Maestro Ustad Rashid Khan Was A Phenomenon In Indian Classical Music

The legendary Kolkata based music maestro Ustad Rashid Khan’s untimely departure to the way of all flesh is not only an occasion for mourning for all those who love music and life. It cuts a link between the traditional and modern space; style was the man who had also brushed the gaps between different styles of Indian classical music.

There was little showmanship about the maestro though he was a part of the show biz. Such were his performances that they shine gemlike in the collective memory of the audience.

Music was in the genes of Rashid Khan being the great grandson of legendary Ustad Inayat Husain Khan, the founder of Rampur Sahaswan Gharana. While his tutelage was started under his granduncle and guru, Inayat Husain Khan , he also carried the lineage of eminent vocalists Mustaq Hussain Khan and Ghulam Mustafa Khan.

He sang in the style of exploratory development reminiscent of the manner of singing handed down by the redoubtable Amir Khan. His audience was struck by his tunefulness; there was a classy style in the way he embraced each note.

The great musician died at the age of only 56.Ustad Rashid Khan became a model to aspiring singers. His style, skill and even his consistency were emulated. By other singers.

It may appear to be strange and even nostalgic, Ràshid Khan’s excellence seemed to be a throwback to ’60s and ’70s. If it was not rare then, talent became increasingly in short supply as the ’80s dawned marking the emergence of this extraordinary singer who is no more.

Even as the days pass, the lovers and practitioners of Hindustani classical music are being increasingly aware that something formative of their times have ended. It is very harsh to live with this reality as Ustad Rashid Khan had many more miles to go before being enveloped in the Big Sleep.

Memory and melancholy created the soul of the artiste. But Rashid Khan was unaware of it though it can be traced to the untimely passing of his mother and younger brother

Rashid Khan had come to Kolkata at the age of ten. The city became his home where he found his music, family and appreciation; he breathed his last here. He loved Kolkata and the city also loved him.

Here was a man who carried his talent lightly. The “honorary Bengali” that Khan was he loved his adda, fish curry and para with the passion of s a Kolkata middle class..

The singer’s heart and soul was embedded in the spirit of Kolkata. Small wonder, Kolkatans stood on queue carrying garlands and bouquet to give their parting tribute to this eminent Kolkatan as his body lay in state at Rabindra Sadan.

It is not that as if such a talented singer will not come again. It is neither that such talent is not already among us.

But we are not aware of such talent right now. And the fact remains that Rashid Khan and the likes of him are not easy to come by these days.

Even as the search for his likes continues, his fans can still hear the reverberations of the boom in his voice in three octaves. The maestro broke traditional boundaries with an ease of his own in his scintillating voice evoking sensibilities among his audience many of whom felt nostalgic about the old .maestros they had heard at soirees at Pathuriaghata and Park Circus. .

Long before Rashid Khan had attained his stature he was sitting on stage during a music conference listening with rapt attention to the singing of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. He was asked to get off the stage and sit at the back.

Panditji who did not shower his praise thoughtlessly had once said that Rashid Khan was the only singer of his generation who could pronounce “Sa” the first note of the sargam. It was indeed a balm to the Ustad’s insult and a tribute to the genius of Rashid Khan from one who knew what he was talking about. (IPA Service)