Looking for complete, textbook-verified solutions for SEBA Class 9 English Beehive Chapter 2 Part II (The Sound of Music: The Shehnai of Bismillah Khan) for the 2026–27 academic session? Access step-by-step solutions to all “Thinking about the Text” NCERT/SEBA textbook questions, including why Aurangzeb banned the pungi, how a shehnai is different from a pungi, where the shehnai was traditionally played and how Bismillah Khan changed that, when and how Bismillah Khan got his big break, why he refused to start a shehnai school in the USA, and model answers structured strictly for Assam Board Class 9 examinations.
1. Why did Aurangzeb ban the playing of the pungi?
Answer: Emperor Aurangzeb banned the pungi in the royal palace because it produced a very sharp, harsh, and unpleasant sound.
2. How is a shehnai different from a pungi?
Answer: A shehnai has a longer and wider hollow stem than a pungi. It has seven holes made along its body and produces sweet, melodious tones.
SEBA Class 9 English The Shehnai of Bismillah Khan Textual Questions
3. Where was the shehnai played traditionally? How did Bismillah Khan change this?
Answer: Traditionally, the shehnai was only played in royal courts, temples, and North Indian weddings. Bismillah Khan brought it out of these traditional settings and onto the classical concert stage.
4. When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?
Answer: Bismillah Khan got his big break in 1938 with the opening of All India Radio in Lucknow. He quickly became a popular and regular shehnai performer on the radio.
The Shehnai of Bismillah Khan Thinking about the Text Solutions 2026-27
5. Where did Bismillah Khan play the shehnai on 15 August 1947? Why was the event historic?
Answer: He played his shehnai at the historic Red Fort in Delhi. It was historic because he was the first Indian to greet the newly independent nation, playing Raag Kafi before Pandit Nehru’s famous speech.
6. Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A.?
Answer: His student promised to recreate the temples of Benaras in America, but Bismillah Khan asked if he could also bring the river Ganga there. Since that was impossible, he refused to leave his homeland.
Class 9 English Beehive Chapter 2 Part 2 Textual Answers SEBA
7. Find at least two instances in the text which tell you that Bismillah Khan loves India and Benaras.
Answer:
He refused to live in the USA because he could not live without the river Ganga and Benaras.
During the Partition of India, he strongly rejected the idea of leaving Benaras to settle in Pakistan.
🎶 Class 9 English Textual Solutions Notice: This page features the complete SEBA Class 9 English Beehive Chapter 2 Part II (The Sound of Music: The Shehnai of Bismillah Khan) Official Textual Questions and Answers updated for the 2026–27 academic session. Written in clear, exam-standard English, these solutions directly cover every textbook question in the “Thinking about the Text” section—from the instrument’s royal court origins to Ustad Bismillah Khan’s timeless dedication to Indian classical music—to help you secure full marks in your school examinations.
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