First appeared in www.scroll.in on December 20, 2014. According to convention, a student of Hindustani music learning in the guru-shishya tradition cannot unilaterally decide to change his or her guru.  It is incumbent on the student to seek permission from the first guru before such a change is made.  The guru may or may not deign to sanction the move and the student has to accept that as the final word on the subject.  There have been several instances