Upalappu Srinivas also known as Mandolin U. Srinivas (may also be spelled U. Shrinivas; born February 28,1969 in Palakol, in the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh) is a musician in the Carnatic musical tradition of southern India. He came to prominence not only for his playing but for his choice of instrument: an electric mandolin (the acoustic instrument is incapable of sustaining notes or producing the "slides" between notes necessary for Indian music). In recent years he has toured with John McLaughlin as part of the group Remember Shakti. His brother U. Rajesh is also an accomplished mandolin player. Artist in the making At the age of six U. Srinivas picked up his father Satyanarayana's mandolin. Upon realising the talent of his son, his father started teaching him whatever Carnatic music he knew. Soon, Satyanarayana's guru, Rudraraju Subbaraju, realized the potential of U. Srinivas and started