The Consular Officer in Dhaka asked Ranendra what he was going to do when he got to America. "Study Jazz." "Good luck with that," she said. ​ Gazing out of the airplane window while traversing the Atlantic Ocean, Ranendra charted the course of his new life. He landed in JFK in May 1995 holding a lottery Visa, a BA in Accounting (earned at his parents’ insistence that he have a degree that could provide him a “good living”), and his dream. Ranendra Das was born a musician--while Ranendra was still in his mother's womb, his father sang Bengali Folk songs and recited taals to him. ​ At age 3, Ranendra's formal tabla training began, and has continued ever since. He has studied with many teachers in Bangladesh and India, and has been teaching and performing tabla professionally since 1996. But Tabla is the master and so his training continues. ​ Ranendra earned his Bachelor of Music Performance from the University of Bridgeport, studying Western Classical and Indian Classical music with Tabla as his major instrument. He earned his Master of Fine Arts in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College. Ranendra uses music to communicate and express himself. These expressions are sometimes entertaining, sometimes healing, and sometimes conversational. Whether teaching or performing, he always strives to make a connection with his students or audience. He believes music without emotion is meaningless. His intention is to create imagery with his music that stirs the senses and sparks the intellect. ​ In 2018, he and his wife Pamela founded PARA Academy of Music and Arts, LLC, in Hamden, CT. He loves exploring how various musical genres such as bluegrass, jazz, blues, folk, western classical, and rock and roll combine with Indian Classical music to not only create new sounds but to bridge gaps in understanding among members of different cultures and ethnicities. He teaches and performs in the New York Tri-State area, nationally, and internationally.  Selected venues where Ranendra has performed are a performance for President Obama at MLK Memorial Dedication in Washington, D.C.; Madison Square Garden; Metropolitan Museum of Art; Symphony Space; Lake Eden Arts Festival (LEAF) Black Mountain, NC; Mystic Seaport Sea Music Festival; International Festival of Arts & Ideas.