Sixth Death Anniversary of Mobarak Hossain Khan, an Icon of Music

November 24 marked the sixth death anniversary of vocalist, music researcher, and writer Mobarak Hossain Khan. He was born in Shibpur village of Nawabganj, Brahmanbaria. His father, Ustad Ayet Ali Khan, was a renowned musician and sitarist of the Indian subcontinent. His uncle was the legendary Ustad Alauddin Khan.

Mobarak Hossain Khan completed his MA in History from Dhaka University. Professionally, he worked at radio for over thirty years. He served as the Director General of the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy and held the position of chairman of the Nazrul Institute Trust Board. He authored numerous books on music, translation, and the Liberation War. His contributions to music research earned him the Ekushey Padak, Independence Award, Bangla Academy Award in research literature, and the Alokito Sahitya Puraskar for translation.

From a young age, Mobarak Hossain Khan was surrounded by music. His family had a tradition of teaching children a musical instrument alongside academics. He started learning the behala, later playing instruments like ‘Mandranad’ and ‘Chandrasarang’. He was also skilled in tabla and classical music.

He performed alongside talented artists like his cousin Ustad Khadem Hossain Khan and nephew Ustad Khurshid Khan. Ultimately, he dedicated himself to the surbahar. Until the start of his professional career, he regularly played the surbahar and later performed extensively in BTV’s ‘Surlahari’ programme.

Khaborwala/SS