Voice of a maestro

He started training at the tender age of six and there’s been no looking back since then for the scion of Rampur-Seheswan gharana, Ustad Rashid Khan. The maestro of Hindustani classical music is now all set to enthral music aficionados in the city, with his soulful thumris and khyaaals. While masterful ragas may define his prowess as an Ustad now, an interesting anecdote, however, is that the maestro was never inclined towards music as a child. He shares, “I’ve been learning music since I was six, under my nanaji, Ustad Nissar Hussain Khan, in Uttar Pradesh. Back then, I would get bored and I only wanted to play cricket. The moment I would stop playing the tanpura, I would get yelled at.”

His sonorous voice is known to lull the audience into a state of musical bliss. But ask him about his pre-concert preparations and he asserts, “Whatever riyaaz I did was as a kid, now that I have to travel so much, there is hardly time for riyaaz. However, I take my concerts very seriously. The audience who come there, do so with a lot of hope. There are times when people even cry while listening to the music and that’s when you know by God’s grace, you have fulfilled their wish of watching you sing live. The audience means a lot when I’m on stage — the more they encourage me when I’m singing, the better I feel.”

His tryst with Bollywood came when he crooned Aaogey Jab Tum in the film Jab We Met. While not many purists agree to lend their voice to Bollywood films, Ustad Rashid always makes an exception for his friends, “I wasn’t going to sing for films but when friends and well wishers approach, I can’t refuse. For Jab We Met the composer Sandesh Shandaliya approached me for months before I finally agreed to do it. I’m always open to singing for films and have had no inhibitions,” he adds.

When he is not performing, Ustad Rashid prefers watching videos of other artistes performing, and says he loves to learn from them. “There is some brilliant talent out there and there is so much to learn from each one of them. I prefer cooking and watching videos on YouTube when I’m at ease. This is the age of fine-tuning and technology has advanced so much. During our days we used to sit with a tanpura and even if one sur was off the note, we would receive a scolding from our masters. Things have changed a lot now,” the maestro reminisces.

All his children — Suha, Shaona and Armaan — have music flowing in their blood and have been learning music from a young age. So, is he a strict master? “Today, I can’t be strict with my children. They have so much pressure and study responsibilities. I can’t get strict because then they’ll be scared. I just want them to learn and have their basics in place,” he adds.

Watch him perform live for the 17th edition of Vasantotsav On February 26, 5.45 onwards At Jade Ballroom, Sahara Star Hotel, Mumbai
Tickets: Rs 2,500