Ustad Vilayat Khan, you are immortal - By Shashi Vyas

Respected Khansaheb: Two days ago, at midnight, my brother, Satish, called up to say that you are travelling on a flight to freedom, a one-way journey as the sole passenger with no accompanists. My heart ached to realise that your rare appearance by choice has now become a no-show hereafter. Every one who visits this earth has to take this journey mandatorily with no exception even if that person happens to be a great artiste called Ustad Vilayat Khan, “whose music did not merely regale the ‘kansens’ spread across the globe but made their otherwise mundane journey of life comfortable, soothing and filled with pure joy and love”.

You seem to be a little surprised as to who this person is, who is writing to you, despite not having met you ever. Khansaheb, the issue is not whether you know me but the fact that there are countless hearts like mine who know you for your munificent gift of melody through your eagerly awaited private and public appearances. This communication to you is on behalf of all those who are currently lodging a strong protest against the Almighty for having picked you for that endless journey at such an unseemly hour.

Many among us, including those close to you, were given indication of this possible journey but none of them was ready to accept this stark reality. For each one of us, your mellifluous music had made you immortal. Therefore, your physical mortality has temporarily stunned us.

Why do you mean so much to us? Is it your sitar that sings along with you? Or is it the sheer command you wield over your nimble fingers that caress the strings reflecting the perfect balance between heart and head, leading to the creation of a sound that thrills the hearts of millions? Or is it your occasional couplets in chaste Urdu? The queries are endless, but the answer is that you were a person to be seen, heard and, above all, loved.

Do you remember one of your great concerts when you played for one of the publications in Mumbai? If I remember correctly, you played Raag ‘Nand Kalyan’ and the first 20 minutes of alap were nothing but magic. Suddenly you kept your sitar aside and addressed the audience in a very humble tone in pure Urdu:‘Is nacheez ko aapne jo izzat bakshi hai uske liye main khuda ka shukragujar hoon’. Your gracious presence, the royal yet mischievous look, the self confidence, the humility, the joy on your face at the audience’s appreciation of your divine music — everything is engraved on my mind permanently. That was probably my first major experience of your music. Thereafter your many concerts spanning more than two decades have been an experience beyond the limits of mere words.

You have been viewed, reviewed, judged, evaluated and/or otherwise weighted several times as a human being, as an artiste and as a performer but you are such an enigma that one would find it difficult to condense your life between the two covers of any book.

The entire music fraternity wishes you a peaceful journey. On a personal note: I firmly believe in reincarnation and, therefore, I — as my great grandchild, will listen to you, as your great great grandchild. Khuda hafeez on your arrival in His abode.

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This article was posted by Shashi Vyas (director, Pancham Nishad Creatives Ltd) on Indian Express dated March 17, 2004.