True,they were speaking on local station,but I wasn't paying too much attn. for some reason. I thought R Shankar was not with us anymore? Not sure.
Ravi Shankar is still alive (although he recently retired from touring). My parents met him in Spain when they were staying at the same hotel he was. He walked through the lobby and greeted everyone who was there.
He came to international fame when the Beatles (George Harrison in particular) raised up his name and used sitars on their albums.