Hariharan is a professional singer based out of the finance capital of India, Mumbai.
The son of renowned Carnatic vocalists, the late HAS Mani and Shrimati Alamelu, Hariharan inherited his parents' musical talents. Alamelu was Hariharan's first mentor. From her, he picked up Carnatic music skills.
He was also exposed to Hindustani music from a young age. During his teens, he was inspired by the songs of Mehdi Hassan. Hariharan developed a passion for ghazals and started training in Hindustani music from Padmabhushan Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan.
He used to put in nine hours of singing practice daily. The committed Hariharan also put heart and soul into learning Urdu when he decided to become a ghazal singer. He has perfected his Urdu diction to such standards that even his audiences in Lucknow, the heartland of the language, have been wowed over.