Master of Vilambit Khayal
The Hindustani classical music desktop is replete with icons who have left an indelible imprint on its practitioners and listeners. One name that prominently stands out on this exemplary canvas is that of the accomplished performer Ustad Rashid Khan who honed his skills in the Rampur Sahaswan Gharana and gave his school of music the pre-eminence and acclaim, it deserved.
Born on 1 July 1968 in Badayun, Uttar Pradesh, Rashid Khan took to classical music under the rigorous tutelage of his uncle Ustad Nissar Hussain Khan followed by Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan. Even as he polished and exposed his robust vocals to classical strains, he acquired mastery over the Swarmandal.
Khan gave his debut performance at the young age of eleven. The following year he took part in an ITC concert in Delhi. At 14, he enrolled in the ITC Sangeet Research Academy (SRA), Calcutta (now Kolkata), in April 1980, after his uncle Nissar Hussain Khan joined the institute. It was here that he won recognition as a musician par excellence, in 1994.
Widely regarded as the 31st generation of Mian Tansen, Rashid Khan after giving his first concert, never looked back. Given his strict riyaaz that he would start doing from early morning 4 am, it was little surprise that his acknowledged stature as musician got noticed. For, he practiced putting his heart and soul. The Rampur-Sahaswan gayaki (style of singing) is closely related to the Gwalior gharana, which features medium-slow tempos, a full-throated voice and intricate rhythmic play. Rashid Khan imbibed it and how! A virtuoso whose career had a meteoric rise, he amalgamated distinct features of multiple khayal traditions in his repertoire.
Following in the footsteps of his uncle, Khan would include the slow elaboration in his vilambit khayals and developed exceptional expertise in the use of sargams and sargam taankari (play on the scale). He was influenced with the style of Amir Khan and Bhimsen Joshi. Although a master of the tarana like his guru, he gave it his own flavour, preferring the khayal style rather than the instrumental stroke-based style for which Nissar Hussain was famous. There was no imitation of instrumental tone.
His renderings stood out for the emotional overtones in his melodic elaboration. In his musical philosophy: The emotional content may be in the alaap, sometimes while singing the bandish, or while giving expression to the meaning of the lyrics. It lent a touch of modernity to his style, as compared to the older maestros, who tended to place greater emphasis on impressive technique and skilful execution of difficult passages.
Ready to depart from conventions, Rashid Khan also experimented with fusing pure Hindustani music with lighter musical genres, e.g. in the Sufi fusion recording Naina Piya Se (songs of Amir Khusro), or in experimental concerts with western instrumentalist Louis Banks. He has also performed jugalbandis, along with sitarist Shahid Parvez and others. He, however, remained in the awe of his senior Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.
Rashid Khan gave his voice to a number of songs in Hindi and Bengali films from 2004 to 2019. The most popular songs were: Aaoge Jab Tum Saajna in the film Jab We Met in 2007, Alah Hi Rahem in My Name Is Khan in 2010 and Bol Ke Lab Azad Hain in the film Manto in 2018.
His musical journey is globally appreciated. He was honoured with numerous awards including, Padma Shri (2006), Banga Bhushan (2012), Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (2006), Global Indian Music Academy Awards (GIMA) (2010), Maha Sangeet Samman Award (2012), Mirchi Music Awards (2013), and the prestigious Padma Bhushan (2022).
The 55-year-old maestro had been undergoing treatment for prostate cancer in Kolkata. His health took a major downturn after experiencing a cerebral attack and was kept on a ventilator life support system. He passed away – an untimely death — on 9 January 2024 after a protracted battle with cancer. He leaves behind wife and three children.
Raju Korti is a senior journalist with over four-decade experience of working in media institutions.