A Friend who visited Baba’s house in Maihar ( District Satna MP ) recently told me as under :
“The cot on which Baba slept , is preserved . Photographs of Swami Vivekananda , Goddess Saraswati, Sri Krishna , Gurudev Tagore, Jesus Christ, Sri Hanuman and Beethoven still hang on the walls of the room.Nal Tarang invented by Baba is preserved “
Baba’s house is a Museum now. It is visited by so many lovers and connoisseurs of Music .Baba was the court musician of Maihar Maharaja’s . Baba lived in Maihar from 1918 until his demise in 1972.
The world of Hindustani classical ( instrumental ) Music will rarely see a Musician as great and perfect as Baba Alla ud din Khan.
Baba played Sarod with both the hands . Not sarod only , Baba played so many instruments, something that shaped his pedagogy. In fact Baba was a musical genius who could play any instrument that he could lay his hands on.
MAIHAR STRING BAND , an orchestra with Indian instruments was his creation. To his son, Ali Akbar Khan, he taught Sarod, his daughter Annapurna Devi learned the surbahar. To Ravi Shankar and Nikhil Banerjee, baba taught sitar, to Robin Ghosh he taught violin and to to Pannalal Ghosh the Bansuri or Flute .
Baba’s Daughter Annapurna Devi married Pandit Ravi Shanker in 1941 and they were divorced in 1960. Pandit Ravi Shankar writes in his autobiography, Raga Mala:
“There was no love or romance or hanky-panky at all between Annapurna and myself, despite what many people thought at that time. I do not know how she truly felt about the match before marriage, although I was told that she had ‘agreed’.”
Baba’s son Ali Akbar khan was he foremost virtuoso of the lute like sarod, whose dazzling technique and gift for melodic invention, was often on display in concerts with his brother-in-law Ravi Shankar.
The violinist Yehudi Menuhin, who brought Ali Akbar Khan to the United States in 1955, called him “an absolute genius” and “the greatest musician in the world.”
And well known Musician Aashish khan Debsharma ( Born 1939 ) is Baba’s grandson. He also learnt music from Baba . Aashish has been awarded Sangeet Natak Akademi award in 2005. In 2006, he was nominated for a Grammy Award in the ‘Best World Music’ category. And in 2007, Aashish became the first ever Indian classical musician to be made a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain .About baba , Aashish says :
“ I had started my talim with dadu (Ustad Allauddin Khan) at Maihar, at an age I didn’t even properly understand what music was all about. I was petrified of him; he was very strict and discipline meant the world to him. I had to do 12 hours of riyaaz every day, broken into four-hour slots. On certain days, he would get so involved that talim would stretch for much longer, till I was completely drained. Whenever he was away on concerts, Pishi (Annapurna Devi) would give me talim. It was a different world altogether. However, my father (Ustad Ali Akbar Khan) was easy to train under. “
Baba was fond of SANKEERNA (compound) Ragas, and created many ragas of his own. Madan Manjari (named after his wife), Prabhakali, Swarasati, Shobhavati, Madhavasri, Hem Bhairav, Madhavgiri, Bhagvati, Hemant, Hem Behag , Manjh Khamaj and many more . Many of these have not become common. From Maihar repertoire; Manjh Khamaj is perhaps the best known.
As a principle, he never accepted cash or gifts from his disciples. As a matter of fact, he took care of the food and lodging expenses of his disciples.
It is said that Baba was a hard task master . For one complete night , he tied his son Ali Akbar with a tree when he could not pick up some notes . He would make his disciples get up at 5 AM even during winters by removing their bed sheets and sprinkling water over their faces.
A devout Muslim who prayed five times a day , Baba was also a great devotee of Maa Sharada (Saraswati) of Maihar Temple and Lord Shiva .Baba would read out from the Holy Quran, Ramayan and Bhagwat Gita to his disciples.
Baba was awarded Padma Bhushan in 1958 and Padma Vibhushan in 1971. He was also awarded Sangeet Natak Akademi fellowship for lifetime contribution to Indian classical music.
Autar Mota is a Blogger , Translator and writes in English , Urdu , Kashmiri and Hindi.His write-ups have appeared in many national magazines and journals.
