Lucknow, UTTAR PRADESH :
Ustad Irfan, 69, is the seventh generation of the family of gifted sarodiyas and sitarists — referred to as the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur gharana.
Ustad Irfan Muhammad Khan of Lucknow-Shahjahanpur gharana. (Sourced)
Lucknow :
Hailed as the ‘khalifa’ of the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur gharana, celebrated sarod player Ustad Irfan Muhammad Khan feels his disciples are his only hope to take the rich music legacy of his family forward.
Ustad Irfan, 69, is the seventh generation of the family of gifted sarodiyas and sitarists — referred to as the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur gharana.
This gharana has its roots in the Bangash tribe of Afghanistan, three of whom migrated to India some 200 years ago. Irfan’s great great grandfather Niyamatullah Khan played sarod in the court of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah. However, after the exile of the nawab to Calcutta (now Kolkata) following the 1857 uprising, Niyamatullah Khan also migrated.
More than half a century later, Irfan Khan’s grandfather Sakhawat Hussain Khan was invited to Lucknow by Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande to teach at Marris College (now Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya). Later, in 1954, Irfan Khan was born in Lucknow. After completing his school education in Calcutta, he returned to his residence at the Latouche Road in Lucknow. While he had already been excelling in his sarod training in Calcutta, Khan’s skills were further honed under the guidance of his uncle Ustad Ilayas Khan, the legendary sitar player, in Lucknow.
For several years, Irfan has been keeping the rich tradition of his gharana alive. But in the face of reducing number of mehfil concerts, the gharana is struggling to preserve its rich musical tradition. Besides, the next generation of Irfan Khan’s family didn’t stick to being full-time artistes due to the shrinking size of the audience for sitar/sarod players.
Dwelling on the reasons behind the ‘disinterest’ among youths in classical instruments like sarod or sitar, Ustad Irfan Khan said, “A lot of youngsters look for overnight fame. Also, there is no parental support to pursue this training seriously as they don’t want their kids to stare at an uncertain future. Furthermore, concerts for classical music are limited to only a few cities. Lastly, organisers tend to invite only the big names — this creates a monopoly which further reduces opportunities for budding talents.”
In fact, most of Khan’s disciples are not Indians and he currently doesn’t have a single student from Uttar Pradesh, the birthplace of the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur gharana.
Speaking on this irony, one of his London-based students Pete Yelding said, “Hindustani music is constantly evolving. It has an inherently international and interfaith tradition with roots in Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, and Greek musical philosophies. Within its history are stories of constant innovation, reinvention, and moving with the times. Approaching it in this way makes it much less alienating because there is something in it for everyone.”
He added, “I visit Ustad Ji once a year and learn via Skype the rest of the year… Carrying the flame of his illustrious musical lineage really is an honour.”
When asked about the steps that could revive the interest in the rich art form, Ustad Khan said, “Our schools should start training interested students in music. Training in formative years will help them appreciate classical music better. This, in turn, will increase demand for concerts by sarod/sitar players. I come across several bright young talents… Some of my foreign disciples are also doing very well, which keeps me hopeful.”
‘Don’t write off the gharana just yet’
Bringing an optimistic point of view to the table, Chandrima Majumdar, an eminent sarod player who also has a PhD thesis on the Shahjahanpur gharana (a different music school tradition), feels that it takes only one generation to revive a gharana and hence, the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur gharana should not be written off just yet.
“Yes, the artistes of this gharana are not in the limelight due to fewer concerts but there will always be some serious learners and practitioners. They will keep the tradition alive. I believe that one serious disciple of a gharana is enough to keep the torch burning. Thanks to digital media, people are able to listen, compare and enjoy the rendition of the same raag by different gharanedar artists,” said Majumdar, who has studied at the Bhatkhande Music College.
In a similar vein, Dr Ruchi Khare, assistant professor, Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya, said, “Bhatkhande has always supported sarodiyas and sitarists of the Lucknow-Shahjahanpur gharana and will continue to do so. For Ustad Ilayas, retirement rules were also relaxed. Several disciples of the gharana, including a Sri Lankan national, were taught here. Many of them are imparting this knowledge to their disciples now. In this way, the rich legacy of the gharana will continue to thrive.”
source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home / by Prateek Shukla / May 21st, 2023