Ustad Bismillah Khan

“ Music has no caste ”

Ustad Bismillah Khan Sahib (March 21, 1916 – August 21, 2006) was an Indian shehnai maestro. He was the third classical musician to be awarded the Bharat Ratna (in 2001), the highest civilian honour in India.

Bismillah Khan was perhaps single handedly responsible for making the shehnai a famous classical instrument. He brought the shehnai to the center stage of Indian music with his concert in the Calcutta All India Music Conference in 1937. He was credited with having almost monopoly over the instrument as he and the shehnai are almost synonyms.

Khan is one of the finest musicians in post-independent Indian Classical music and one of the best examples of Hindu-Muslim unity in India and had played shenai to audience across the world.He was known to be devoted to his art form that he refered to shehnai as his begun, wife in urdu, after his wife passed away. On his death, as an honour, his shehnai was also buried along with him.He was known for his vision of spreading peace and love through music.

Awards

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Bharat Ratna (2001)

Fellow of Sangeet Natak Akademi (1994).

Talar Mausiquee from Republic of Iran (1992).

Padma Vibhushan (1980)

Padma Bhushan (1968)

Padma Shri (1961)

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1956)

Tansen Award by Govt. of Madhya Pradesh.

Three medals in All India Music Conference, Calcutta (1937)

"Best Performer" in All India Music Conference, Allahabad (1930)

Recognitions

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Bismillah Khan had honorary doctorates from

• Banaras Hindu University
• Visva Bharati University
• Santiniketan.

Also,

• Was invited by the then Prime Minister of India Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to play shehnai on the first Independence Day (August 15, 1947) in Delhi's Red Fort.
• Participated in World Exposition in Montreal
• Participated in Cannes Art Festival
• Participated in Osaka Trade Fair
• His 80th birthday was celebrated by World Music Institute in New York

The Video is a very rare clip of Ustad Bismillah Khan performing 'raga Gunkali'.