Legacy like no other
By Padmashree Shravan Narayan
Soft strains of the shehnai, the mangal vadya herald auspicious occasions in India. Associated with religious ceremonies, its elevated status makes it a necessary instrument in north Indian weddings and festivals. If it is the harbinger of the arrival of the groom resulting in excitement and flurry of running feet and excited laughter, it also wails the pangs of separation as the bride departs for her new home. Traditionally, it sounded clarion calls and auspicious fares, blasting from processions and from the shrines and temples. The beautiful, controlled sound of the wind passing through the simple reed needed a maestro to arrest the mind and soul of the listeners which it found in Ustad Bismillah Khan. Khan Saheb breathed life into it, cajoled it, caressed it and engaged it, producing notes that hypnotised listeners.
It is a cliché that it was Ustad Bismillah Khan who gave shehnai its status with his unswerving perseverance and genius. Conquering the world with the miraculous sound of the music of his shehnai, he thus turned the fate of an ordinary instrument into one of the most important classical concert instruments of India. It was he who with his performance at the Edinburgh Festival in 1965 gave the non-Indian audience for the first time an opportunity to savour the enduring transcendence of his magic. In 1967 the London Evening Standard had declared ‘You are now expected to know about Bismillah Khan and his shehnai’. This quote later entered the 1986 Oxford English Dictionary. That year saw the shehnai and Khan Sahib entering the English language!
What transported the listeners? After all popular music too has its own appeal that excites listeners. It is the element of spirituality, the key element behind the Indian tradition and sensibilities that elevates and rises above mere ‘entertainment’ or ‘sensual enjoyment’. No wonder classical music has been perceived as one of the paths of meditation and no wonder that the ability and craftsmanship of Khan Sahib to craft the shehnai to become a recognised instrument in the world of classical music.
My first meeting with Khan Saheb was at the residence of the famous thumri singer, Naina Devi, way back in the 60s. His simplicity and childlike laughter were captivating as was his music even to our very youthful ears. With my parents, he re-lived his young days at Dumrao and then at Benaras. To me he epitomised Benaras – the forest of rasa. That evening seemed as though his music was pure magic, spiritually elevating and all consuming. He enthralled the already enraptured audience with dexterous interweaving of anecdotes and singing a few bandishes. His home at Benaras was close to Kabir Chura that had produced several legends in the field of classical music and dance. It was the meeting point of the sensitive, the spiritual and the sensuous!
This ‘great’ was a lesson for all in humility. Never a show of tantrum, always a welcome smile, and a kind word to all irrespective of caste and creed, served as great motivation to young performers.
Khan Saheb’s life and music brought to the fore the subtle message of love, humanity and an attitude of all encompassing, tolerance and acceptance of the other, as one beyond man-made barriers of religion, community, caste or creed. With him, the nirguna and nirakar swaroop of God became dominant for it was ‘timeless’ even while celebrating the saguna and sakar swaroop! He was part of an influx of musicality, musicianship and humanity that shaped a new consciousness. He epitomised the most appropriate metaphor to define India’s diversity and culture. Nowhere else could one find the residents of Benaras, a city considered sacred by the Hindus, waking to the musical notes of a devout Muslim.
Shehnai and Bismillah Khan complemented each other as did the emotional canvas afforded by the shehnai-shringar, viyog, bhakti. It was the mellifluous sound of Khan Saheb’s shehnai that spoke of the nation’s grief on the passing away of Panditji and Indiraji. It was his shehnai that aroused patriotic fervour in the nation on Republic Day.
If it was Khan Saheb’s shehnai that brings nostalgia in Goonj Uthi shehnai, it was Michael Jackson, one of the most gifted songwriter, lyricist and producer of his generation who delighted the world with his amazing moonwalk. Khan Saheb bridged the gap between the folk and the classical world as did Jackson bridging races between the black soul music and the white pop music and defining the video age. Like his other fans worldwide, I too was waiting with open arms and anxious heart to witness his triumphant return to the stage.
But with just 17 days for his historic return, Jackson’s sudden death brought a sad end to the spectacular life of this special, once-in-a-lifetime performer, who was as much adored around the world by millions of fans as he was mocked for his extravagant and peculiar lifestyle.
His lifestyle apart, Jackson has left behind a legacy as a musician and entertainer that anyone will certainly be hard-pressed to match again. Beginning his journey into the world of music as the 11-year-old wonder-child singer of the Jackson 5 and culminating it with his glorious days of the 1980s and early 1990s as the self-proclaimed “King of Pop,” Jackson became both a musical and creative genius in the world of entertainment.
He defined the art of music video with such ground-breaking hits as Billie Jean, Beat It” and the epic video of all-time Thriller, all the while
becoming a tremendous and enduring inspiration for the legions of artistes from all genres — rock, pop, soul, R&B and hip-hop — that followed him and even modeled their careers after him.
It was he who made me love pop and I remember the first album I ever bought was Thriller. Jackson proved that you can actually see the beat. He made the music come to life! He made us believe in magic. Life is not about how many breaths you take, but about moments in life that take your breath away.
For anyone who has ever seen, felt, or heard his art, he/she will say that they are honoured to have been alive in this generation to experience the magic of Michael Jackson.
Both were consummate artistes; both defined music; both bridged cultures. They are legends like no other. Both are no more.
– The author is Kathak exponent
