Legendary Indian singer Ustad Rashid Khan passes away

Online desk:  Ustad Rashid Khan, the subcontinent’s one of the most popular and revered Indian classical singers, passed away on Tuesday after battling with cancer. He was 55.

The celebrated music maestro was undergoing treatment for prostate cancer at a hospital in Kolkata, reports UNB quoting Hindustan Times. He was put on a ventilator and was receiving oxygen support, before breathing his last at 3:45pm (local time).

Rashid Khan was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday after valiantly battling cancer for over four years. He is survived by his son, two daughters, and wife.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed her deep condolence over the death of the revered artist, saying, “This is a great loss for the entire country and the entire music fraternity. I am in a lot of pain as I still can’t believe that Rashid Khan is no more.”

The chief minister said Khan will be given a gun salute and state honours before his last rites are performed on Wednesday.

“His body will be kept at a mortuary today. It will be taken to Rabindra Sadan on Wednesday where his admirers can pay him last respects,” she said.

Ustad Rashid Khan was born in Sahaswan, Badayun, Uttar Pradesh on July 1, 1968. Belonging to the Rampur-Sahaswan gharana (a particular style of singing which features medium-slow tempos, a full-throated voice and intricate rhythmic play) – he was the great-grandson of the legendary Ustad Inayat Hussain Khan Sahab, the founder of the Rampur-Sahaswan Gharana.

He was also the nephew of Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan and received his initial training from his maternal grand-uncle Ustad Nissar Hussain Khan.

Rashid Khan performed his debut concert at the age of eleven and became a part of the ITC Sangeet Research Academy (SRA) in Kolkata when Nissar Hussain Khan transitioned to the academy. He was formally acknowledged as a musician at the academy by the age of 26.

The maestro experimented with combining conventional Hindustani music with lighter musical styles, including performances with Western instrumentalist Louis Banks. He also portrayed his versatility by playing in Jugalbandis (duets) alongside many acclaimed musicians including sitarist Shahid Parvez and others.

However, his stardom in the mainstream skyrocketed with his much-acclaimed song “Aaoge Jab Tum” from the 2007 Bollywood film ‘Jab We Met’, starring Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor and directed by Imtiaz Ali.

After that, he also performed several popular tracks for Bollywood, notably “Allah Hi Rahem” (My Name is Khan), “Poore se zara sa” (Mausam), “Sajna” (Bapi Bari Ja), “Jheeni Re Jheeni” (Issaq) and “Bol Ke Lab Azad Hain” (Manto), to name a few.

The revered music maestro has also performed in Bangladesh several times, most notably at several editions of the Bengal Classical Music Festival in Dhaka.

For his contribution to the subcontinent’s music industry, Ustad Rashid Khan was awarded several awards, including India’s third-highest civilian award Padma Bhushan (2022), the fourth-highest civilian award Padma Shri (2006) and Banga Bhushan (2012), the most prestigious award in Kolkata.