Ustad Bismillah Khan dead

I just heard this news - Ustad Bismillah Khan died early this morning from cardiac arrest. And I suddenly felt kind of sad - for the man he was, for the dreams he had.

Years ago, when I was a journalist, I had the good fortune of not only reviewing Ustad's concert but also doing an interview with him. I was not new to Shehnai - this is a close relative of nadaswaram found in South India, and the latter is played at temples and various functions always. But as I sat through his concert I realised this - as with M S Subbalakshmi, divinity flowed from his music.

After the concert, even though it was quite late in the night and Khan Sahib was rather tired from playing music for couple of hours, he still took time out to speak to me. It is difficult not to be touched by his simplicity and childlike charm (he was 80-plus then). He spoke to me about his life, about what his music means to him and also about his disillusionment with his own family and the world around him. A pious Shia Muslim and a devotee of Mother Saraswati - others see contradiction in Khan Sahib's religion and music, but he saw this as divine unity. What came through during the course of the interview was also his concern for others - since it was pretty late, he started to eat while speaking to me. And since it was late for me too, he kept urging me to take something as well. He was rather generous with photographs, and also obliged me when I wanted a photograph with him. To me, this is indeed one of the most cherished "encounters" of my journalist days.

Today, we have indeed lost a great soul and musician, and India (and more importantly, Varanasi) are left much poorer by the loss.

To me, much more than his music, Bismillah Khan will always represent this - the most appropriate metaphor to define India's diversity and culture - where else can you see residents of the "most holy Hindu city" waking up to the musical notes of a devout Muslim .