Sonu Nigam, Salim Merchant, Madhushree, Hariharan and many others attend prayer meet of Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan

Well known musicians from Indian music industry gathered under one roof to pay their last tribute to the late Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan at his prayer meeting in Mumbai. Musicians like Salim Merchant, Sonu Nigam, Ismail Darbar, Roopkumar Rathod, Hariharan, Madhushree, Shaan and many others were spotted at the prayer meet.

Legendary Indian classical musician and Padma Vibhushan awardee Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan died on 17 January on Sunday afternoon at his residence in Mumbai. He was 89 year old.

His father, Ustad Waris Hussain Khan was the son of celebrated musician Ustad Murred Baksh, while his mother, Sabri Begum, was the daughter of Ustad Inayat Husain Khan, credited as the founder of the Rampur-Sahaswan gharana of music.

He got his basic classical music training from his father and later studied music under his cousin, Ustad Nissar Hussain Khan. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1991, followed by Padma Bhusan in 2006 and Padma Vibhushan in 2018. In 2003, he was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi award, the highest Indian recognition given to practicing artistes.

Remembering Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan, singer and music composer Salim Merchant said, “I honestly feel that he is still with us. I feel there are some human beings who are immortal because of their body of work and Khan saab was one of them.  He was very kind, affectionate and humble apart from being a great artist. He used to treat everyone like his own child. I feel fortunate that I have spent some time with him. I am very small in front of him but he always gave me a lot of love and respect. I feel very grateful that I was associated with him and his family.”

Remembering Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan, singer Madhushree said, “He was like a father figure for all of us. We have learnt a lot from him since our childhood when we used to listen to his singing. He was a great artist but at the same time, he was a very humble, kind hearted and loving person. He used to give respect to everyone who used to interact with him. He had a positive approach towards life and well known music personalities like Sonu Nigam, Hariharan, A. R. Rahman and many others were trained under him. It’s a huge loss for all of us and may his soul rest in peace.”    

Remembering Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan, singer Sonu Nigam said, “He was like our Guru and father. He was one of the great exponents of Indian music. I feel all of us are extremely privileged that we were blessed with his company, blessings and teachings. My proximity with him is something I will cherish throughout my life. I must have done some good karma in my life that I got to know a pure, evolved and huge genius like Ghulam Mustafa Khaan saab. I feel his music is going to remain inspiration for all of us and the future generation. My prayers to the departed soul and I am sure he is always going to take care of us.”    

Soon after Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan's death, his collaborators from Indian music industry including legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar and music composer AR Rahman took to social media to pay tributes to the maestro.