Bismillah Khan

Bismillah Khan ( Urdu:

March 21, 1913 – August
21, 2006), often referred to
by the honorific title Ustad,
was an Indian musician
credited with popularising
the shehnai , a
subcontinental wind
instrument of the oboe
class. While the shehnai
had long held importance
as a folk instrument played
primarily during traditional
ceremonies, Khan is
credited with elevating its
status and bringing it to
the concert stage. [1][2]
He was awarded India’s
highest civilian honour, the
Bharat Ratna, in 2001,
becoming the third classical
musician after M. S.
Subbulakshmi and Ravi
Shankar to be accorded
this distinction.[2]
Early life
Bismillah Khan was born
on 21 March 1913 in
Dumraon, Bihar in
northern India. He was the
second son of Paigambar
Khan and Mitthan.[3] His
parents had initially named
him Qamaruddin to rhyme
with their first-born son
Shamshuddin. However, his
grandfather, Rasool Bux
Khan, the shehnai master
of the court of Bhojpur ,
exclaimed "Bismillah!" ("In
the name of Allah!") at the
sight of him and thereafter
he came to be known by
this name. [1]
His ancestors were court
musicians and used to play
in Naqqar khana in the
princely states of Bhojpur ,
now in Bihar. His father
was a shehnai player in the
court of Maharaja Keshav
Prasad Singh of Dumraon
Estate, Bihar.
At the age of six, he moved
to Varanasi.[2] He received
his training under his
uncle, the late Ali Baksh
'Vilayatu', a shehnai player
attached to Varanasi's
Vishwanath Temple.[4]
Religious beliefs
Though a pious Shi'ite
Muslim, he was also, like
many Indian musicians,
regardless of religion, a
devotee of Saraswati , the
Hindu Goddess of wisdom
and arts, [5] and often
played at Hindu temples,
including the famous
Vishwanath Temple in
Varanasi, on the banks of
the river Ganga. [6] He also
performed for spiritual
master Prem Rawat . [7]
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Career
Bismillah Khan was
perhaps single-handedly
responsible for making the
shehnai a famous classical
instrument. He brought the
shehnai to the center stage
of Indian music with his
concert in the Calcutta All
India Music Conference in
1937. He was credited with
having almost monopoly
over the instrument as he
and the shehnai are almost
synonyms.
Khan is one of the finest
musicians in post-
independent Indian
classical music and one of
the best examples of
Hindu-Muslim unity in
India. He played shehnai to
audience across the world.
He was known to be so
devoted to his art form
that he referred to shehnai
as his begum (wife in Urdu)
after his wife died. On his
death, as an honour, his
shehnai was buried with
him. He was known for his
vision of spreading peace
and love through music.
“ Even if the
world ends,
the music
will still
survive.
”
“ Music has
no caste. ”
Performances at Red
Fort
Khan had the rare honor of
performing at Delhi's Red
Fort on the eve of India's
Independence in 1947. He
also performed raga Kafi
from the Red Fort on the
eve of India’s first Republic
Day ceremony, on January
26, 1950. His recital had
become a cultural part of
India's Independence Day
celebrations, telecast on
Doordarshan every year on
August 15. After the prime
minister's speech from Lal
Qila (the Red Fort,) in Old
Delhi, Doordarshan would
broadcast a live
performance by the
shehnai maestro. This
tradition dated from the
days of Pandit Nehru .
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Popular culture
Khan had a brief
association with movies.
He played the shehnai for
Rajkumar's role of Appanna
in the Kannada movie
Sanaadi Appanna. He acted
in Jalsaghar , a movie by
Satyajit Ray and provided
sound of shehnai in Goonj
Uthi Shehnai (1959). Noted
director Goutam Ghose
directed Sange Meel Se
Mulaqat, a documentary
about the life of Khan. [4]
In the 1967 film The
Graduate , there is a poster
advertising "Bismillah Khan
and the seven musicians"
on a busy street of
Berkeley, California.
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Students
Khan seldom accepted
students.
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Personal life
On August 17, 2006, Khan
was taken ill and admitted
to the Heritage Hospital,
Varanasi for treatment. [8]
He died after four days on
August 21, 2006 due to a
cardiac arrest . He is
survived by five daughters,
three sons and a large
number of grandchildren
and great-grandchildren,
and his adopted daughter
Dr Soma Ghosh (famous
Hindustani shastriya
sangeet exponent) [9]
The Government of India
declared a day of national
mourning on his death. His
body along with a Shehnai
was buried at Fatemain
burial ground of old
Varanasi under a neem
tree with 21-gun salute
from Indian Army . [10]
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Legacy
Sangeet Natak Akademi ,
New Delhi, instituted the
'Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva
Puraskar' in 2007, in his
honour. It is given to young
artists in the field of music,
theatre and dance. [11]
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Awards and recognitions
Awards
Bharat Ratna (2001)
Fellow of Sangeet Natak
Akademi (1994).
Talar Mausiquee from
Republic of Iran (1992).
Padma Vibhushan (1980)
Padma Bhushan (1968)
Padma Shri (1961)
Sangeet Natak Akademi
Award (1956)
Tansen Award by Govt.
of Madhya Pradesh.
Three medals in All India
Music Conference, Calcutta
(1937)
"Best Performer" in All
India Music Conference,
Allahabad (1930