When Namrata Gupta Khan got married to singer Rabbani Mustafa Khan, she had no idea how her life would change from being a customer service / sales executive with a telecom company, to an author of the book ‘A Dream I Lived Alone’ - a life story of her father-in-law Padmavi Bhushan Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan, a Giant of Hindustani Classical Music, yet so simple and down to earth. For as days went by living in the Khan family she realized the artist in him and things he did daily. This fuelled her desire to pen down the book.

Captured on a one on one basis, vocalist Ustad Ghulam Khan, never really wanted the book, says Namrata, but she noticed the talent of the great maestro and jotted it down over a period of four years. “The biggest challenge was to get him to open up and share his life experiences, achievements, moments of pride and glory, as well as his disappointments and struggles.” she states when we spoke to her.

The conversations ranged from his childhood experiences to his troubled adolescence, and all the recognition he had received. The book narrates his childhood days, and covers every other important detail of his life, from practicing music in a graveyard as a young boy to teaching stalwarts of the music industry, his experiences with them, his struggles, and his musical journey. Guru to Shaan, Sonu Nigam, Lata Mangeshkar, Hariharan, Manna Dey, Geeta Dutt, Asha Bhosle, A R Rahman, Waheeda Rahman and many others, he is modest even about his own achievements. Infact he was a modest man with a majestic voice.

Namrata travelled with Indian classical vocalist and guru to various countries, noticing his playing style, his gait and the way with which he went about doing things. 'A Dream I Lived Alone', is a book for music connoisseurs and sangeet sadhaks. It is beautifully written and focuses on the evergreen musician's journey to success. The book also beautifully captures the musician in a variety of old and new images from his performance pictures to meeting up with the who’s who of the music industry.

The legendary musician's journey is as lyrical and spiritually enriching as his evergreen songs. Ghulam The connoisseur of music belonged to the Rampur - Sahaswan Gharana of music. Born into a family of musicians in Uttar Pradesh's Badaun, he was awarded the Padma Shri in 1991, the Padma Bhushan in 2006, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2018.

The connoisseur of music was born into a family of musicians in Uttar Pradesh’s Badaun. For his daughter-in-law Namrata Gupta Khan, however, he was a “humble, simple, innocent and a noble man”. “Anyone who visited him wouldn’t return hungry. They would come during meal hours, and he would always share and never expect anything in return. He was not only my father-in-law but my good friend, too,”

The octogenarian has nourished his family with love and care, even in his absence. Ustad Ghulam Khan sadly passed away on 17^th January, 2021, at his residence in Bandra. He was 89 when he breathed his last, but leaves behind a heartwarming story of love, dedication to one’s craft and the magic of music and also his rich legacy through his own music and through his son's, Grandsons and all his students who are all stalwarts of the music industry.

Born and brought up in Mumbai, Namrata Gupta Khan is a commerce graduate from Mumbai University. She started working while still in college and over a period of twelve years. Namrata now runs her own event management outfit, NR Talent and Event Management Company that organizes events in India and abroad. She is passionate about health and fitness and believes one can always work to change one’s physical and mental state for the better.

Imprint: Penguin / Ebury Press

Published; December 2018

ISBN: 9780670090860

Length: 256 Pages

MRP: ₹499.00

Reviewed by Verus Ferreira