E-Paper
Silver shehnai as b?day gift for maestro
Bharat Ratna awardee and renowned shehnai maestro, Ustad Bismillah Khan, who played shehnai from the rampart of Redfort on August 15, 1947, expressed his desire to play it now at India Gate. Ustad Bismillah Khan expressed this desire at a felicitation function which was organized at his residence on Saturday to mark his completion of 90th birth day. He was felicitated with a 3 kg silver shehnai on the occasion .
Bharat Ratna awardee and renowned shehnai maestro, Ustad Bismillah Khan, who played shehnai from the rampart of Redfort on August 15, 1947, expressed his desire to play it now at India Gate.
Ustad Bismillah Khan expressed this desire at a felicitation function which was organized at his residence on Saturday to mark his completion of 90th birth day.
He was felicitated with a 3 kg silver shehnai on the occasion. Shivnath Jha, a renowned journalist, presented him the Shehnai. Jha also presented a cheque of Rs 50,000 to the shehnai legend while Bindeshwari Pathak of Sulabh International presented a cheque of Rs one lakh to him.
He was born on March 21, 1916 in a family of professional shehnai players of a princely state Dumraon in Bihar. He later shifted to his maternal uncle Ustad Ali Bux, an eminent Shehnai Player in Varanasi to learn shehnai. He started ‘riyaz’ (practice) at the tender age of six.
Now this shehnai maestro has a desire to render Shehnai at the India Gate “It is my heartiest desire to render Shehnai at the India Gate,” Ustad said and added that he had requested the government to allow him for this but his request was not considered.
Bismillah Khan, who cut a 91-kg of cake on the occasion, was seen in the mood of celebration. His jubiliant mood was evident when he sang Chaiti, Chiata and Holi amid the celebration.
Since Khan was born in Bihar, he said that he desired to recite shehnai every year in Durbhanga.
Ustad Bismilah Khan, who gave his first public performance at the age of 14 in 1930 at the All India Music Conference in Allahabad, said he was the first person to render shehnai at the Sankat Mochan Temple.
Ustad also conveyed a message of harmony and said that the members of different communities should be rope in one tune.
He also released a book based on his life which was authored by Shivnath Jha.
It may be mentioned that Bismillah Khan did not celebrate his birth anniversary on March 21 due to the mourning day of Chehellum and devastating twin bomb blasts incident on March 7.
Union Minister for Science and Technology, Kapil Sibbal was supposed to felicitate Ustad Bismillah Khan but he could not turn up due to some engagements at New Delhi.
