Alladiya Khan

Alladiya Khan
Birth name Ghulam Ahmad Khan
Born (1855-08-10)10 August 1855
Uniara, Rajasthan, India
Origin Atrauli, Uttar Pradesh
Died 16 March 1946(1946-03-16) (aged 90)
Bombay, Maharashtra, India
Genres Dhrupad, Dhamar, Khayal,
Occupation(s) singer
Years active 1870–1944

Alladiya Khan (Hindi: अल्लादिया ख़ान; 10 August 1855 – 16 March 1946) was an Indian classical singer who founded the Atrauli-Jaipur gharana. He is also recognized for his revival and creations of many rare ragas.[1]

Early life and background

Alladiya Khan was born in Uniara, a small village in the present Indian district of Tonk (Rajasthan), then under the native state of Jaipur, on 10 August 1855, in a family of musicians. Though his father Ahmed Khan died early in Alladiya's life, his uncle, Jehangir Khan (of Jaipur), taught him dhrupad for 5 years and then khyal for another 8 years.

Singing career

Alladiya Khan served in the court of various kings of Rajasthan, including that of Amlata. Later he settled down in Kolhapur as the court musician of the local king, Shahu Maharaj. In 1922 he moved to Mumbai after the king died. He taught many disciples and sang in many mehfils in Mumbai.

His autobiography, as narrated to his grandson Azizzudin Khan Sahab, is available in English translation, as My Life, with an introduction by Amlan Dasgupta and Urmila Bhirdikar, published by Thema, Kolkata, 2000.[2]

Repertoire

Alladiya Khan was acknowledged for his creation and resurrection of many complex Raags such as Nat Kamod, Bhoop Nat, Kaunsi Kanada, Sampoorna Malkauns, Basanti Kedar, Shuddha Nat, Malavi, Savani Kalyan, DhavalaShree.

Many of these Raags were sung in the Havelis in northern Rajasthan, where Khansahab grew up. From Haveli Sangeet tradition, Khansahab brought many of the Raags in the realm of live concerts and also created Raags and Bandishes rooted in them. One of the Raags he resurrected was Raag Basanti Kanada. Few of the many Haveli sangeet dhrupads which he made into bandishes were the famous Raag Nayaki Kanada Bandish "Mero Piya Rasiya" and Bihagda Bandish "Ae Pyaari pag hole". "Khan Saheb had never allowed his voice to be recorded."[2]

Students

Khansahab's major disciples were Azmat Hussain Khan[3], his own younger brother Haider Khan, his own sons, Manji Khan and Bhurji Khan, and his grandson Azizuddin Khansahab. Khansahab's brother helped grow the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana after Khansahab's death. Manji Khan, the second son*, died early in 1937, so it was Bhurji Khan, the youngest son, who passed on the gayaki of his father. Mallikarjun Mansur and Dhondutai Kulkarni are among the noted disciples of Bhurji Khan.

Apart from family, Khansahab's initial disciples were Bhaskarbuwa Bakhale, Kesarbai Kerkar, Mogubai Kurdikar Govindrao Shaligram, and Dhondutai Kulkarni.

Alladiya Khan's eldest son could not pursue singing as a profession because of health reasons, so Azmat Hussain Khan and Manji and Bhurji Khan took forward the tradition.

Alladiya Khan died in Bombay on 16 March 1946.[4][5]

Legacy

The Annual Ustad Alladiya Khan Music Festival is celebrated in Mumbai and Dharwad each year, where several singers and musicians perform, giving homage to Alladiya Khan.[6]

In 2007, the story of 'Ustad Alladiya Khan', and his noted disciple, Kesarbai Kerkar, was the subject of Namita Devidayal's debut novel, The Music Room.[1]

Further reading

  • Khansahab Alladiya Khan, (as told to his grandson Azizuddin Khan). Translated and introduced by Amlan Dasgupta and Urmila Bhirdikar. Thema, 2000. ISBN 81-86017-33-X.
  • Alladiya Khan Between Two Tanpuras, by Vamana Hari Deshpande, Popular Prakashan, 1989. ISBN 0-86132-226-6, ISBN 978-0-86132-226-8. page 40.

References

  1. 1 2 "Ambassadors of their art". The Hindu. 23 September 2007. Retrieved 8 July 2018. Updated 20 July 2011.
  2. 1 2 Profile of Alladiya Khan on The Hindu newspaper, Published 20 March 2000, Retrieved 22 April 2017
  3. ↑ http://www.dilrangacademy.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=14, Retrieved 22 April 2017
  4. ↑ Nayar, S. (1989). Bhatkhande's Contribution to Music: A Historical Perspective. Popular Prakashan. p. 41. ISBN 9780861322381. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  5. ↑ Devidayal, N. (2009). The Music Room: A Memoir. St. Martin's Press. p. 187. ISBN 9781429921060. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  6. ↑ Annual Ustad Alladiya Khan Music Festival Times Of India, 19 April 2003, Retrieved 22 April 2017
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