Ustad Bismillah Khan: A true musician, Banarasi and Hindustani to the core

Had Ustad been alive, he would have been 102 years old and his shehnai 96. Had he been here today, perhaps then Kabir would also have been here and the melodious tunes of his shehnai would have mingled with the ever-flowing Ganges to spread the message of peace and harmony around the country. Had Ustad been alive, the festival of Janmashtami would have echoed with the tunes of Vrindavani Sarang and during Moharram, tears would have flowed ceaselessly from thousands of eyes because of the mournful melodies floating from his shehnai. Had he been there, the temple of Baba Vishwanath would have opened only after hearing his Shehnai.

But Ustad is no more here. He was a Shia muslim but classical music bestowed him with the title ‘Khan’. Banaras and Ustad were inseparable. He carried Banaras within his soul. But he was born in Bihar, on March 21, 1916.

Yateendra Mishra has carried some excerpts of his conversation with Ustad in his book ‘Sur Ki Baradari’. At one point, Ustad says, “Music is a space where there is no caste or religion. Music doesn’t consider any religion bad.” He used to say that God is one as ‘sur’ (note) is one. He used to play the mourning tunes on Moharram with his eyes brimming with tears and on Holi fill the atmosphere with zeal and joy with raag ‘Kafi’. Even as he used to offer prayers five times a day, praying to Goddess Saraswati was just as important.

Some zealots had objected to his playing shehnai. It is said, once a maulavi told him that music is prohibited in Islam. Upon hearing this, he got up without replying and started playing “Allahhoo..” on his shehnai. The maulavi was stunned. Then, he said, in his typical style, “Forgive me, but is it prohibited?” The maulavi was speechless.

He played the shehnai at the Red Fort on the first evening after India became independent. After that, it became a tradition to celebrate Independence Day at Red Fort with the melodious sound of his shehnai. He played for films too. From Goonj Uthi Shehnai in 1959 to Swades in 2004, the sweet tunes of his shehnai adorned the music of many films. Doordarshan and Akashvani also, for many years, used to start their day with ‘mangal dhwani’ played by Bismillah Khan. But he could not settle in the glamorous world of film industry and lived in Banaras all his life. He did a special recording for this tune and the composition included seven ragas of different times of the day. This ‘mangal dhwani’ became the signature tune for Akashvani and Doordarshan. He was bestowed with Bharat Ratna in 2001.

Ustad was ‘Banarasi’ to the core. He used to say, and it became quite popular too, “Wherever I go in this entire world, I see Hindustan only and whichever city of India I am in, I see Banaras only.”

As Yateendra Mishra quoted him in the book, the ustad used to say, “I have not produced anything original. Whatever I did, it was a result of God’s grace. But yes, whatever I carry within my Shehnai, is a part of Banaras. Banaraswalas never act in a hurry. They speak and act in a relaxed way. I have spent all my life doing riyaz in Mangalagauri and Pucca Mehal, so it is natural that the feel of Banaras is reflected in the melodies that come out of my shehnai.”