Surrendering to music
This is a book review of The Sixth String of Vilayat Khan, written by Namita Devidayal and published by Context, Westland books Ambika Shaligram Published on : 12 Jan, 2020 , 8:18 am The Sixth String of Vilayat Khan gives us a close look of the man and his whimsical genius. What or who makes a prodigy? Well, god-given talent is one, but there are other factors too — nurturing of that talent, destiny and the artist’s approach to exploring his/her music. Namita Devidayal, the biographer of brilliant sitarist Ustad Vilayat Khan deconstructs his persona vis-a-vis his contemporary and another brilliant artist, Pt Ravi Shankar. Those of us who are far removed from the exalted stratosphere of genius musicians, might not be so clued in to their ‘rivalries’ or the disagreements between the fellow artists. But the few tidbits that float into public domain help in creating a ‘perception’ about the artist. Devidayal, a journalist and musician, explores the image of Ustad Vilayat Khan with me