Fastidious as he was about his appearance, he had dyed his hair, which had turned a sickly yellow. My father, a connoisseur and Mali rasika, would not miss a single concert. No musical instrument has been as servile to man as the flute was to Mali. Mali showed me the letter Ramakrishna Hegde had written to him, offering all help if he would settle down in Karnataka. It’s been a financial loss as I haven’t been able to play for the past few months,” he said.