 He has successfully trained many South Asian and North American students on the "mridangam", "kanjira", "ghatam", tabla, and other Western percussion instruments.He was the pioneer in starting the Thyagaraja Festival in Toronto which has flourished into an annual event hosting a series of concerts featuring top ranked musicians from India, identifying and promoting talented youth in North America and endowing scholarships to students pursuing a career in music.Sankaran has performed far and wide at major festivals in India, Southeast Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Australia, and North America.