Unheard melodies: A tribute to late rudra veena exponent Ustad Asad Ali Khan

The musician merges everything together into a hypnotic drone and does that one thing, which musicians strive to achieve their entire life — make the raga stand in front of you. “This is the effect of pure music,” says Asad Ali Khan as he puts down the veena in Renuka George’s documentary, Asad Ali Khan – A Portrait, which was screened at IGNCA on Friday.

It isn’t hard to see through his soul at this moment — where years of learning merge into minutes of Gaud Sarang. George’s documentary is a fascinating peep into the world of Khan, whose life was never documented until George decided to tell this legendary musician’s story.

“I always wanted to know what goes on behind the scenes. In Khan sahab’s case his dedication to a difficult art form was moving,” says George, who was funded by Edward and Benjamin de Rothschild Foundation and the LODH Bank for this film.

A graduate from London School of Economics, George grew up all over the world before spending almost 25 years in France — a country where dhrupad found a lot of attention. She met Khan through Dagar Brothers, a name synonymous with dhrupad in France. Dhrupad is a genre that originated from the Vedas and is either sung or rendered on the rudra veena. Mythologically known to have created by Shiva, with its complex grammar and aesthetics, playing the instrument is a form of worship.

The narrative of the film opens in Alwar, where Khan goes back to his ancestral house and talks of his childhood and learning from his exacting father Sadiq Ali Khan, a court musician. The film journeys through his years full of learning of a difficult instrument and follows him to Delhi. Khan never married and passed away in 2011, exactly a year after George shot the film.

Neither George, nor does her voice, appear in the documentary, which is what has resulted in the flow of the narrative. It is also a way through which George has drawn out a reclusive musician. “It is his story. I wanted to be as non-intrusive as possible. I was looking for him to open up,” says the 54-year-old. George is now in talks to release the film as a DVD. She also wants to work on other projects, one of them being a film on TM Krishna, but lacks the funds.

One of the most beautiful scenes from the film is a few minutes post a private concert by Khan in his house. Ustad Fahimuddin Dagar, vocalist LK Pandit and Khan are seen discussing the friendship their fathers and grandfathers shared and how they were lucky to be born in the times of such legends. “Kya daal banti thi inke ghar” says Khan, looking at Pandit. The three laugh out, with fake teeth and real smiles that fade into the melodies of the rudra veena.