It gained global recognition through the legendary Ustad Bismillah Khan, whose soulful performances brought the instrument international acclaim.

Khan was the virtuoso, the sultan of shehnai credited with giving it classical primacy and worldwide recognition. Has that moment for the shehnai passed? Has the Bismillah Khan legacy dwindled?

It was here that a young Bismillah Khan practiced for hours—from 4 am till the sun came up and again in the afternoon till it went down. The strains of his shehnai have long faded away from the ...