New York City. Nikhil is an international human rights lawyer and continues his Carnatic music pursuits alongside his international legal career.