Word: khan
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...marry Prince Rainier 26 years ago, there were other subjects to pursue. The guest list, first intended to include family friends only, read like a compendium of the Almanack de Gotha and Variety. Among those invited: two ex-Kings (Umberto II of Italy and Michael of Rumania), the Aga Khan, Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia and Frank Sinatra, David Niven and Cary Grant. (Britain's Prince Charles, otherwise engaged, sent regrets...
...Khan appreciates Western music--jazz, disco, opera--as long as it is unadulterated. His reactions to music are either emotional or intellectual. Bach intrigues him because his complicated fugues resemble Indian classical music in their repetition and variations on one theme. Maria Callas and Bartok are his favorites. "Bartok's compositions are so intricate, but like in Indian music he never uses more than ten notes at a time. Maria Callas--she is my type of lady. She does what she feels and doesn't play for others...
...Khan vehemently opposes the various gurus and Indian musicians who come to the U.S. to commercially package their cults and art. His normally soft voice rises indignantly at the idea that they misrepresent Hindy culture in America. He sees Americans as too innocent; in their desire to find spiritual fulfillment in an alienating society, they are susceptible to movements such as the Hare Krishnas and Guru Maharaji...
...interview last weekend, Khan was reluctant to discuss politics. But he did say that he supported former Prime Minister Indira Ghandhi's state of emergency. "What many Americans don't understand is that it was a necessary thing. Democracy is something people here have because it is tradition." He feels the emergency provided an order to the nation that was imperative for social and economic change. The American press played up its restrictiveness, he believes, and judged the Indian political situation by their own standards, without comprehending the complicated economic and social realities...
Despite any questions Khan might have about the Indian state of affairs, he does not intend to leave the country. It is understandable why he feels that way. In spite of its swelling poverty and destitution and its unstable political situation, India is the only place where he could best develop his art. Everywhere are indications of ancient religions and the traditions. Sacred cows walk the streets, shrines are at the feet of Bombay streetlamps, most homes have puja (worship) rooms and an idol of the household deity. People are named after characters in the Vedic scriptures...