Music is evolving and so is the audience’s taste. In the process, a lot many beautiful instruments are on the verge of extinction. India itself has a treasure trove of classical and folk instruments that have been played since ages in the land. But with the advancements in instruments, the old is becoming redundant.
But few young people have taken the helm of preserving and taking forward what is at risk. One such lad is Nabeel Khan from New Delhi.
Khan is the grandson of Padma Bhushan recipient Sarangi maestro Ustad Sabri Khan. And so, since generations his family has been playing and teaching Sarangi – an Indian bowed musical instrument about two feet high, with three or four main strings and up to thirty-five sympathetic strings. It is this background that made him a prodigy at the tender age of seven under the humble guidance of his grandfather, and his father Ustad Nasir Khan.
With this, the musician has represented India several times on various intercontinental platforms and was awarded as the Best Young Instrumentalist (Indian classical field) in the Indian embassy, Italy. He has held Sarangi recitals in several Indian embassies. And in recent years, Nabeel released several original songs like ‘Jaanejaan’,’Jazbaat dil Ke Aise’,’Tera Khayal hai’ and ‘Phir Ana’ with a subtle element of Sarangi being their unique selling points. Also by collaborating with artists from different countries, Khan has shown the versatility of Sarangi to the world.
The Musician’s Purpose
In its heyday back in the late 1950s- 1990s, Sarangi was quite a popular instrument in India but as time passed, its usage lessened and the audience started to dwindle. And Khan as the younger generation musician has made his mind to revive its charm once again.
“Indian classical music is the core of music, without giving it due importance one can hardly produce music qualifying in its musical finesse. I feel like there is a lot to be done but I feel I have come such a long way in establishing a connection with people through creative use of Sarangi in the contemporary music,” opines Nabeel on why he is so bent to inspire the youth across the world to gain interest in Indian classical music.
Over the years with his art, Nabeel has been able to draw many youths including children to learn Sarangi. To make it more appealing, the musician makes Sarangi covers of popular Bollywood songs and classics like ‘Lag ja gale’, ‘ Tum hi ho’,’ Dil diyan Gallan’. He wants to ensure that people see how Sarangi can be played even in modern music and not just classical.
Here’s a piece.
During the pandemic, Khan launched ‘Lets Learn Sarangi’, a YouTube series to help beginners learn Sarangi and it has had a very welcoming response. He’s now got more students from all age groups who are now successfully playing Sarangi with Khan’s assistance both in online and offline modes via the world’s only official Sarangi Cultural Academy.
“My songs are examples of how the classical element of Sarangi can take a song to a whole new level. With physical classical events happening in the pre-pandemic times, youngsters were still attached to this genre but they have totally lost touch during the lockdown. That’s why I got this idea of using Indian instruments in my songs. I show them in all my videos, as a result of which I get queries from those interested to learn to play it,” he says.
“This is only the beginning. I aim to make Sarangi a more popular instrument across the entire music community on the planet. The potential of Sarangi remains untapped and I desire to increase the number of Sarangi players in India and abroad so as to culture it further,” the musician concludes.