HL: 'Art of playing Rudraveena should be preserved'
Strap: Ace musician Ustad Bahauddin Dagar discussed the death of the instrument in Thane

Sukhada P Khandge

In a bid to save the slowly-dying instrument 'Rudraveena', ace musician Ustad Bahauddin Dagar, conducted a lecture and demonstration about the instrument at Gadkari Rangayatan in Thane on Sunday. The programme was organised as a part of Sangeetbhushan Pandit Ram Marathe Smruti Festival.
Introducing the instrument, Dagar said, "It is said that Rudraveena was made by Lord Shiva using Parvati's broken bangles. The instrument also resembles Lord Brahma, Vishnu and Saraswati's known vehicle peacock. The history of the instrument can be traced back to 1500 AD wherein the instrument was found on Samudra Gupta Maurya's coin."
The instrument, which was a lesser-known instrument even in the olden days, was especially used for meditation by Sufis. Eventually, performers started using Rudraveena for solo performances too.
According to Dagar, the main reason why artistes stay away from the instrument is its exorbitant price. Even a poor quality instrument is priced at Rs1 lakh. Dagar said, "As the instrument is costly, people do not buy it. Pragmatically, this is leading to the death of the instrument. But what is sad is that the art too is being neglected because of this. I am trying hard to reduce the cost by consulting the makers in Kolkata."
By consulting the students from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Powai, Dagar has created a special instrument 'Rasaveena', which can be used to play both Hindustani as well Carnatic classical music.
While introducing the music-lovers to the history of the instrument, Dagar also performed soothing ragas. At the event, a short documentary on Rudraveena was also screened.
Dagar, a 20th generation Dhrupadiya, who learnt the art from his father Ustad Zia Mohiuddin Khan, believes that teaching youngsters is the only way of keeping the art alive. On the occasion, he also stated that he is still a student of his uncle Ustad Zia Faruddin Khan.
"As of now, there are only seven male and one female artistes playing the instrument professionally in India. I am currently teaching a bunch of students. I hope to carry forward the tradition. In fact, I would be more than happy to bequeath the legacy to my six-year-old daughter Shameera if she wishes to learn it."
k_sukhada@dnaindia.net