11 Years After His Death, Termites Ravage Bismillah Khan’s Awards
A glimpse at the Padma Vibhushan he had received in 1980 is testimony to the hardships Bimillah Khan faced.
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Even as success kissed his feet, shehnai maestro Ustad Bismillah Khan continued to live a life of simplicity. There was nothing in his life other than his shehnai. Born and raised in poverty, Khan saab even breathed his last as a poor man. He became a Bharat Ratna, but could not manage to spend on anything apart from his family basic needs, let alone a place to adorn his awards.
The maestro’s Varanasi home still preserves his memory, including items of his daily use – his shoes, umbrella, phone, chair, lamp and even the utensils he used are all kept in the house. Among these things are also all the awards he received over his lifetime that are now ravaged by termite.
His followers are deeply upset about his belongings, and by extension his memory, being neglected. But who can be held responsible for this neglect? The government, or his family? Or should we blame the misery that plagued Khan saab his entire life? After his death, his family has been handed the legacy of this misery.
His family’s efforts to care for his belongings, within their own means, have fallen short. But the government too has a responsibility.
This responsibility is all the more pertinent in light of the declaration of Varanasi as the ‘City of Music’ as part of UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network. In 2015, it had been promised that the city’s musical heritage will be preserved and encouraged, its artistes will be taken care of and their memory will be celebrated. While Khan saab’s suffered from poverty all his life, his memory suffers from silence and neglect.
The precious shehnai that made an ordinary Bismillah the extraordinary Khan saab was recently stolen from his home. His grandson was one of the accused. Can anything be worse for a family? If these allegations are wrong, then little has been lost. But if they are indeed true, one can imagine the state of the family Khan saab has left behind.
(This article has been translated from Hindi by Suhasini Krishnan.)
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