West Bengal govt gives gun salute to music maestro Ustad Rashid Khan, people pay last respects

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], January 10 (ANI): Music maestro Ustad Rashid Khan was accorded a gun salute by the West Bengal government as part of state honours in Kolkata on Wednesday.

Ustad Rashid Khan was undergoing treatment for cancer at a hospital in Kolkata. He breathed his last at a hospital in Kolkata on Tuesday.

His body was kept for public view at the Rabindra Sadan in Kolkata for people to pay their tributes. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her cabinet colleagues were among those who paid tributes to the 55-year-old classical singer at Rabindra Sadan on Wednesday.

His body is being taken to his native Uttar Pradesh for last rites.

CM Mamata Banerjee had earlier condoled the demise of the music maestro and said he was “one of the greatest exponents of Indian classical music of our times.”

Locket Chatterjee along with other leaders of BJP also paid last respects to the late singer.

Belonging to the Rampur-Sahaswan Gharana, Ustad Rashid Khan carried forward the legacy of his great-grandfather Inayat Hussain Khan. His initial training was under his maternal grand-uncle Ustad Nissar Hussain Khan.

‘Aaoge Jab Tum Saajna’ from Kareena Kapoor Khan, Shahid Kapoor-starrer ‘Jab We Met’ and ‘Allah Hi Rahem’ from Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘My Name is Khan’ are some of his memorable tracks that he created in Bollywood. He was only 11 years old when his debut concert took place.

Ustad Rashid Khan is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter. (ANI)