At only 32 years old, Upalappu Srinivas is to Indian classical music what Sir Yehudi Mehunin is to its Western equivalent. And, like the latter, U.Srinivas was a child prodigy who has taken the mandolin, an instrument unknown inn India, to unique classical heights. Mandolin entered Carnatic music with a bang and the young prodigy who brought it is U.Srinivas, who became a household name in the far-flung world of music.

He was accepted as an expert instrumentalist and an acknowledged exponent of classical Carnatic music even by 1982. His concerts are full of the nuances and the excellence of artistic and technical beauty and his raga alapana is rich in embellishments, sweetness and charm. The tone emanating from his mandolin casts its magical spell all around. The magic presentation of the evocative, bhava-laden crisp songs and swaras by Srinivas overcomes the inhibitions of the instrument - mandolin, most invisibly and he has established himself as a front rank mature musician.

A child prodigy, Srinivas was born at Palakol (Andhra Pradesh) in 1970 of U.Satyanarayana and U. Kantham Rudraraju Subbaraju, has been guru and promoter of young Srinivas. Having begun playing when he was only six years old, his musical aptitude was spotted by Subbaraju, a classically trained musician and disciple of the famous musical stalwart Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar.

Subbaraju, not having any knowledge on how to play the mandolin, would sing Carnatic music and Srinivas would play along, thus developing his own style. Since life at the place of birth was not a happy one, time beckoned the family and the guru to Madras. Initially the father and son worked in the orchestra of Rajeswara Rao for films for two years. Fortunate began to smile and U.Srinivas gave his first concert fittingly at the Thyagaraja Festival in 1981 at Gudivada. At the age of nine, he was hailed as a genius and has been surpassing his reputation ever since, with a precedent-setting, idiosyncratic style that makes all around sit up and take notice.

His performance in December 1981 at the Indian Fine Arts Society, Madras was the turning point, which gave the needed exposure in time. Following public recognition and acceptance in 1983, the next eight years of this wonder boy were spent in touring the world extensively, reaching dizzy heights of fame, prominence, and enchanting his audience with the youthful vigor and expertise that are his hallmarks. His concerts were highly acclaimed and he was showered with many prestigious awards. The pinnacle of glory catapulted so suddenly, that his sole worry was fighting against the clock and calendar to accommodate the numerous requests from far and near.

All India Radio approved him as 'A' Grade artiste not withstanding his tender age.

His concert tours include Malaysia and Singapore in 1982, West Berlin and Germany in 1983. He took the country by storm with his concert in the Jazz-Fest and he was asked to repeat the performance on television. He performed in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, USA, Canada, Muscat, Bahrain in 1984, Festival of India in Paris in 1985, USA, Canada, Mexico and Cuba in 1987.