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Published : 21 Dec 2025, 06:06 PM
Renowned classical musician Shiraz Ali Khan, a great-grandson of Ustad Alauddin Khan, has announced that he will not return to Bangladesh until artists, music and cultural institutions are “respected and protected”.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, he wrote the decision was not born of anger, but “with responsibility -- to his family’s legacy, art, and safety”.
“I still believe in the power of music to heal and unite. I only hope that one day, respect for art and culture returns strongly enough for that bridge to be rebuilt,” he wrote.
Shiraz was scheduled to take part in an event at Chhayanaut Shongskriti Bhaban in Dhaka on Friday, but the event was called off after the premises were attacked, vandalised, and set on fire early that night.
Shiraz is the grandson of legendary sarod maestro Ali Akbar Khan and the great-grandson of world-renowned musician Ustad Alauddin Khan, the founder of the Maihar gharana.
A leading singer of the Maihar tradition, Shiraz is based in India.
Speaking to bdnews24.com, he said he had arrived in Dhaka on Dec 16.
Earlier, on Oct 8, the Ministry of Cultural Affairs organised a classical music event at the Lalbagh Fort in Dhaka to mark the 163rd birth anniversary of Ustad Alauddin Khan, where Shiraz performed and drew appreciation.
Shiraz said, “I have always returned to Bangladesh to reconnect with my roots -- to share my family’s music, the heritage of Boro Baba Ustad Allauddin Khan, and the living legacy of the Maihar parampara. I came only with music, humility, and respect.”
“For the first time in my life, I say this with deep pain: we feared for our lives. Never before had I imagined that identifying myself as an Indian artist in Bangladesh could put me in danger. Somehow, we managed to return safely to India today -- and for that, I am grateful.”
He said what happened on Dec 19 was not merely an act of vandalism against musical instruments or an institution, but an attack on “culture, artists, and shared heritage”.
“Music has always been a bridge between our lands and histories. When that bridge is broken by fear and violence, something far deeper is lost,” he said.
Tagging the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, Shiraz wrote that his remarks were not directed against the government or against Bangladesh’s “educated and art-loving people” people, who he said have always shown him “immense respect and warmth”.
He added that his anguish was directed solely at what he described as a “mob mentality” that attacks institutions of culture and knowledge.
“Music and art have always stood above politics and violence, and it hurts deeply when they become targets,” he said.
Describing Bangladesh as his “parent’s land”, Shiraz said criticism born of pain should not be seen as rejection, but as an expression of concern.
“I remain hopeful that wisdom, dialogue, and respect for culture will prevail, as they always have in the long history of this soil,” he said.
