Krishna Das has performed for large concerts in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru while attracting a combined audience of around 25,000. He will play a “Thanksgiving Sunday Satsang” at the Napili Kai Beach Resort. Courtesy photo

A kirtan singer from New York, Krishna Das, recently toured India performing devotional chants to acclaim.

The Times of India noted: “Grammy-nominated kirtan artist Krishna Das mesmerized Delhiites with his devotional show.” His fans there include celebrity cricketer Virat Kohli and actress Anushka Sharma, who “elevated the atmosphere with collective devotion.”

Presenting concerts in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, he attracted a combined audience of around 25,000.

“It’s just extraordinary,” said Krishna Das, on the phone from India. “It’s really quite something. The people who come, I’m kind of like a combination of God and Bruce Springsteen.”

Performing a “Thanksgiving Sunday Satsang” Nov. 30 on Maui, the veteran musician, known as KD, has long enjoyed an Indian following.

“I’ve been coming there for 55 years,” he noted. “Many years ago I had a dream. I was coming back to Earth. I was reincarnating, and I was heading right back home to India, and I was feeling good. For some reason at the last minute I made a left turn and wound up in New York. I love the culture. I love the people. It’s been a major part of my life.”

A devotee of the late Indian guru Neem Karoli Baba (known as Maharajji), introduced by spiritual teacher Ram Dass, he has played an enormous role in popularizing the traditional practice of kirtan devotional singing in the West.

Layering traditional kirtan with accessible melodies and modern instrumentation, he has been hailed by The New York Times as “the chant master of American yoga,” while taking his call-and-response chanting into concert halls and becoming the best-selling Western chant artist of all time.

Several famous musicians have played on his albums. Sting sang and played bass on “Pilgrim Heart.” Steely Dan’s Walter Becker and Def Leppard’s drummer Rick Allen played prominent roles on “All One.”

He taught Madonna how to chant for a movie role, and after a sojourn in India, Alanis Morissette frequented his chanting sessions. Celebrated producer Rick Rubin was so moved by his chanting Rubin offered his services for the recording “Breathe of Heart.”

He recently released the album “Home in the Heart.” It includes a chant by Russian composer Boris Grebenshchikov, known as the Bob Dylan of Russia.

“He’s the biggest star — an icon in Russia,” KD explained. “He’s actually living outside of Russia now because of what’s going on. They were probably going to put him in prison because he’s so anti-war and so anti-corruption. He started protest singing in Russia many years ago. He is very spiritual and created some chants with mantras.”

The one English language track, “Goddess Come Down,” was composed years ago and features some tasty guitar work by Grammy-nominated musician Christiaan Oyens and Buddhist teacher David Nichtern, who has recorded with Stevie Wonder, Jerry Garcia and Paul Simon.

“Once every 10 years I kind of pull it out and play it,” he said. “It was so much fun.”

Sounding reminiscent of Bob Dylan’s “Knocking on Heaven’s Door,” “It’s just those three rock and roll chords,” he said. “I guess it’s somewhat similar to (Neil Young’s) ‘Helpless.’ In the middle of the song I’m doing Sanskrit mantras to the goddess.”

In his early days, KD dreamt of becoming a rock star and even sang lead vocals in an early version of Blue Oyster Cult, who later had the big hit, “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper.”

“That was my dream completely,” he recalled. Attending a Jimi Hendrix concert, “afterwards we’re hanging around backstage, and Blue Oyster Cult’s manager said they had a record made and would I come in and sing some songs. Now that was my dream being handed to me on a silver platter. I said no because I had met Ram Dass and I had tasted that love and I had tasted Maharajji’s presence. Nothing compares to that. I didn’t even hesitate. But look what’s happened.”

But KD feels a rock life would have killed him.

“I would have been dead,” he said. “What am I doing now, it’s exactly what I wanted to do, but hopefully without the ego B.S. I’m doing something that’s good for me and good for anybody who sings with me. This is Maharajji’s blessings that are transmitting through this very flawed vehicle.”

A frequent visitor to Maui, he enjoyed spending time with Ram Dass, who spent his last years on the island.

“I still miss his physical presence,” he said. “We had so much fun together over the years, especially as he gradually and very deeply began to overcome the negative effects of the stroke and really manifest that love and that presence and more deeply. He was a torchbearer for us. He got lit up before us. It was so life-changing for me because when I met him, I met Maharajji.”

The Thanksgiving Sunday Satsang is at 4:30 p.m. Nov. 30 at the Napili Kai Beach Resort’s Aloha Pavilion. The backing band features Dave Nichtern on lead guitar, Arjun Bruggeman on percussion, Mark Gorman on bass, Geneva Walker on violin and Nina Rao on backing vocals. Doors open at 3:30. The event is a food drive for the Maui Food Bank. Tickets are $60 at www.EventBrite.com.