... doesn't have to prove his talent, but in Rashid Khan's case, it's a failing if credit hasn't been given where it's due, points out Pratik Ghosh
Though Hindi films' obsession with music is legendary, rarely is a Friday release named after a musical instrument. Offhand, Shehnai comes to mind: Two different films, separated by years — one in 1947, the other in 1964 — shared the same title. Half-a-century later came the recently released musical Banjo to break the jinx. However, that distinction suffers a jolt on a rain-washed afternoon when Rashid Khan, perhaps the most illustrious banjo player in Bollywood, speaks about his bitter experience of being part of the Riteish Deshmukh-Nargis Fakhri movie.
Throughout the film, it was his performance in the background that did justice to Vishal-Shekhar's compositions, but director Ravi Jadhav and the music-composer duo forgot to include his name in the rolling credits. "There was not even a word of acknowledgement," says Khan, who is recuperating from an illness, his voice barely audible. After 39 years in the film industry, Khan doesn't feel the need to prove his talent and worth. His tryst with Bollywood began with solo performances under the baton of the illustrious music directors Laxmikant-Pyarelal, widely known as LP. "I began with chartbusters Purdah hain purdah and Tayyab Ali pyar ka dushaman haay, haay! in Amar Akbar Anthony."
Khan recounts his first meeting with LP at Famous Studios in Mahalaxmi. "In those days, I was part of a group that played in qawwali sessions and at religious ceremonies. The sitar maestro Rais Khan introduced me to LP," he says. It turned out to be a very long and fruitful association. Khan became part of LP's core musical group. Over the years, Khan has lost count of the number of songs he has played in, as a soloist and as part of the orchestra. His son puts the figure at 10,000. Interestingly, Khan is a self-taught musician. "When I came to Mumbai from Nagpur in search of a livelihood, my elder brother handed me a banjo and I began playing within days. Rais Khan saab used to fondly say that what I could do with banjo, he couldn't do with the sitar. That was his greatness," he says. The sitar virtuoso has had an enduring influence on Khan's pursuit of excellence. Such glowing praise from a musical great throws light on the inimitable style Khan developed. Pyarelal, the other half of LP, believes very few people can play banjo the way Khan does. "He has a raag-based approach characterised by harkats (short embellishments).
Khan's repertoire contains diverse elements: Ek-do-teen (Tezaab), Tu cheez badhi hain mast-mast (Mohra), Zindagi maut na ban jaye (Sarfarosh), Wada na tod (Dil Tujhko Diya), the eponymous track in the film Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai.
The 70-year-old is grateful for the doors banjo has opened for him. He has travelled extensively within the country and abroad and shared the stage with legendary sufi singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and ghazal singer Ghulam Ali. He also took part in the World Culture Festival, hosted by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's Art of Living Foundation in Delhi earlier this year. When Khan looks back at the years left behind, he sums up his life's journey in a sentence: "I am one of those fortunate people whose passion and profession are in perfect harmony."
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