It’s not for nothing that fame has developed a reputation for being a fickle companion. Time is capable of not only healing wounds but covering up everything else too. And with the focus today on internet and digital technology, it is easy for the public to miss out on history that has yet to be digitised. But classical artists, at the centre of the divide between the old and the new, are constantly working to bridge the gap. Thus, Delhi-based tabla exponent Ustad Rashid Mustafa Thirakwa puts his energies into keeping alive the memory as well as the musical legacy of his guru and uncle, Ustad Ahmad Jaan Thirakwa, with a festival in his name at the time of his barsi — the anniversary of his passing.
The legendary tabla maestro who passed away in 1976 is among the most influential Indian musicians of the 20th Century who during his long life — the matter of whether he was born in 1874 or ’76 is somewhat unclear — expanded the horizons of individual players with the open-mindedness and musicality he brought to his percussion.
“He brought about a revolution in the tabla,” says Rashid Mustafa. “The way he played the baaj (style) of all the four gharanas (Dilli, Ajrara, Farukkhabad, Lucknow) had an effect on the generation that came after him. Today, although artists may say they represent this or that gharana, they all do play the different schools. You have to do that, because if you don’t, you won’t be considered a complete artist.”
Today, the recordings of even an artist born in the 19th Century like Thirakwa sahib can be found on media like Youtube. The internet and other technology provide access to a spectrum of knowledge. But, points out his nephew, “That is the amazing thing. All this was not there at that time, yet (due to his wide perspective on the arts) he took from all the gharanas.”
Rashid trained intensively with his uncle till the age of 12, when the maestro died. While Thirakwa sahib trained a number of disciples, including Pandit Lalji Gokhale, Pandit Narayanrao Joshi, Pandit Bhai Gaitonde, Pandit Bapu Patwardhan and Pandit Anand Shidhaye, the direct family tradition saw a gap in the generations till Rashid came of age. As a child, he recalls, he was blessed with the ability to reproduce what his uncle played, and people remarked on a boy of eight playing alongside the eminent Ustad Thirakwa. However, he says, “It took me some time to collect myself after the loss. I continued my training with my father, Ustad Mohammad Jaan Khan, who was a staff artist at All India Radio, New Delhi.”
Family tradition is important to Ustad Rashid, who apart from other disciples, is the guru of noted tabla exponent Arshad Khan, his sister’s son. And at this year’s memorial festival, he says, “By the grace of God, Shariq my son will also be performing.”
In the old days, it was considered normal for a father to initiate his son into his own line of work, he remarks, but now people are of the opinion that children should be allowed to decide for themselves what interests them. It is not rare to find a musician’s child aspiring to be an actor, or an actor’s child turning to visual arts, he mentions, not sounding overly enthusiastic about this trend.
Luckily for him, however, Shariq, who admits he was at one time smitten by the idea of a career in the civil services, has opted to remain in the fold of professional tabla playing.
The Ustad says he has been commemorating his guru’s barsi in Delhi since 1995, although there have been breaks in the annual series, caused by family or other commitments.
In Maharashtra centres of music like Pune, Mumbai, Kolhapur, Sholapur, etc., he adds, the memory of the maestro — who lived mainly in Lucknow and Bombay — is regularly honoured.
Now, however, Rashid Mustafa is geared up to carry on with renewed enthusiasm and a determination not to allow any more defaults, bolstered as he is by the addition of a member of the sixth generation of Ahmad Jaan Thirakwa’s family, in the form of Shariq.
Ustad Ahmad Jaan Thirakwa Music Festival
January 12, Stein Auditorium,
India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi, 6.30 p.m.
Shariq Mustafa (tabla solo)
Shubha Mudgal (vocal) with Aneesh Pradhan (tabla) and Sudhir Nayak (harmonium)
Bhajan Sopori & Abhay Sopori (santoor duet) with Rashid Mustafa Thirakwa (tabla)
