New West’s Mushtari Begum Festival heads into its 11th year

Queensborough has some of the most beautiful houses in the city: externally, many of the builds are similar in nature, but there’s no doubt that the inside of each home is special in its own way.

Stepping into the home of Cassius Khan and Amika Kushwaha is no exception: as Khan welcomes me warmly, his face lights up with a brilliant smile, and it feels like we’ve known each other for years. A dog comes up to me: her name is Ilu. She seems a little apprehensive at first, but it doesn’t take long for her to get on her back to ask for a belly rub. 

“We’re babysitting her. Her parents are away,” explains Khan, adding that Ilu’s parents are their neighbours. 

Khan and I both laugh as he leads me to their living space where Kushwaha is waiting to greet me. As we sit down to talk about their journey—through life and music—I ask about the instruments in the previous room. They are different kinds of drums, known as tabla. 

What is a tabla? 

• These drums come in pairs, and are found in a variety of classical styles of music. It is popular in classical and folk music performances in India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan—to name a few.

• Each drum can be made from hollowed out wood, clay, or metal.

• The smaller drum makes treble and tonal sounds while the larger drum usually produces a bass sound—one of the sounds I heard when Khan played sounded like a boing!

• The drum is played with the fingers and the palms—an extremely technical skill—think of it like typing as fast as you can on a keyboard, but you’re also using the heels of your palms to create a sound.

The tabla is just one of the instruments you’ll see and hear at the Mushtari Begum Festival; the festival was named after Khan’s teacher. Along with Kushwaha and Khan, there will be a variety of other performers showcasing their talents in his instructor’s honour. “[My teacher] died in 2004, and she was my mentor for a very long time, since I was a young kid,” says Khan, who was his teacher’s sole disciple. “We wanted to highlight her fine taste in music and dance.”

The event—which will take place on Saturday, Sept. 24—is described by Kushwaha as a night of transformation. “Our slogan for the festival is, ‘When your ears begin to see, the eyes listen.’ What we’re really trying to say is that when you come to the Mushtari Begum Festival, it’s an experience of the senses,” she says. 

“Dance is showing the movements of the music, but you’re seeing the music through the movement, right? So your ears begin to see, and then your eyes are listening. Sometimes you hear the patterns, and your eyes may go, ‘Holy moly! That person’s hands are moving so fast on the instrument!’ ”

Khan and Kushwaha both grew up in Canada: Khan in Alberta, Kushwaha in Saskatchewan. “I moved to Alberta—in Edmonton—to do further studies in my engineering background,” says Kushwaha, who went on to meet Khan through music. With a chuckle, the two recount how they ended up in New Westminster after becoming tired of Alberta’s colder weather. “At the same time, [we wanted to] go to a place where there’s more cultural diversity,” says Khan.

Realizing that Vancouver and Burnaby wouldn’t quite work with their needs and their budget, their realtor mentioned “a hidden gem” of a neighbourhood. Fast forward to 2022, and they’ve been in Queensborough for more than a decade. Not only has the city checked off the boxes as a place to live—it’s been a perfect match for the festival. 

“If it wasn’t for the Massey Theatre…[executive director] Jessica Schneider, she’s been our big sister, our rock, our pillar of strength—she opened the doors of the Massey Theatre for this festival. And we’re so glad that there’s a venue in this city that has dedicated itself to all of these different, smaller organizations like ours,” says Khan. 

Khan adds the people in New West always have open, welcoming hearts, especially when it comes to Indian classical music. “This form of classical dance and music, it’s just as much part of my Canadian upbringing as anyone else’s,” says Khan, who adds that having a platform and place to showcase diversity allows people to find things in common. 

“Growing up [in Canada] there was a lot of racism that we had to face, because we were different, or we stood out, and when you’re a musician practicing this music here, [you’re] even more different. But we’ve come to a space now where there’s more diversity, more inclusiveness than there was maybe even 25 years ago,” says Khan. 

If you’re not familiar with the music, Kushwaha and Khan both say not to worry, since they always share sound examples before they play a piece.

“For example, how does it rain in the city of New Westminster? What about the thunder and lightning? So I’ll show you all of that on my instrument,” says Khan. 

If you’d like to attend the Mushtari Begum Festival, tickets are available through the Massey Theatre website.There are also specials available, including purchasing four tickets to get one free. Children 12 and under can enter the event for free, and artists who have lost their job due to COVID can also receive a complimentary ticket.