16 Years On, the Genius of Ustad Vilayat Khan Endures
Ustad Shujaat Khan spoke to The Quint about his father, Ustad Vilayat Khan.
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(This article was first published on 28 August 2016 and has been republished from The Quint’s archives to mark Ustad Vilayat Khan’s birth anniversary.)
Ustad Vilayat Khan was regarded as a great Sitarist of his generation. Born in Gauripur, Bangladesh on 28 August 1927, he belonged to the Imdadkhani Gharana, also called the Etawah Gharana. He had a musical pedigree that went back several generations. He introduced gayaki ang, which reproduced nuances of human voice through Sitar playing.
Vilayat Khan’s father Ustad Enayat Khan passed away when he was only nine years old. His father was also a great Sitar and Sur Bahar player of his time. His grandfather Ustad Imdad Khan and his great grandfather Ustad Sahebdad Khan were also leading artists of Imdadkhani Gharana.
Music has been a part of Vilayat Khan’s family for generations and naturally it ran in his blood. It was his mother who wanted him to learn Sitar playing as she felt he should take up the responsibility of continuing the family legacy. However, singing was his passion and he used to sing while he played the Sitar.
Ustad Shujaat Khan Speaks About His Father:
On the Gharana
Gharana’s are usually named after a forefather who was very well known or the place where they all belonged to. Everyone used to live in Etawah, so some people called it the Etawah Gharana. Then my great grandfather Ustad Imdad Hussain became very famous and people called it the Imdadkhani Gharana. I look at my gharana nowadays and call it the Vilayatkhani Gharana. So truly Ustad Vilayat Khan is the person who has changed the face of music and Sitar.
On several generations playing Sitar
I belong to the seventh generation. Before that we were just zamindars. My son is more of a composer but there are other musicians in the family like my cousins’ children. We will have to see how the next generation goes in a few years.
How was Ustad Vilayat Khan different from other artistes?
Earlier, the Sitar was played with right hand strokes and the left hand did not do any pulling at all. Vilayat Khan Saab introduced the Gayaki Ang, a playing style that resembles the vocal voice as close as possible. He did this by pulling up the sitar strings up to five notes which a lot of people cannot do even today.
Ustad Vilayat Khan refused Padma awards
Nowadays, there are many people who are refusing to accept the award. He was the first person to do that. He realised that there is no criteria for giving these awards. Government awards or anything to do with the government in this country is only given to people depending on how much of leg work and networking they have done with their local MP or MLA. It is not given on the basis of your ability. There is no criteria. My father refused to take something which has no criteria. He was offered the Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan (twice) and Padma Vibhushan.
Remember Ustad Vilayat Khan for his music
He was my hero. I’ve spent wonderful times with him. He was a very generous and a wonderful man. People had a wrong impression that he was a bit temperamental… That tag was given to him because he was a perfectionist. For instance, if a minister wanted to walk out in the middle of his concert, he would tell him it was not appropriate. People look up to a minister so he must learn to behave. If you go to someone’s concert you must sit through it. That shows respect to the artists. He was a wonderful man and I hope he is remembered more for his music.
On Ustad Vilayat Khan being a strict disciplinarian
You have to be disciplined if you want success. He was and that’s what coaches and Gurus are supposed to be. He was very strict and that’s why he got the most number of young disciples, like Shahid Parvez and Nishad Khan who had learned from him and they are performing really well.
(With inputs from Monica Sarup)
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