Q&A: An ode to Ustad Bismillah Khan on his birth centenary

I was his disciple for more than seven years and I distinctly remember the first time my father took me to his place in Varanasi. I was so much in awe of him and when he praised me after I performed a piece for him, I was in cloud nine. The fact that he seldom accepted students and yet chose me as one was a great boost for my morale. It was a beautiful experience of training under him. He was so loving and treated me like his son. He would bless me after every good performance.

Shehnai is a north Indian instrument, rarely used in south Indian films. Though shehnai plays the role of creating an auspicious ambiance at weddings in the north, it has been used for creating a sombre mood in south Indian film music. Ilaiyaraaja used a lot of shehnai in his compositions and he broke all conventions that were in practice in the south Indian film music world. He used shehnai for all other moods – celebration, happy duets and everything else he chose to very successfully. MSV has also used shehnai extensively in his compositions and so has AR Rahman.

A large repertoire of artistes from across the country will be performing at the celebrations. Pt. Atul Kumar Upadhye, an ardent violinist will engage in jugalbandi with my father Pt. S Ballesh and Ustad Nazim Bismillah Khan on tabla. This will be followed by a vocal concert by Pt.Shrinivas Joshi, son of Pt. Bhimsen Joshi.