The Sixth String of Vilayat Khan gives us a close look of the man and his whimsical genius. What or who makes a prodigy? Well, god-given talent is one, but there are other factors too — nurturing of that talent, destiny and the artist’s approach to exploring his/her music.
Namita Devidayal, the biographer of brilliant sitarist Ustad Vilayat Khan deconstructs his persona vis-a-vis his contemporary and another brilliant artist, Pt Ravi Shankar.
Those of us who are far removed from the exalted stratosphere of genius musicians, might not be so clued in to their ‘rivalries’ or the disagreements between the fellow artists. But the few tidbits that float into public domain help in creating a ‘perception’ about the artist.
Devidayal, a journalist and musician, explores the image of Ustad Vilayat Khan with meticulous precision and peels off the layers to present us a man who is brilliant, flamboyant, competitive, enjoys good things in life...but chucks it all to go and live in remote exclusion.
It was unthinkable for an artist in the ’70s to leave the city for the countryside, for it was in urban cities like Bombay and Delhi that your career would flourish. This break from the hedonistic life that had consumed Vilayat Khan’s life (but not his music) made him look for the peace and depth in his artistry.
Around the same period, his contemporary was wooing the audiences in the West, making them fall in love with the melody of Indian classical music. Pt Ravi Shankar was devoted to his art, but he did make it more palatable for the Western audiences — he explained the ragas, reducing the time frame for the playing of the raga and later collaborating with George Harrison of Beatles.
Vilayat Khan too played in Western countries and in his later years, also moved to the USA, but he didn’t favour fusions or collaborations. For his music, he looked deep within himself.
The Sixth String also answers many questions that might plague a connoisseur of music – why is there resentment amongst the artists when government bodies announce awards, why do many artists now spend most of their time abroad and so on.
Vilayat Khan always questioned the gradation of the artists. ‘How does the government know which artist is good or not?’ he would ask. Much of the debate over honours, accolades, payments and pensions for the artists, how organisers have commercialised events is discussed in the book, by way of India’s music history.
Devidayal explains how music flourished under the royal patronage, and then gramophone company stepped in and musicians started recording their music. In the run-up to Independence, All India Radio was established and it was here that many artists like Vilayat Khan and Pt Ravi Shankar got their break. In the early days of Independence the rich elite, among them Shrilal-Shankarlal (Devidayal’s ancestors) sponsored many concerts and in one of them, Shankar and Khan had a face off with the latter coming out much better and stronger. She also sheds light on how the Indian classical musicians played for films and who benefited from it.
The sitarist had also composed for films, but he didn’t make much hoo-haa over it. He had many flings with the yesteryear actresses and barely escaped a marriage with one by the skin of his teeth.
The ‘Imdadkhani’ gharana (Vilayat’s grandfather, Imdad and father, Enayat were both brilliant musicians) played a big role in the musician’s and his younger brother, Imrat’s lives. Their mother ensured that the musical legacy was equally divided between the two — Vilayat would play sitar and Imrat would play the Surbahar. But the musical strains between the two were visible. And, down the years, the split occurred and most would attribute it to the elder brother. Vilayat’s children too suffered living under his shadow; his eldest, Shujaat broke away and succeeded in making a name for himself.
The bitter family conflicts only served to make the artist and his music more humane. The fragments of his family are still held together by music of the Imdadkhani gharana. The musician and his biographer would have us believe that music is supreme; we should surrender to it. They are right.
