Sarangi Artist Momin Khan on Balancing Classical and Commercial Music and the Importance of Riyaaz

The concept of riyaaz means more than just mere practice or learning for Jaipur/Mumbai-based sarangi artist Momin Khan. “For me, riyaaz is not just about practice, but it’s about connecting with the divine. If I don’t do riyaaz on a day, I definitely feel like something is off in me personally,” the 23-year-old says over the phone.

It’s this rigid sense of devotion to his instrument and to Indian classical music – he hails from the Jaipur gharana of artists and is son (and disciple) of Padma Shri award-winning sarangi artist and vocalist Ustad Moinuddin Khan – that shows in Khan’s sparkling playing. In addition to gaining popularity through videos of soulful raaga renditions on YouTube and Instagram, Khan began performing with fusion bands like Perfect Amalgamation and as early as 2017, became part of song projects like “Rab Jogi” led by vocalists Mame Khan and Harshdeep Kaur. It was in 2019 that he received a call from singer-composer Arijit Singh and his team, asking to be a part of his live ensemble. “Social media has been really helpful in terms of getting me hired for work and directly contacted,” Khan explains.

The resolve to stick by his riyaaz did not come easily, though. Before he decided to move to Mumbai to be a part of Singh’s live group, Khan spoke with his father and guru for advice. “He said I should go, but I should ensure my Indian classical riyaaz should not get affected and I should figure this out no matter what. It’s important that you put in the work with riyaaz – with vocals and sarangi – to keep the tradition strong. I considered this advice from my guru and knew that I had to keep my riyaaz going,” Khan says.

But with the schedules of rehearsal and recordings often running late into the night and leaving very little time in the day as well, Khan found himself in a challenging situation. He reached out to Singh and he had a solution at hand for Khan. “I consider [Singh] with the utmost respect and as a bigger brother who looks out for me, I asked Arijit bhai if I could get some time in for my riyaaz and this would help me perform better. He was the one who gave the great suggestion that I come in to the studio one or two hours prior to the rehearsal and do my riyaaz.”

The sarangi artist – who also trains in vocals and plays instruments such as the harmonium – soon took up session musician gigs as part of the soundtrack for action flick Dabangg 3 in 2019 and went on to find regular work with director and music composer Sanjay Leela Bhansali for his film Gangubai Kathiawadi, plus movies like Pagglait, Chamak, Heera Mandi and the forthcoming film Abhyan. Khan adds, “Sanjay Leela Bhansali has set up his soundtracks and movies in such a way that it brings out my sarangi playing in a new light.”

With globe-trotting tours and performances to his name, Khan is now trying to balance classical music and the commercial projects which come his way. The most recently released project – “Ruk Ja” by Salim-Sulaiman’s annual release series Bhoomi 2022 is sung by Sonu Nigam – was perhaps a mix that allowed Khan to shine as a classical artist but in a fusion setting. Khan knocks it out of the park with sarangi often taking centerstage in “Ruk Ja.”

The goal continues to be about elevating the status of the sarangi to global recognition, perhaps to the same level a guitar is known, according to Khan. He’s also carrying forward eight generations of family tradition and he intends to keep that going even as he balances classical music and Bollywood projects. “I believe that if you do good work in classical music, your name will be known and the live work, that should be a separate side of you, like when you’re playing in Bollywood. I think both sides should be kept going in perfect balance,” he adds.

Watch Momin Khan perform “Ruk Ja” with Salim-Sulaiman, Sonu Nigam and more.