 Born in Alwar, Rajasthan
in the year 1927 into the illustrious Dagar family, Ustad Rahim
Fahimuddin Dagar was the son of Padma Bhushan Ustad Allabande
Rahimuddin Khan Dagar who passed away in 1975. Initiated into the
art of dhrupad at the age of five by his uncle Ustad Nasiruddin Khan
Dagar, he received musical education for a period of 35 years from
his father and family elders. He studied Rudra Veena from his uncle
Ustad Ziauddin Khan Dagar for twelve years. He also took occasional
lessons from his other uncles Ustad Hussainuddin Khan Dagar (better
known as Tansen Pandey) and Ustad Imamuddin Khan Dagar. He learnt
Sanskrit from his father and Pt. Giridharilal Shastri.
Ustad Rahim Fahimuddin Khan Dagar was known not only for the power
and spontaneity of his alaap, but also for his rich repertoire of
compositions, some of which are believed to date back to the 12th
and 13th centuries. As a person, Ustadji was a man of simple and
sober habits and temperamentally averse to publicity. It was only
the quality of his music that took him to many countries like the
USA, France, Germany and Italy for performances before select
audiences. His recordings have been released in Switzerland, Germany
and Italy.
Ustad Rahim Fahimuddin Khan Dagar was honoured with numerous awards,
prominent among them being Sangeet Ratan (1956), Sangeet Natak
Akademi Award (1993-94), Dhrupad Ratan(1993-94), Sahitya Kala
Parishad (1996) , Indira Gandhi Fellowship (1997), Ustad Hafiz Ali
Khan Award (1997), Mewar Foundation Award (2002), Maharaja Sawai
Ishwari Singh Award (2002), Kalidas Award (2002), Bihar Dhrupad
Ratan (2002), Rajasthan Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (2003) , Sangeet
Bhusan (2003), Shama Indian Cultural Society Award (2004), Lifetime
Achievement Award (2005) by North American Dhrupad Association,
Lifetime Achievement Award, by Govt. of Delhi (2007), Padma Bhushan
(2008), Sangeet Natak Akademi Ratna Purashkar (2010) and the Ustad
Mushtaq Ali Khan Lifetime Achievement Award (2011).
Ustadji, who was also associated with ITC SRA in the early days of
the Academy passed away on 27th July 2011.
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