{{Short description|Indian composer}}
{{Short description|Indian composer}}
{{notability|1=Biographies|date=May 2018}}
{{notability|1=Biographies|date=May 2018}}
”’Khushhal Khan”’ (fl. 1799–1834), also known by the pen name ”’Anup”’, was a prominent musician, composer, and theorist of the [[Hyderabad State]].<ref name=”KCL” /><ref name=”UPenn” /> A descendant of the legendary Mughal court musician [[Tansen]], he served as a critical cultural bridge between the Mughal musical traditions of Northern India and the [[Deccan Plateau|Deccan]] courts.<ref name=”KCL” />
”’Khushhal Khan”’ was a son of Karim Khan a descendant of [[Tansen]]-Mughal court musician. Initially Khushhal Khan entered the court of Raja Rao Ranbha Bahadur a Maratha General of [[Nizam Ali Khan, Asaf Jah II|Nizam II]] army and was later a court musician of Nizam II and later [[Mir Akbar Ali Khan Sikander Jah, Asaf Jah III|Nizam III]]. He wrote a musical text ”Raag Darshan” a Persian manuscript in 1808.<ref>{{cite web|title=Chief musicians to the Mughal emperors|url=https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/files/41848227/SchofieldDelhiKalawant_Revised.pdf|pages=9–10|accessdate=25 February 2018}}</ref>
==References==
====
Khushhal Khan was the son of Mian Karim Khan and a great-grandson of the maestro Tansen.<ref name=”UPenn” /><ref name=”KCL” /> He belonged to the elite ”Kalawant” biradari, a class of hereditary vocalists who specialized in [[Dhrupad]] and were masters of the [[Vina|bin]] and the Indian [[Rabab]].<ref name=”KCL” /> Within the kalawant community, his family constituted the ”’Khandari”’ lineage, which he identified as descending from a Rajput progenitor named Miyan Kunhi Khan.<ref name=”KCL” /> His musical heritage incorporated the traditions and intellectual property of both the “Ras Baras” and “Sadarang” family lines.<ref name=”KCL” />
== Career ==
Khushhal Khan’s early career began in Northern India before he transitioned to the Deccan due to the changing political fortunes of the late 18th century.<ref name=”KCL” /> By 1800, he entered the service of [[Raja Rao Ranbha Bahadur]] (Rambhaji Rao Nimbalkar), a Maratha military commander in the army of [[Nizam Ali Khan, Asaf Jah II]].<ref name=”KCL” /><ref name=”UPenn” />
[[File:Mah Laqa Bai playing Holi detail Ragadarshan.png|thumb|left|250px|Contemporary miniature from the ”Ragadarshan” (c. 1804) depicting [[Mah Laqa Bai]] (Chanda Bibi) participating in [[Holi]] festivities with her teacher Khushhal Khan “Anup” and [[Raja Rao Ranbha Bahadur]].]]
During this period, he was a close associate of the Raja and the renowned poet and courtier [[Mah Laqa Bai]] (Chanda Bibi), who was also his musical student.<ref name=”KCL” /><ref name=”UPenn” /> He later served as a court musician for [[Mir Akbar Ali Khan Sikander Jah, Asaf Jah III]].<ref name=”KCL” />
== Works ==
As a prolific ”[[Vaggeyakara]]” (literate poet-composer), Khushhal Khan authored several significant musical treatises in Persian and [[Dakhini]].<ref name=”KCL” /> His primary work, the ””’Ragadarshan””’ (1799–1804), is a lavishly illustrated Hindavi treatise commissioned by Raja Rao Ranbha and based on the ”Tuḥfat al-hind”.<ref name=”KCL” /><ref name=”UPenn” />
[[File:Procession of Raja Rao Ranbha Bahadur with Khushhal Khan.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Khushhal Khan (identified by the inscription “خوشحال خان”) walking in the military procession of his patron, [[Raja Rao Ranbha Bahadur]]. From the ”Ragadarshan” (c. 1804).]]
In 1808, he prepared a Persian recension of the ”Ragadarshan” for Nizam Sikander Jah, followed by a bilingual Persian-Hindavi version in 1815 for Mah Laqa Bai.<ref name=”KCL” /> His final major work, the ””’Rāg rāginī roz o shab””’ (1818–1834), is a massive compendium documenting the song repertoire of the Delhi kalawant lineages.<ref name=”KCL” />
== References ==
<ref name=”KCL”>{{cite web|last=Schofield |first=Katherine Butler |title=Chief musicians to the Mughal emperors |url=https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/files/41848227/SchofieldDelhiKalawant_Revised.pdf |pages=9–10, 11-12 |accessdate=2026-02-08}}</ref>
<ref name=”UPenn”>{{cite web |title=Oversize LJS 63 Rāg darshan |url=https://openn.library.upenn.edu/Data/0001/html/ljs63.html |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Libraries |access-date=2026-02-08}}</ref>
}}
== Further reading ==
* {{cite book |last=Schofield |first=Katherine Butler |title=Music and Musicians in Late Mughal India: Histories of the Ephemeral, 1748–1858 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2023 |isbn=9781108420624}}
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[[Category:Indian male composers]]
[[Category:Indian male composers]]
[[Category:Indian classical musicians]]
[[Category:People from Hyderabad, India]]
[[Category:18th-century Indian people]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian people]]
{{India-musician-stub}}
{{India-musician-stub}}
Indian composer and musician
Khushhal Khan (fl. 1799–1834), also known by the pen name Anup, was a prominent musician, composer, and theorist of the Hyderabad State.[1][2] A descendant of the legendary Mughal court musician Tansen, he served as a critical cultural bridge between the Mughal musical traditions of Northern India and the Deccan courts.[1]
Khushhal Khan was the son of Mian Karim Khan and a great-grandson of the maestro Tansen.[2][1] He belonged to the elite Kalawant biradari, a class of hereditary vocalists who specialized in Dhrupad and were masters of the bin and the Indian Rabab.[1] Within the kalawant community, his family constituted the Khandari lineage, which he identified as descending from a Rajput progenitor named Miyan Kunhi Khan.[1] His musical heritage incorporated the traditions and intellectual property of both the “Ras Baras” and “Sadarang” family lines.[1]
Khushhal Khan’s early career began in Northern India before he transitioned to the Deccan due to the changing political fortunes of the late 18th century.[1] By 1800, he entered the service of Raja Rao Ranbha Bahadur (Rambhaji Rao Nimbalkar), a Maratha military commander in the army of Nizam Ali Khan, Asaf Jah II.[1][2]
During this period, he was a close associate of the Raja and the renowned poet and courtier Mah Laqa Bai (Chanda Bibi), who was also his musical student.[1][2] He later served as a court musician for Mir Akbar Ali Khan Sikander Jah, Asaf Jah III.[1]
As a prolific Vaggeyakara (literate poet-composer), Khushhal Khan authored several significant musical treatises in Persian and Dakhini.[1] His primary work, the Ragadarshan (1799–1804), is a lavishly illustrated Hindavi treatise commissioned by Raja Rao Ranbha and based on the Tuḥfat al-hind.[1][2]
In 1808, he prepared a Persian recension of the Ragadarshan for Nizam Sikander Jah, followed by a bilingual Persian-Hindavi version in 1815 for Mah Laqa Bai.[1] His final major work, the Rāg rāginī roz o shab (1818–1834), is a massive compendium documenting the song repertoire of the Delhi kalawant lineages.[1]
- Schofield, Katherine Butler (2023). Music and Musicians in Late Mughal India: Histories of the Ephemeral, 1748–1858. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781108420624.
