Rais Khan
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Ustad Ustad, ustadh, ustaz or ustadz (abbreviated as Ust., Ut. or Ud.; from Persian language, Persian ''ustād'') is an honorific title used in West Asia, North Africa, Central Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia. It is used in various languages, incl ...
Rais Khan (‎; 25 November 19396 May 2017) was a Pakistani sitarist. At his peak he was regarded as one of the greatest sitar players of all time. He continued performing till his last days. He moved from India to Pakistan in 1986, where he took up Pakistani citizenship. In 2017, Khan was awarded Pakistan's third highest civilian honour, the
Sitara-i-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and Civil decorations of Pakistan, civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially me ...
(Crescent of Excellence) Award by the
Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...
.


Personal life

Rais Khan was born on 25 November 1939 in
Indore Indore (; ISO 15919, ISO: , ) is the largest and most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The commercial capital of the state, it has been declared as the List of cleanest cities in India, cleanest city of In ...
,
Indore State Indore State was a kingdom within the Maratha Confederacy ruled by the Maratha Holkar, Holkar dynasty. After 1857, Indore became a 19-Salute state, gun salute princely state within the Central India Agency of the Indian Empire (1876–1947), Ind ...
,
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
, to an
Urdu-speaking Native speakers of Urdu are spread across South Asia. The vast majority of them are Muslims of the Hindi Belt, Hindi–Urdu Belt of northern India, followed by the Deccanis, Deccani people of the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in south-central I ...
family. He grew up in
Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
. His training began at a very young age, on a small coconut shell sitar. In 1986 he moved to Pakistan, seven years after marrying his fourth wife – a
Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...
singer named Bilqees Khanum. In 1979, the two met for the first time at an event by the
Sabri Brothers The Sabri Brothers (Punjabi language, Punjabi, ) were a musical band from Pakistan who were performers of Sufi qawwali music and were closely connected to the Chishti Order. They are considered one of the greatest Sufi qawwali singers of all ti ...
in Karachi. Rais Khan had four sons: Sohail Khan,
Cezanne Khan Cezanne Khan is an Indian television actor. He is best known for his role of Anurag Basu in ''Kasautii Zindagii Kay (2001 TV series), Kasautii Zindagi Kay'', that aired on Star Plus. He is also known for his role of Harman Singh and Nikhil Jais ...
, Farhan Khan and Huzoor Hasnain Khan.


Career

Rais Khan belonged to the
Mewati gharana The Mewati gharana is a musical apprenticeship tribe of Hindustani classical music. Known for being Pandit Jasraj's musical lineage, the gharana was founded by brothers Ghagge Nazir Khan and Wahid Khan (beenkar) of Indore in the late 19th c ...
(classical music lineage), which is connected to Indore gharana and the "beenkar baz gayaki ang" (singing style combined with rudra veena approaches) carried out by Rais Khan's father Mohammed Khan, a rudra veena player and a sitarist. "Belonging to the Mewati gharana which goes back to the Mughal period, it produced famous singers Haddoo, Hasso and Nathu Khan, and later singers such as Bare Ghulam Ali Khan, as well as sitarists and sarod players."
"The famous Indian sitar player Ustad Vilayat Khan is his maternal uncle who came to live with them when Vilayat's father died. Rais Khan denies there is any friction between them, contrary to the rumours that exist even today. He praises
Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitar, sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known expert of Hin ...
, said to be a rival too, as a brilliant musician who has introduced the sitar to the world."
Despite his extensive meend work and the gandhar pancham sitar style he used, Rais Khan's
alap The Alap (; ) is the opening section of a typical North Indian classical performance. It is a form of melodic improvisation that introduces and develops a raga. In dhrupad singing the alap is unmetered, improvised (within the raga) and unaccomp ...
i, gatkari and
gamak Gamaka (Hindi: / Urdu: ) (also spelled gamakam) refer to ornamentation that is used in the performance of North and South Indian classical music. Gamaka can be understood as embellishment done on a note or between two notes. Present-day Carna ...
i work was different in approach, pacing, and even technique, from the
Etawah Etawah (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''Iṭāvā''), also known as Ishtikapuri, is a city situated on the banks of Yamuna River in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Etawa ...
style. Amongst the ''khayal'' and ''dhrupad'' doyens, Rais Khan's gharana had the classical music lineage containing the masters Haddu Khan, Hassu Khan, Nathan Khan, Bande Ali Khan, Babu Khan, Wazir Khan, Waheed Khan, Murad Khan, Latif Khan, Majid Khan, Nazeer Khan, Amanat Khan and Rajab Ali Khan of Dewas. As Rais Khan's mother was a singer and his father was a beenkar (veena player), a unique combination of
khyal Khyal or Khayal (ख़याल / خیال) is a major form of Hindustani classical music in the Indian subcontinent. Its name comes from a Persian language, Persian/Arabic language, Arabic word meaning "imagination". Khyal is associated with rom ...
(the most popular classical vocal style),
dhrupad Dhrupad is a genre in Hindustani classical music from the Indian subcontinent. It is the oldest known style of major vocal styles associated with Hindustani classical music (for example in the Haveli Sangeet of Pushtimarg Sampradaya), and is als ...
(the older and more orthodox classical form) and
thumri Thumri () is a vocal genre or style of Indian music. The term "thumri" is derived from the Hindi verb ''thumuknaa'', which means "to walk with a dancing gait in such a way that the ankle-bells tinkle." The form is, thus, connected with dance, dram ...
(lyrical semi-classical form) – 'angs' (approaches) developed in his playing. He gave his first public concert at Sunderbai Hall in the presence of the then
Governor of Bombay Until the 18th century, Bombay consisted of seven islands separated by shallow sea. These seven islands were part of a larger archipelago in the Arabian sea, off the western coast of India. The date of city's founding is unclear—historians tr ...
Sir Maharaja Singh. In 1955, Khan was chosen to represent India in the International Youth Festival in Warsaw, where 111 countries took part in the string instrument conference. He has also performed at the
Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...
. While in India, he played film music for
Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar (; born Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. He ...
,
Mohammed Rafi Mohammed Rafi (24 December 1924 – 31 July 1980) was an Indian playback singer. He is considered to have been one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. Rafi was notable for his versatility and range of voice ...
and
Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; ; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur, actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in the media as one of the ...
. In India, he played a key role by his association with film composers like
Madan Mohan Madanamohana () is an epithet of the Hindu deity Krishna. It translates as, "he whose charm (''mohana'') bewilders even the god of love ('' madana'')". The epithet describes the powerful nature of the attraction for the deity from his devotees, e ...
which resulted in many super-hit songs. He had toured extensively throughout the world. He was also a vocalist and was the first sitar player to record the super-hit song "Ghungroo Toot Gaye" for
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
London in 1978 as an instrumental song with the sitar. This song was originally written by
Qateel Shifai Muhammad Aurangzeb or Qateel Shifai (; 24 December 1919 – 11 July 2001) was a Pakistani Urdu poet and lyricist. Early life and career Qateel Shifai was born in Haripur District as Muhammad Aurangzeb in 1919 in British India (now Pakistan).< ...
, music by Nisar Bazmi for a Pakistani film ''Naz'' (1969). Like his uncle
Vilayat Khan Ustad Vilayat Khan (28 August 1928 – 13 March 2004) was an Indian classical sitar player, considered by many to be the greatest sitarist of his age. Along with Imdad Khan, Enayat Khan, and Imrat Khan, he is credited with the creation a ...
, whose music had exercised considerable influence on him, he often sang and demonstrated compositions on the sitar. Rais and
Bismillah Khan Ustad Bismillah Khan (born Qamaruddin Khan, 21 March 1916 – 21 August 2006), often referred to by the title ''Ustad'', was an Indian musician credited with popularizing the shehnai, a reeded woodwind instrument. His virtuosity made him a le ...
(
shehnai The ''shehnai'' is a type of oboe from the Indian subcontinent. It is made of wood, with a double reed at one end and a metal or wooden flared bell at the other end. It was one of the nine instruments found in the royal court. The shehnai is sim ...
player) used to collaborate and perform together in live concerts as a duo, like the one at
India Gate The India Gate (formerly known as All India War Memorial) is a war memorial located near the Rajpath (officially called Kartavya Path, Kartavya path) on the eastern edge of the "ceremonial axis" of New Delhi, India, New Delhi. It stands as a m ...
in
New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...
on 23 November 2001. For sometime, Rais Khan stopped performing, but returned in the 1980s and was invited by
Ali Akbar Khan Ali Akbar Khan (14 April 192218 June 2009) was an Indian Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod. Trained as a classical musician and instrumentalist by his father, Allauddin Khan, ...
to perform in California. Rais Khan sometimes performed with his son Farhan, as he did in a 2009 performance for
Pakistan Television Pakistan Television Corporation (; reporting name: PTV); also known as ''Pakistan Television'', is the Pakistani state-owned broadcasting, broadcaster founded by the Government of Pakistan, operating under the Ministry of Information & Broadc ...
(PTV) produced TV show ''Virsa- Heritage Revived'', accompanied by Tari Khan on
tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...
. In 2012, he performed at the Nehru Centre in Mumbai. In 2014, he performed "Hans Dhuni" and "Mein Sufi Hoon" (with
Abida Parveen Abida Parveen (; ; born 20 February 1954) is a Pakistani singer, composer, musician of Sufi music, painter and an entrepreneur. Parveen is one of the highest-paid singers in Pakistan. Her singing and music have earned her many accolades, and s ...
) in season 7 of '' Coke Studio Pakistan''.


Death

After a prolonged illness, Rais Khan died on 6 May 2017 in Karachi at the age of 77. In 2012, one major Pakistani English-language newspaper commented about his declining health, "He proudly says that his decades old habit of smoking 115 cigarettes a day, which is the reason for his declining health, came to an abrupt end four years ago when the doctor ordered him to stop." Shortly after his death in 2017, National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA) held a musical night in tribute to Rais Khan.A tuneful tribute to Ustad Rais Khan
The Express Tribune newspaper, Published 23 May 2017, Retrieved 1 February 2023
On his death, Urdu writer
Anwar Maqsood Anwar Maqsood Hameedi (born 7 September 1939; ), popularly known as Anwar Maqsood, is a Pakistani scriptwriter, television presenter, satirist, humorist, and infrequent actor. He is well known for his drama write-ups for PTV in the late 1970 ...
remarked that “God had given him a rare gift. His fingers had that rare touch.” In a tweet, Indian singer
Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar (; born Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. He ...
called Khan “''sitar ke jaadugar''” (lit. magician of sitar).


Legacy

Khan taught many disciples including his sons, Farhan and Suheil, his cousin, Siraj Khan, and others. Khan is regarded as one of the most influential sitarists of the post-Independence era of the
Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...
.


Awards

*
Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance (), officially known as the Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sp ...
by the
President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.
in 2005. *
Sitara-i-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and Civil decorations of Pakistan, civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially me ...
(Star of Excellence) by the
Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...
in 2017.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Rais 1939 births 2017 deaths Hindustani instrumentalists Indian emigrants to Pakistan Hum Award winners Muhajir people Musicians from Indore Musicians from Karachi Naturalised citizens of Pakistan Pakistani musicians People who lost Indian citizenship Recipients of the Pride of Performance Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz Sitar players Mewati gharana