--- url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-fr/gharana/etawah-gharana' title: 'Etawah Gharana' author: name: Anonymous updated: '2026-11-05T00:10:56+00:00' type: website summary: 'The Etawah gharana, also called the Imdadkhani gharana, is a North Indian school of sitar and surbahar playing that formed in the 19th century around Imdad Khan. It takes its first name from Etawah, a town near Agra where the family lived.' tags: - 'Senia Gharana' image: 'https://kalasudha.com/themes/custom/music_agency/assets/icon/logo.svg' published: true og: site_name: KalaSudha 'image:url': 'https://kalasudha.com/themes/custom/music_agency/assets/icon/logo.svg' 'image:secure_url': 'https://kalasudha.com/themes/custom/music_agency/assets/icon/logo.svg' 'image:type': image/svg+xml 'image:alt': KalaSudha --- # Etawah Gharana इटावा घराना Sitar and surbahar that follow the voice, from Imdad Khan's family Sitar Gharana Etawah Founded By Imdad Khan The **Etawah gharana**, also called the Imdadkhani gharana, is a North Indian school of [sitar](/en-fr/instrumental/hindustani-classical/sitar) and surbahar playing that formed in the 19th century around Imdad Khan. It takes its first name from Etawah, a town near Agra where the family lived. [Sign in to follow](/en-fr/user/login?flag_anon=follow_term-228&destination=/en-fr/markdownify/taxonomy/term/228) [ Share ](/en-fr/share/term/228) ### Quick Facts Type Sitar Gharana Origin Etawah ## Origins & History Accounts differ on the founder. Many name **Imdad Khan**, the gharana's eponym, while family accounts begin a generation earlier with his father and first teacher, Sahabdad Khan, a singer who also played sitar or surbahar. Family tradition ties Sahabdad Khan to Haddu Khan and Hassu Khan of Gwalior and credits him with shaping the surbahar, a credit other accounts do not share. A family legend holds that he was born Sahib Singh, a Hindu, and later became a Muslim. Imdad Khan is described as building his sitar style on khayal singing, a break from the dhrupad-based Senia style that governed instrumental music in his century. He is also described as the first sitar player to make a gramophone recording, in 1904. Imdad Khan taught his sons Enayat Khan on sitar and Wahid Khan on surbahar, and the line divided into two branches. Enayat Khan settled in Calcutta and moved the family's base there. ## Historical Timeline 1904 ### First sitar recording Imdad Khan is described as the first sitar player to make a gramophone recording, in this year. 1928 ### Vilayat Khan is born Vilayat Khan, son of Enayat Khan, is born at Gauripur, where his father was court musician of the Gauripur state. 1935 ### Imrat Khan is born Imrat Khan, younger son of Enayat Khan, is born in Calcutta on 17 November 1935. 1938 ### Enayat Khan dies Death of Enayat Khan, who had moved the family's base to Calcutta. His sons go on to learn from their mother's family. 1958 ### Wahid Khan in Jalsaghar Wahid Khan plays the surbahar in Satyajit Ray's film Jalsaghar. 2004 ### Vilayat Khan dies Vilayat Khan dies in Mumbai in March 2004; obituaries credit him with introducing the gayaki ang to the sitar. 2018 ### Imrat Khan dies Imrat Khan, surbahar and sitar player, dies on 22 November 2018, having passed the gharana to his five sons. 2023 ### Yuva Puraskar for Shakir Khan The Yuva Puraskar for 2019 is presented to Shakir Khan, son of Shahid Parvez. ## Lineage & Legacy The guru-shishya tradition passed down through generations The Calcutta branch runs from **Enayat Khan** to his sons Vilayat Khan and Imrat Khan, who learned largely from their mother Bashiran Begum and her family after their father's early death. Imrat Khan taught his five sons, among them Nishat Khan. The second branch runs from Wahid Khan to his son Aziz Khan and grandson Shahid Parvez, whose son [Shakir Khan](/en-fr/artist/shakir-khan) plays today. Outside the family, Enayat Khan's student Bimalendu Mukherjee taught his son Budhaditya Mukherjee. ### Founders #### Sahabdad Khan 19th century Singer and sitar or surbahar player Father and first teacher of Imdad Khan, named as founder in family accounts. The family credits him with shaping the surbahar. #### Imdad Khan Late 19th and early 20th century Sitar and surbahar player The gharana's eponym, credited with a sitar style built on khayal singing. He is described as the first sitar player to be recorded, in 1904. Guru-Shishya Tradition ### Imdad Khan's sons #### Enayat Khan 1894-1938 Sitar and surbahar player Learned from his father and settled in Calcutta, where he served the Gauripur state. Family accounts credit him with structural changes to the sitar still in use. #### Wahid Khan Surbahar and sitar player Taught surbahar by his father and head of the second branch. He played surbahar in Satyajit Ray's film Jalsaghar (1958). Guru-Shishya Tradition ### Third generation #### Vilayat Khan 1928-2004 Sitar player Born at Gauripur, son of Enayat Khan. Press obituaries of 2004 credit him with introducing the gayaki ang, the vocal style of sitar playing. #### Imrat Khan 1935-2018 Surbahar and sitar player Born in Calcutta, younger brother of Vilayat Khan. He learned from his mother, his maternal grandfather and his uncle Wahid Khan, and taught his five sons. #### Aziz Khan Film composer and teacher Son of Wahid Khan, who worked as a film composer and taught his own son, Shahid Parvez, the family's sitar. #### Bimalendu Mukherjee Sitar player A student of Enayat Khan from outside the family, who passed the style on to his son Budhaditya Mukherjee. Guru-Shishya Tradition ### Present generation #### Shahid Parvez Sitar player Son of Aziz Khan, of the Wahid Khan branch. He trained his son Shakir Khan. #### Shujaat Khan Sitar player Son and student of Vilayat Khan, described in his Darbar biography as of the Etawah (Imdadkhani) gharana. #### Nishat Khan Sitar player Son and main student of Imrat Khan. The Imdadkhani gharana is named after his great-grandfather, Imdad Khan. #### Budhaditya Mukherjee Sitar player Learned first from his father, Bimalendu Mukherjee, who studied under Enayat Khan. #### Shakir Khan Sitar player Son and disciple of Shahid Parvez. He received the Sangeet Natak Akademi's Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for 2019, presented in 2023. The gharana system is rooted in the guru-shishya (teacher-disciple) tradition, where musical knowledge and style are passed down through direct apprenticeship over three or more generations. ## Key exponents - Sahabdad Khan, named founder in family accounts, 19th century - Imdad Khan, sitar and surbahar, the gharana's eponym - Enayat Khan, 1894-1938, Calcutta branch - Wahid Khan, surbahar and sitar, head of the second branch - Vilayat Khan, 1928-2004, sitar - Imrat Khan, 1935-2018, surbahar and sitar - Shahid Parvez, sitar, Wahid Khan branch - Shakir Khan, sitar, son and disciple of Shahid Parvez ## Musical Characteristics Distinctive style, techniques, and aesthetic philosophy ### Overall Style Etawah playing follows the voice. Imdad Khan is described as basing his sitar on khayal singing, and that choice grew into the **gayaki ang**, a way of playing that copies the inflections of a singer. The family plays both the sitar and the surbahar, the larger bass sitar, and family accounts give close attention to meend, the glide between notes, and murki, a quick ornament. #### Gayaki ang The sitar follows the inflections of vocal music. Press obituaries credit Vilayat Khan with it; other accounts credit Enayat Khan with developing it. #### Built on khayal Imdad Khan is described as building his style on khayal singing, a break from the dhrupad-based Senia style of his century. #### Sitar and surbahar Imdad Khan taught Enayat Khan on sitar and Wahid Khan on surbahar, and players such as Imrat Khan kept both instruments. #### Meend and murki Family accounts credit Vilayat Khan with refining his father's and uncle's handling of meend, the glide, and murki, a quick ornament. ## Signature Repertoire Family accounts set out the concert form: alap, jor and jhala without percussion, then a gat with tabla. Jhala and thok jhala form separate sections, and todas and tihais follow a fixed order. Subhas Chanda's Sangeet Natak Akademi study, as its publisher describes it, records a full-length alap in raga Yaman that Imdad Khan composed for the surbahar. ### Famous Compositions #### Alap in Yaman for surbahar By: Imdad Khan Why it's special: A full-length alap composed by Imdad Khan for the surbahar, preserved with other gharana compositions in notation, as Subhas Chanda's study describes. ## Compare with Similar Gharanas Understand how Etawah Gharana differs from other traditions Select a Gharana to Compare: Senia Gharana | | Etawah Gharana (Current) | Senia Gharana (Comparing) | |---|---|---| | Type | Sitar | Sitar | | Origin | Etawah | Jaipur | | Era | | Late 18th century | | Style | Etawah playing follows the voice. Imdad Khan is described as basing his sitar on khayal singing, and that choice grew into the gayaki ang, a way of playing that copies the inflections of a singer. The family plays both the sitar and the surbahar, the larger bass sitar, and family accounts give close attention to meend, the glide between notes, and murki, a quick ornament. | Senia sitar draws on the rudra veena, or been, and on dhrupad, the court vocal form Tansen sang. Allyn Miner traces how been techniques such as meend, the glide between notes, gamak, a heavy shake of the note, and sut moved onto the sitar, and closes a chapter with an analysis of the Senia style. In his account of his guru Mushtaq Ali Khan, Debu Chaudhuri names yukti, musical logic, as the Senia principle. | [View Senia Gharana Details ](/en-fr/gharana/senia-gharana) ## Influence & Legacy The gharana's base in Calcutta shaped the sitar there: James Hamilton's study, as reviewed in Sangeet Natak, traces the Imdadkhani style mainly to that city. Family accounts record Enayat Khan's friendship with Rabindranath Tagore. The style passed outside the family through Enayat Khan's students Bimalendu Mukherjee and Bimalakanta Roychaudhuri, and the gayaki ang it developed is now credited to the gharana as its defining contribution. ## Sources 1. Darbar Arts Culture Heritage Trust, biographies of Vilayat Khan, Imrat Khan, Shahid Parvez and Budhaditya Mukherjee (n.d.) 2. Rediff News, The master of sitar is no more (2004) 3. Varinder Singh, Sammelan loses star guest, The Tribune (2004) 4. Outlook, obituary of Imrat Khan (2018) 5. Subhas Chanda, The Imdadkhani Baj (2020) ## Frequently Asked Questions What is the Etawah (Imdadkhani) gharana of sitar? The Etawah or Imdadkhani gharana is a school of [sitar](/en-fr/instrumental/hindustani-classical/sitar) and surbahar playing from North India, built around Imdad Khan in the 19th century. It is known for the gayaki ang, a way of playing that follows the inflections of the voice. Who founded the Etawah (Imdadkhani) gharana of sitar? Many accounts name Imdad Khan, after whom the gharana is called Imdadkhani, as its founder. Family accounts begin a generation earlier with his father and first teacher, Sahabdad Khan, a singer who also played sitar or surbahar. Which musicians belong to the Etawah (Imdadkhani) gharana of sitar today? Shahid Parvez and his son [Shakir Khan](/en-fr/artist/shakir-khan) carry the Wahid Khan branch. Shujaat Khan, son of Vilayat Khan, and Nishat Khan, son of Imrat Khan, carry the Calcutta branch, and Budhaditya Mukherjee carries the style outside the family. Is the Etawah gharana the same as the Imdadkhani gharana? Yes. Etawah and Imdadkhani are two names for one gharana: the first comes from the family's town near Agra, the second from Imdad Khan. Current artist biographies often join them, as the Imdadkhani (Etawah) gharana. Why is it named after Etawah? The family lived in Etawah, near Agra, and the gharana took the town's name. Accounts differ on whether Imdad Khan or his father, Sahabdad Khan, settled there. What is gayaki ang, and who developed it? Gayaki ang is a way of playing the sitar that follows the inflections of vocal music. Press obituaries of 2004 credit Vilayat Khan with introducing it, while other accounts credit his father Enayat Khan with developing it. It grew from Imdad Khan's khayal-based style. How does the Etawah style differ from the Senia style of sitar? The Etawah style is described as built on khayal singing and follows the voice, while the Senia style rests on dhrupad and on rudra veena technique. Imdad Khan's khayal-based style is described as a break from the dhrupad-based Senia style of his century. See the [Senia gharana](/en-fr/gharana/senia-gharana). Why does the gharana cover the surbahar as well as the sitar? The gharana covers both because its founders played both: Imdad Khan taught Enayat Khan on sitar and Wahid Khan on surbahar. Family accounts credit Sahabdad Khan with shaping the surbahar, and Imrat Khan later played both instruments in concert. Have more questions? Contact our support team and we'll be happy to help!