tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72242094488138684942024-03-18T19:58:40.547-07:00Cultural India, Culture of IndiaThe Indian culture is unique and varied. This section on culture of India contains information on various aspects of the great Indian culture.Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comBlogger90125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-26699672665216769162012-07-03T04:05:00.000-07:002013-01-10T21:59:07.558-08:00Kumar Sanu<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Birth Name: </b>Kedarnath Bhattacharya</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Born: </b>September 23, 1957 (age 54)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Kolkata, West Bengal, India</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Origin Mumbai, Maharashtra, India</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Genres:</b> Playback singing</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Occupations: </b>Singer, Music Director, Playback Singer</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Instruments:</b> Tabla</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Years active:</b> 1984–present</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Labels:</b> Sony Music, T-Series, Tips, Saregama, Venus Records & Tapes</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Wife Name: </b>Saloni</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi89FJlHv0B8M6uZ3CjjyWSDZkTWC-7_NOEfXnwkP_TNOHgk4ztbZ_aFCUjprV26JPX9WoHBO4EvMkNerTLthgKKIpTC8-8w5RCiLnRvqnNCPe7LXiVaLpOpr1DWznUdVTTV624NB6rT_1t/s1600/kumar_sanu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kumar Sanu" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi89FJlHv0B8M6uZ3CjjyWSDZkTWC-7_NOEfXnwkP_TNOHgk4ztbZ_aFCUjprV26JPX9WoHBO4EvMkNerTLthgKKIpTC8-8w5RCiLnRvqnNCPe7LXiVaLpOpr1DWznUdVTTV624NB6rT_1t/s320/kumar_sanu.jpg" title="Kumar Sanu" width="296" /></a></div>
Kumar Sanu (alias Kedarnath Bhattacharya, born in Kolkata) is a leading Indian Bollywood playback singer. He was awarded the Filmfare Best Male Playback Award over five consecutive years. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri in 2009.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Early life</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
"Kumar Sanu's father Pashupati Bhattacharya was a vocalist and composer. He trained Sanu as a singer and tabla player. After getting a degree in commerce from Calcutta University, Sanu began performing publicly in 1979, singing at shows and restaurants around Calcutta. He modeled his singing style after Bollywood singer Kishore Kumar.[3] Later he developed his own singing style."</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUiKQpg-aV8drkcShvjQvCrJa26_bLoQn4zr6KBw5XYcMQzyUX-rtgIlc5myQV6cGeSZ7viFFN06rez7m5hR19RXIZf3sAEcqirU38vzsiB2SBMYL_YYZ627S44qTWmmX0aEaNwjjayImj/s1600/Kumar-Sanu-With-Alka.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kumar Sanu with Alka" border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUiKQpg-aV8drkcShvjQvCrJa26_bLoQn4zr6KBw5XYcMQzyUX-rtgIlc5myQV6cGeSZ7viFFN06rez7m5hR19RXIZf3sAEcqirU38vzsiB2SBMYL_YYZ627S44qTWmmX0aEaNwjjayImj/s200/Kumar-Sanu-With-Alka.jpg" title="Kumar Sanu With Alka Yagnik" width="200" /></a></div>
Kumar Sanu is one of the most popular playback singers of Bollywood. He holds the Guinness Book world record for recording the maximum number of songs in a day, which are 28. He was born on 23rd September, 1957 and was named Kedernath Bhattacharjee. His father, Pashupati Bhattacharjee was a renowned classical singer and composer who noticed his son's talent at a very young age. When he was still very young, his father trained him to sing classical music and play the tabla. Given here is a small biography which captures the life history of Kumar Sanu. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-LA707zKgmXPWdka4XXO2RocZKYKKN7JNmfEv3ee4F0K4FzuvzTkcS1eLqk_y82MP0yety24NBnk2memDmshLGhK8wxgy_C7Qb_WDgoxwXxu-dJSVqnwkLdANkITT10hzJFFGXawYFS8M/s1600/kumar-sanu+with+Family.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kumar Sanu with Wife Saloni" border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-LA707zKgmXPWdka4XXO2RocZKYKKN7JNmfEv3ee4F0K4FzuvzTkcS1eLqk_y82MP0yety24NBnk2memDmshLGhK8wxgy_C7Qb_WDgoxwXxu-dJSVqnwkLdANkITT10hzJFFGXawYFS8M/s200/kumar-sanu+with+Family.jpg" title="Kumar Sanu with Wife Saloni and Daughters Sana and Ana" width="200" /></a></div>
Kumar Sanu graduated in commerce from Calcutta University and then started giving public performances at small shows and restaurants in Calcutta itself. His style of singing was greatly influenced by the legendary Kishore Kumar. He badly wanted to become a playback singer but the competition in the Indian film is more than just fierce; it is ruthless. It took several years and a lot of struggle before Kumar Sanu was noticed by the great Jagjit Singh. He offered Kumar Sanu a chance to sing in the Hindi film Aandhiyan. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOXxGcuRz76NbK8MTqX1bXPBqvqK8PABjmWvREaBGJopgjWXJq8WZw6V04nhsXQVRfPkmOiQPGpruCHc29vv9E2OqRTM3K2UHb9oY6J97dp_sc7iXMl6ZdkOXKtHG5QveosqQ7ZUnt26EK/s1600/Kumar-Sanu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kumar Sanu" border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOXxGcuRz76NbK8MTqX1bXPBqvqK8PABjmWvREaBGJopgjWXJq8WZw6V04nhsXQVRfPkmOiQPGpruCHc29vv9E2OqRTM3K2UHb9oY6J97dp_sc7iXMl6ZdkOXKtHG5QveosqQ7ZUnt26EK/s200/Kumar-Sanu.jpg" title="Kumar Sanu - The King Of Melody" width="200" /></a></div>
Kumar Sanu came to Bombay when Kalyanji - Anandji offered him to sing for the movie "Jadugar". He was then asked to adopt a different name that was much more acceptable due to caste/region preferences. Thus, he started to work under the name Kumar Sanu instead of Kedernath Bhattacharjee. This gave him a wider appeal with the masses and he did not remain restricted to the Bengali mass. His real achievement however, came in the year 1990 with the movie "Aashiqui". </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbuR8QXb5yy-bMDOTeSmX4bmSmgjE5PSG_NmS9c35lY10JGIdCsGQ1W34OM7vrsrpEL3KeLdfjXjnAqFQU4AxaTHToX7Uyf0KQovNpA_rZYnZpiG_5O1vg-4DB7pc_9G4UCRNXz8dckt4j/s1600/KUMAR+SANU+RECEIVING+PADMA+SHREE+AWARD+FROM+PRESIDENT+OF+INDIA,+PRATIBHA+PATIL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kumar Sanu Receiving Padma Shree Award From President Of India, Pratibha Patil" border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbuR8QXb5yy-bMDOTeSmX4bmSmgjE5PSG_NmS9c35lY10JGIdCsGQ1W34OM7vrsrpEL3KeLdfjXjnAqFQU4AxaTHToX7Uyf0KQovNpA_rZYnZpiG_5O1vg-4DB7pc_9G4UCRNXz8dckt4j/s320/KUMAR+SANU+RECEIVING+PADMA+SHREE+AWARD+FROM+PRESIDENT+OF+INDIA,+PRATIBHA+PATIL.jpg" title="Kumar Sanu Receiving Padma Shree Award From President Of India, Pratibha Patil" width="320" /></a></div>
The talented music directors Nadeem - Shravan gave him all but one song of the movie Aashiqui. Kumar Sanu proved himself with this opportunity and the songs took the entire nation by rage. Everyone hummed the songs that were touted as that year's biggest hits. Kumar Sanu became a star and also won his first Filmfare award as the Best Male Playback singer. He began recording for many more films and achieved much success with more and more hits. Some movies that are worth the mention are Saajan, Deewana, Baazigar, and 1942: A Love Story. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLi8DxthxkctX7jcd43oQXdaCn06QIMyAxHjU4QGF4E03M03vSF5_PozW7-yAuZcx2xID3pSGxeI0IVMYy4rKgAHhX7Q8KcZrgTmz5BpPG5nVuRLvfKKUeumumcXtal4uvlDSNxghLe3-D/s1600/Kumar+Sanu+&+Asha+Parekh+at+Dadasaheb+Ambedkar+awards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kumar Sanu and Asha Parekh at Dadasaheb Ambedkar Awards" border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLi8DxthxkctX7jcd43oQXdaCn06QIMyAxHjU4QGF4E03M03vSF5_PozW7-yAuZcx2xID3pSGxeI0IVMYy4rKgAHhX7Q8KcZrgTmz5BpPG5nVuRLvfKKUeumumcXtal4uvlDSNxghLe3-D/s200/Kumar+Sanu+&+Asha+Parekh+at+Dadasaheb+Ambedkar+awards.jpg" title="Kumar Sanu and Asha Parekh at Dadasaheb Ambedkar Awards" width="200" /></a></div>
He won five Filmfare awards for five consecutive years and by the end of 1990, he had sung for hundreds of films in different languages. However, during the prime of his career, he was diagnosed with throat cancer. He was under medication after which he sang chosen songs. He cut down on singing and branched out, giving public performances and also acting in Bengali and Hindi serials. Some of his popular songs are given below.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCTcqbv9zHjseFP8YI9qow1wpQizIhVoBHVCtO5Q8xck44wb8XmYB10PgfEnzgvIhEeKASvpKYJ5cb5EJRr3c1mUucv-IzEWeSRE-d-2LS34Du187XvAIe1jNr-VEVIbQkADq3J3jnQQeO/s1600/Kashmera+Shah,+Bali+Brahmabhatt,+Kumar+Sanu+&+Sunidhi+Chauhan.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kashmira Shah, Bali Brahmabhatt, Kumar Sanu & Sunidhi Chauhan" border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCTcqbv9zHjseFP8YI9qow1wpQizIhVoBHVCtO5Q8xck44wb8XmYB10PgfEnzgvIhEeKASvpKYJ5cb5EJRr3c1mUucv-IzEWeSRE-d-2LS34Du187XvAIe1jNr-VEVIbQkADq3J3jnQQeO/s200/Kashmera+Shah,+Bali+Brahmabhatt,+Kumar+Sanu+&+Sunidhi+Chauhan.JPG" title="Kashmira Shah, Bali Brahmabhatt, Kumar Sanu & Sunidhi Chauhan" width="200" /></a></div>
Aane Waala Kal Ek Sapna Hai</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Aankhon Ki Gustakhiyan</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Chori Chori Jab Nazarein Mili</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Do Dil Mil Rahe Hain</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ek Ladki Ko Dekha</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Jab Koi Baat Bigad Jaaye</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Nazar Ke Saamne Jigar Ke Paas</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Rim Jhim Rim Jhim</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Teri Umeed Tera Intezaar</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Tu Mile Dil Khile</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Tujhe Dekha Toh Yeh Jana Sanam</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Tumhe Apna Banaane Ki Kasam</div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx-HbYmjhThj0QCx7xl4sIWC72rxMb5DSdWOdZ0739AhyRE2zbzF9HGURzPWyYm9QsLteMwbd-zBph_UzGNn_HKOMcK4m0_zkiPpadVxldHQ4KjNuGxn4C9yDsvvSO39rJPnhYaFLlHF3p/s1600/Kumar-Sanu+With-Wife-Saloni.jpg" target="_blank" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx-HbYmjhThj0QCx7xl4sIWC72rxMb5DSdWOdZ0739AhyRE2zbzF9HGURzPWyYm9QsLteMwbd-zBph_UzGNn_HKOMcK4m0_zkiPpadVxldHQ4KjNuGxn4C9yDsvvSO39rJPnhYaFLlHF3p/s200/Kumar-Sanu+With-Wife-Saloni.jpg" alt="Kuamr Sanu With Wife Saloni" title="Kuamr Sanu With Saloni" width="128" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_i71-HcdRtkHUsl6FzNQl0LfTdzdEb3KEyMVH3rqgoayDvYykLv0KQKy8BNRFqpL3UQlvZTLOOB_xhK5jfJaMaydNfoZFBdXdCcHNHEtJdQuKQpwI6saCydSjNUBcYOuEZnh17s2jTQTJ/s1600/kumar-sanu-with-wife.jpg" target="_blank" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_i71-HcdRtkHUsl6FzNQl0LfTdzdEb3KEyMVH3rqgoayDvYykLv0KQKy8BNRFqpL3UQlvZTLOOB_xhK5jfJaMaydNfoZFBdXdCcHNHEtJdQuKQpwI6saCydSjNUBcYOuEZnh17s2jTQTJ/s200/kumar-sanu-with-wife.jpg" alt="Kuamr Sanu Wife Saloni" title="Kuamr Sanu Enjoying With Saloni" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
More Details of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumar_Sanu" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kumar Sanu</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_by_Kumar_Sanu" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">List of songs by Kumar Sanu</a></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-34102501923352412732012-07-03T02:31:00.000-07:002012-07-03T02:31:41.650-07:00Kundan Lal Saigal<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name:</b> Kundan Lal Saigal</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born: </b>April 11, 1904, Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Died: </b>January 18, 1947 (aged 42), Jalandhar, Punjab</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres: </b>Playback singing</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations: </b>Singer, actor, Playback Singer</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Instruments: </b>Vocalist</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years active:</b> 1932–1</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_5OjNq9LvFol7_jLJnOzvig4il_5BimvQux5jHikxetATMtuGiLcEMXr0Y4OXavU4eJTqNTHB8mtmC9hZK0gLNLicQacoUuLvTKzZu07CreX04mwQCB6gJB1Vl9SogMTEwsCOCLKyn_wn/s1600/Kundan+Lal+Saigal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kundan Lal Saigal" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_5OjNq9LvFol7_jLJnOzvig4il_5BimvQux5jHikxetATMtuGiLcEMXr0Y4OXavU4eJTqNTHB8mtmC9hZK0gLNLicQacoUuLvTKzZu07CreX04mwQCB6gJB1Vl9SogMTEwsCOCLKyn_wn/s400/Kundan+Lal+Saigal.jpg" title="Kundan Lal Saigal" width="270" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Kundan Lal (K.L.) Saigal (11 April 1904 – 18 January 1947) was an Indian singer and actor who is considered the first superstar of the Hindi film industry, which was centered in Calcutta during Saigal's time, but is currently centered in Mumbai.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The very name K.L Saigal conjures up an image of a superstar who ruled the screens long before people heard of Amitabh Bachchan and Rajesh Khanna. Not many are aware of the achievements of this great persona and his contributions to the Hindi film industry. K L Sehgal was undoubtedly India's first superstar whose charisma and magic is still alive and continues to inspire budding talents. Born in Jammu on April 11th, 1904 as Kundan Lal Saigal, he inspired legends like Kishore Kumar and Mukesh to copy his style to make their mark in the industry before developing their own signature tones. His songs are evergreen and are hummed even today. To know more about the life history of K L Saigal, read this biography given below. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">K.L Saigal started singing from a very young age and his mother used to take him to Sufi-Pir Salman Yousuf of the Yesvi sect. His father Amarchand Saigal was employed at the court of Maharaja Pratap Singh. At the age of twelve, K.L Saigal sang Meera Bhajan at the court of the king. The Maharaja was really impressed and blessed him saying that he had a bright future. His father was disappointed when he learnt that his son wanted to sing and dropped out of school. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">When K.L. Saigal realized that his voice was cracking at the age of 13, he was so shocked that he remained silent for months together. His worried family took him to a saint who told Saigal to refine his voice and not leave practicing. For three years thereafter he practiced with determination and also received some help from Faiyaaz Khan, Pankaj Mullick and Pahari Sanyal, who were the greatest singers of that era. Saigal also learnt to sing in Punjabi when he was in Jalandhar. The most astonishing thing is that he never received any formal training and cultivated his own style, which was accepted and appreciated by all. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">K. L Saigal worked as a time keeper with Punjab railways and also a salesman before he chose music as a vocation. Those days, his singing was limited to his friend's circle. During one such occasion of his singing, a sales representative of Hindustan Record Company happened to be present in the congregation. He recognized Saigal's potential and persuaded him to sign a contract for recordings with the company. One of his earliest records "Jhulana Jhulao" in Dev Gandhar raga was a huge hit. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Thus started the flourishing career of K.L Saigal and he started to act and sing in films. Some of his earliest films were Subah Ke Sitare, Zinda Laash and Mohabbat Ke Aason. The songs that showered fame on him were Premnagar Mein Basoongi Ghar Main, Tadapat Beeti Din Rain and Prem Ki Ho Jai from the first feature film Chandidas. He was also the lead actor of the movie. More and more offers started to pour in making him one of the reigning stars of the film industry. His enigmatic voice only made him even more famous. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the year 1935, Devdas was released, which increased his popularity manifold. Saigal portrayed the character of the love struck and heartbroken Devdas with flawless perfection. His solo performances Balam Aaye Baso and Dukh Ke Ab Din were tagged as immortal. Saigal experimented with many forms of music and perfected Khayal, Bandish, Ghazals, Geets, Bhajans, Hori and Dadra in various Ragas. He also sang in many different languages like Hindi, Urdu, Pushto, Punjabi, Bengali and Tamil. Saigal always drank before recording and he fondly called a peg Kaali Paanch. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The period from 1932 to 1946 is called as Saigal era. Saigal shifted to Bombay in 1940 and did unforgettable films like Bhakta Surdas, Tansen, Kurukshetra, Omar Khayyam, Tadbeer, Shahjahan and Parwana. Some of his immortal songs are Diya Jalao Jagmag Jagmag, Rumjhum Rumjhum Chaal Tihari, Baag Laga Doon Sajani, Chah Barbaad Karegi, Ai Dil-e-beqarar Jhoom, Gham Diye Mustaqil and the eternal Jab Dil Hi Toot Gaya.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The great composer Naushad commented that Saigal did not drink while recording for his last two films Shahjahan and Parwana. His addiction to alcohol reached a stage where quitting was just not possible. On January 18th, 1947, at the age of just forty two years, this great inimitable artist passed away. The industry was suddenly deprived of one of the greatest performer. Today, sixty years since his death, his songs continue to bring nostalgic moments alive and remind people of the golden era of music.</div></div><br />
More Details of <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kundan_Lal_Saigal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kundan Lal Saigal</a></b></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-83614155617272643952012-06-30T04:06:00.000-07:002012-06-30T04:06:41.554-07:00Kishore Kumar<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name:</b> Abhas Kumar Kanjilal Ganguly</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born:</b> 4 August 1929, Khandwa, Central Provinces and Berar</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Died: </b>13 October 1987 (aged 58), Bombay, Maharashtra</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres: </b>Playback, Rabindra Sangeet, Bengali Songs, Rock and Roll</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations:</b> Singer, Actor, Playback Singer, Director, Musician, Producer</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years Active: </b>1946-1987</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh50ebMYOZtsscoZbUhbbmiAkTMNLeLS4QdZcIOJ6TxMAEkSOHHl_H7G46CROKM31bF_OnT4fs2HEHP0RqYDlqVCZ2m4gs5dX4Eia8h3jxmvHi8ZzdwNoUaWKxMAtyly9iMH0DnkYannk-7/s1600/Kishore_Kumar_Distraught.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kishor Kumar" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh50ebMYOZtsscoZbUhbbmiAkTMNLeLS4QdZcIOJ6TxMAEkSOHHl_H7G46CROKM31bF_OnT4fs2HEHP0RqYDlqVCZ2m4gs5dX4Eia8h3jxmvHi8ZzdwNoUaWKxMAtyly9iMH0DnkYannk-7/s400/Kishore_Kumar_Distraught.jpg" title="Kishor Kumar" width="268" /></a></div>Born as Abhas Kumar Ganguly on 4th August, 1929, this great singer known as Kishore Kumar, affectionately called Kishore Da, was one of those very few singers who took risks and experimented with different styles of music. Considered to be a legend in Hindi film world, this multi talented persona has excelled as a playback singer, actor, composer, lyrics writer, director, producer and script writer. The songs of Kishore Kumar have an extraordinary blend of romance, emotions, naughtiness and melancholy. We attempt to present the life history of Kishor Kumar in this short biography. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Kishore Kumar was born in a small place known as Khandwa located in the state of Madhya Pradesh. He was born in a typical Bengali family and was the youngest among his siblings. He had two elder brothers (Ashok Kumar and Anoop Kumar) and a sister (Sati Devi). His father Kunjilal Ganguly was a lawyer by profession and his mother Gauri Devi was from a well-to-do family. When his eldest brother Ashok Kumar became an actor, Kishore Kumar was still quite young. Later on, his second brother also ventured into movies to become an actor. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk6gJRySG2aiAitgBewTO0M7Lqvbz1uY8uub7BvSEWfOFNQquuUwhjjIeUl_qy_ANYvuRC3RyPJVBiYXz1_JagoPPgo0SNngTg4Mps7TrlFxoMXGCdkD_WgICt9DU4pdhDVmFGC5UYoK2Q/s1600/kishore-rafi.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kishor Kumar with M. Rafi" border="0" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk6gJRySG2aiAitgBewTO0M7Lqvbz1uY8uub7BvSEWfOFNQquuUwhjjIeUl_qy_ANYvuRC3RyPJVBiYXz1_JagoPPgo0SNngTg4Mps7TrlFxoMXGCdkD_WgICt9DU4pdhDVmFGC5UYoK2Q/s320/kishore-rafi.gif" title="Kishor Kumar With M. Rafi" width="320" /></a></div>Kishore Kumar also started to show interest in music and often mimicked the great K.L. Saigal. Though he did not have any formal training in music, he decided to pursue it and followed his brothers to Mumbai. It was his dream to become a famous playback singer and be counted among legends. He would often go to the studios and ask producers if he could sing on the movie's soundtrack. Initially he could not develop a style of his own but nevertheless he perfectly imitated K.L. Saigal. Once, the great S.D Burman had come to Ashok Kumar's house to meet up when he heard Kishore singing. He actually thought it was K.L. Saigal singing and inquired if he was there too! When he came to know that it was Kishore singing, he truly appreciated and encouraged the young lad to continue refining his voice but at the same time, develop a style of his own. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1v53w3LtM50SPx9XKn4M8YVKgo2MbsvAIEfoc9WZnwtbdntMaJN1W6z74Py3HBqq9L3AMxNqEAi15gNjDIIbpRCPn8x2sBQ891Go1ALY6UjpQA8xhmYNEP_s83xWj-kcqVybGAJDE22TV/s1600/kishore_kumar_Harmonium.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kishor Kumar" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1v53w3LtM50SPx9XKn4M8YVKgo2MbsvAIEfoc9WZnwtbdntMaJN1W6z74Py3HBqq9L3AMxNqEAi15gNjDIIbpRCPn8x2sBQ891Go1ALY6UjpQA8xhmYNEP_s83xWj-kcqVybGAJDE22TV/s320/kishore_kumar_Harmonium.jpg" title="Kishor Kumar" width="320" /></a></div>Kishore kept this advice in mind and went on develop his own signature style. He perfected yodeling, a unique style he heard amongst the Austrian music collections of his brother Anoop. In Hindi film industry, his yodeling turned out to be widely popular and became a trademark of Kishore Kumar. His songs sounded absolutely natural, like laughter. He used to incorporate non-sensical terms into his songs and give it an entirely new feel. The ability to transform his voice according to not just the scene but also the actor is something that was truly incredible of Kishore. He has sung soulful songs for Dev Anand and also fun filled songs for Rajesh Khanna. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg19di6KjERBiCx_q6lPYTrS7Rp6z2gfUBjxBex1Ziq0jSsfbeqP8IkKJ6L6gv4Q9FK8WVK9G3lYgeg5L_ig4dkcTz0HgiMKibBb6WyCG7Bx19191zO4LEtvbEgA3ZndzbGRl_pU5WOsHuG/s1600/Kishor+With+Tata.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kishor Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg19di6KjERBiCx_q6lPYTrS7Rp6z2gfUBjxBex1Ziq0jSsfbeqP8IkKJ6L6gv4Q9FK8WVK9G3lYgeg5L_ig4dkcTz0HgiMKibBb6WyCG7Bx19191zO4LEtvbEgA3ZndzbGRl_pU5WOsHuG/s320/Kishor+With+Tata.jpg" title="Kishor Kumar with Lata Mangeshkar" width="259" /></a></div>After Rajesh Khanna went out of the scene, Kishore Kumar belted out chart topping hits for superstar Amitabh Bachchan. When R.D. Burman stormed the music world, Kishore Kumar re-surfaced with hits like Roop Tera Mastana and many other melodious songs. Some films that deserve a special mention are Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin, Kinara, Dream Girl, Anurodh, Sharabi, Mr. Natwarlal, Gol Maal, Dostana, Manzil, Padosan, Shalimar, Khatta Meetha, Kasme Vaade, Ghar, Don, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi, Dilli Ka Thug, etc. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">When his popularity began to diminish during mid 80's, he retired and wanted to return back to Khandwa, his native place. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be. On October 13th 1987, co-incidentally the birthday of his elder brother Ashok Kumar, Kishore suffered a heart attack and breathed his last. His untimely and unexpected death shocked the entire nation. Kishore Kumar married four times and his eldest son Amit Kumar also ventured into the world of music.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis0HiisJwsXZeqYUPzWGnIaGb9HoJni1UJb1ur17NQrPaRtmD70nmilWwVw7xRJmpNF7wLi3lxWTkqjh8-4ATmeZJgs3pr1xxsBbhdUKTfuc6EiCTz_I2UGiWI-4-TYpbsi54LB9r6sDRw/s1600/Kishor+and+madhubala.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kishor Kumar and Madhubal" border="0" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis0HiisJwsXZeqYUPzWGnIaGb9HoJni1UJb1ur17NQrPaRtmD70nmilWwVw7xRJmpNF7wLi3lxWTkqjh8-4ATmeZJgs3pr1xxsBbhdUKTfuc6EiCTz_I2UGiWI-4-TYpbsi54LB9r6sDRw/s320/Kishor+and+madhubala.jpg" title="Kishor Kumar With Madhubala" width="320" /></a></div><b>Personal Life</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Kishore Kumar married four times. His first wife was Bengali singer and actress Ruma Guha Thakurta aka Ruma Ghosh. Their marriage lasted from 1950 to 1958.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Kishore's second wife was actress Madhubala, who had worked with him on many films including his home production Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958) and Jhumroo (1961). When Kishore Kumar proposed to her, Madhubala was sick and was planning to go to London for treatment. At this time, she didn't know that she had a ventricular septal defect, and her father wanted her to wait and consult the London doctors first.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJAjfD7z2k0anISlBw2EhovbKYz_nIR8uh8s8b8I_V3hZjmk1lLcku8hYjZQDCECGXSbkNCqNzBV_3lLON6zWasb6YmhqdCNmnVimhJn2G8xvATWmP_v2pxAI4Ip9CSpl7H_eAb2EKkmHV/s1600/Kishore_Leena.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kishor Kumar and Leena Chandavarkar" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJAjfD7z2k0anISlBw2EhovbKYz_nIR8uh8s8b8I_V3hZjmk1lLcku8hYjZQDCECGXSbkNCqNzBV_3lLON6zWasb6YmhqdCNmnVimhJn2G8xvATWmP_v2pxAI4Ip9CSpl7H_eAb2EKkmHV/s320/Kishore_Leena.jpg" title="Kishor Kumar With Leena Chandavarkar" width="301" /></a></div>Furthermore, at the time he was married to Ruma. After his divorce, because Kishore Kumar was Bengali Hindu and Madhubala Muslim, they had a civil wedding ceremony in 1960. His parents refused to attend. The couple also had a Hindu ceremony to please Kumar's parents, but Madhubala was never truly accepted as his wife. Within a month of her wedding she moved back to her bungalow in Bandra because of tension in the Kishore Kumar household. They remained married but under great strain for the remainder of Madhubala's life. The doctors in London told Madhubala that she would not live for long. The marriage lasted for nine years, and ended with Madhubala's death on 23 February 1969.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Kishore Kumar's third marriage was to Yogeeta Bali, and lasted from 1976 to 4 August 1978. Kishore was married to Leena Chandavarkar from 1980 until his death. Kishore Kumar sired two sons, Amit Kumar (playback singer) with Ruma, and Sumit Kumar with Leena Chandavarkar.</div></div><br />
More Details of <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kishore_Kumar" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kishor Kumar</a> a</b>nd<b> </b>List of songs by <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_by_Kishore_Kumar" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kishor Kumar</a></b></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-64109960170895888282012-06-30T01:58:00.003-07:002012-06-30T02:03:22.248-07:00Jagjit Singh<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth Name:</b> Jagmohan Singh<br />
<b>Born:</b> 8 February 1941, Sri Ganganagar, Bikaner State, India<br />
<b>Died:</b> 10 October 2011 (aged 70) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India<br />
<b>Genres: </b>Ghazal, Classical, Devotional, Folk<br />
<b>Occupations:</b> Composer, Singer, Playback Singer, Music Director, Activist, Entrepreneur<br />
<b>Instruments:</b> Vocals, Harmonium, Tanpura, Piano<br />
<b>Years active: </b>1965–2011<br />
<b>Labels:</b> EMI, HMV, Saregama, Universal Music, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Polydor, TIPS, Venus, T-Series, Magna Sound, Big Music, Times Music<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgAB0o0MKIezWrZZIi5Axk7H45jVVm6u1vHPN38Ku4Dv6AJJJonC4gq16k7Sz3TprwiN0Kk37t8Ouk9DyBZu_4v_XouxDtsRSCfW16oJPHip0kZpTZ7Fh2Ev1-TS1W6NXWSF9qmi-3BDEl/s1600/jagjit-singh.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Jagjit Singh" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgAB0o0MKIezWrZZIi5Axk7H45jVVm6u1vHPN38Ku4Dv6AJJJonC4gq16k7Sz3TprwiN0Kk37t8Ouk9DyBZu_4v_XouxDtsRSCfW16oJPHip0kZpTZ7Fh2Ev1-TS1W6NXWSF9qmi-3BDEl/s400/jagjit-singh.jpeg" title="Jagjit Singh" width="266" /></a></div>Jagjit Singh, born Jagmohan Singh (8 February 1941 – 10 October 2011), was a prominent Indian Ghazal singer, songwriter and musician. Known as the "Ghazal King", he gained acclaim together with his wife, another renowned Indian ghazal singer Chitra Singh in the 1970s and 1980s. Their combination album comprising music from the films, Arth and Saath Saath is the HMV's largest selling combination album of all time. Sajda (An Offering, 1991), Jagjit Singh's magnum opus double album with Lata Mangeshkar holds the same record in non-film category. He sang in numerous languages. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the government of India in 2003.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Singh is credited for the revival and popularity of ghazal, an Indian classical art form, by choosing poetry that was relevant to the masses and composing them in a way that laid more emphasis on the meaning of words and melody evoked by them. In terms of Indian Classical music, his style of composing and Gayaki (singing) is considered as Bol-pradhan, one that lays emphasis on words. He highlighted this in his music for films such as Prem Geet (1981), Arth and Saath Saath (1982), and TV serials Mirza Ghalib (1988) and Kahkashan (1991). Jagjit Singh is considered to be the most successful ghazal singer and composer of all time in terms of critical acclaim and commercial success. With a career spanning over five decades and a repertoire comprising over 80 albums,[1] the range and breadth of his work has been regarded as genre-defining. He is the only composer and singer to have composed and recorded songs written by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee — also a critically acclaimed poet — in two albums, Nayi Disha (1999) and Samvedna (2002).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Singh's 1987 album, Beyond Time, was the first digitally recorded release in India. He was regarded as one of India's most influential artistes. With sitar legend Ravi Shankar and other leading figures of Indian classical music and literature, Singh voiced his concerns over politicisation of arts and culture in India and lack of support experienced by the practitioners of India's traditional art forms, particularly folk artists and musicians. He lent active support to several philanthropic endeavors such as the library at St. Mary's School, Mumbai, Bombay Hospital, CRY, Save the Children and ALMA.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Early Life And Career</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6-m2Bn22cD2EMuU0t_JewBWJFpn_cyPuiPqls5nlWtVlVrTb2BEZ_6V-yrWVL66tEtiAbpQdDVCn6bljHNHbkWGc_Rqg7E-PpAGBjhj3JQHLdxQbGsZSj4-FKv8nyqFXBwIVGdIM3ocNG/s1600/all+chitra+jagjit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;" target="_blank"><img alt="Jagjit Singh and Chitra Singh" border="0" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6-m2Bn22cD2EMuU0t_JewBWJFpn_cyPuiPqls5nlWtVlVrTb2BEZ_6V-yrWVL66tEtiAbpQdDVCn6bljHNHbkWGc_Rqg7E-PpAGBjhj3JQHLdxQbGsZSj4-FKv8nyqFXBwIVGdIM3ocNG/s320/all+chitra+jagjit.jpg" title="Jagjit Singh with Chitra Singh" width="320" /></a>Jagjit Singh was born on 8 February 1941 in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, India. His birth name was Jagmohan but this was changed to Jagjit after his parents sought the advice of a member of the Sikh Namdhari sect. His parents were Sikhs — Amar Singh and Bachan Kaur — and had several other children, with sources variously reporting the number between six and eleven.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Educated initially at Khalsa High School and Sri Ganganagar Government College, Singh obtained an arts degree from DAV College at Jalandhar and then a post-graduate degree in history from Kurukshetra University in Haryana. Throughout this time, and as a consequence of a natural talent that was spotted by his father, Singh learned music in Sikh temples and from musicians such as Pandit Chaganlal Sharma and Ustad Jamaal Khan, both of whom were trained in classical Indian music. He performed on radio and on stage, as well as composing some material, although he subsequently claimed that his father, who was a government employee, had hoped that he would become an engineer. On another occasion his memory was that his father aspired for him to become a bureaucrat and that his siblings were encouraged musically.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6-m2Bn22cD2EMuU0t_JewBWJFpn_cyPuiPqls5nlWtVlVrTb2BEZ_6V-yrWVL66tEtiAbpQdDVCn6bljHNHbkWGc_Rqg7E-PpAGBjhj3JQHLdxQbGsZSj4-FKv8nyqFXBwIVGdIM3ocNG/s1600/all+chitra+jagjit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;" target="_blank"><br />
</a>In March 1965, and without the knowledge of his family,Singh moved to Mumbai, where there were many opportunities for music artists because of the Bollywood film industry. He obtained work initially as a singer of advertising jingles and later progressed to playback singing.In the same year he persuaded the record company HMV to produce an EP; he also altered his Sikh image by abandoning his turban, shaving and cutting his hair. His first film role was in Dharati Na Chhoru, a Gujarati production by Suresh Amin.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Fame</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsY2nlppIl6jWjgkSflXP7A6pcJObdGtlZSlFfllQkMhR_nK5p-qpPCbxe6yLza7MNEUbif1TGFbCrntaWCDZNYn-HRTdPAxZSHIo1qFk1oZGsOAms7n-YyKPgOaFoHmJvw6W5mti7_Z8z/s1600/Jagjit-Chitra_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;" target="_blank"><img alt="Jagjit Singh with Chitra Singh" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsY2nlppIl6jWjgkSflXP7A6pcJObdGtlZSlFfllQkMhR_nK5p-qpPCbxe6yLza7MNEUbif1TGFbCrntaWCDZNYn-HRTdPAxZSHIo1qFk1oZGsOAms7n-YyKPgOaFoHmJvw6W5mti7_Z8z/s320/Jagjit-Chitra_02.jpg" title="Jagjit Singh with Chitra Singh" width="320" /></a>Singh was still struggling to make a living in 1967 when he met the Bengali-born Chitra Dutta.She was also a jingle singer and was unhappily married with a daughter. She divorced her husband and married Singh in December 1969.Following the birth of their son, Vivek, the couple performed as a singing duo but it was not until the 1976 release of the album The Unforgettables that they found significant, and surprising, success. In the interval, the primary difficulty for them had been that the ghazal music genre was dominated by Muslim artists and especially those from Pakistan.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Unforgettables, which was the couple's first LP, was an unconventional recording and it turned them into stars. The song "Baat Niklegi" from the album achieved great popularity for the Singhs. The Independent described it in 2011 as "ground-breaking ... it became a transformative, before-and-after milestone in the history of Indian popular and ghazal music. It remains that." Using modern arrangements, it consists of ten tracks that include two on which they sang as a duo and the remainder equally split between Jagjit and Chitra singing the lead. The Independent further noted that "This format of solo and duet performances from the first commercially successful husband-and-wife team in Indian popular music proved astonishingly successful." Jagjit explained that "I was determined to polish up the genre and make it more acceptable to modern tastes, so chose simple poems and set them to simple tunes. I also introduced western instrumentation to make them livelier." Thereafter, the couple worked both on solo and joint musical projects and performed concerts worldwide. There was success from involvement with the film industry and they amassed considerable wealth, while Jagjit became known as "the Ghazal king".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6-m2Bn22cD2EMuU0t_JewBWJFpn_cyPuiPqls5nlWtVlVrTb2BEZ_6V-yrWVL66tEtiAbpQdDVCn6bljHNHbkWGc_Rqg7E-PpAGBjhj3JQHLdxQbGsZSj4-FKv8nyqFXBwIVGdIM3ocNG/s1600/all+chitra+jagjit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><br />
</a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoVqpCjXBXv3gz0wWVhcqAp1QjG_6LBWee1PD2agO0nxftsmEv5FKLhcHFH7GjaJL6LAkmSJ583JIKwx-GMoFnqst2h-cC056AnoCG7ODCAV4DKu0fDVf_M9m7gdxCbUVq0epCJo2ByMAB/s1600/jagit-singh-ghazal-singer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Jagjit Singh" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoVqpCjXBXv3gz0wWVhcqAp1QjG_6LBWee1PD2agO0nxftsmEv5FKLhcHFH7GjaJL6LAkmSJ583JIKwx-GMoFnqst2h-cC056AnoCG7ODCAV4DKu0fDVf_M9m7gdxCbUVq0epCJo2ByMAB/s320/jagit-singh-ghazal-singer.jpg" title="Jagjit Singh" width="320" /></a>Jagjit Singh's work in film encompassed playback singing for productions such as Arth, Saath Saath and Premgeet. He composed all of the songs for the latter, as well as for the TV serial Mirza Ghalib that was based on the life of the eponymous poet, Mirza Ghalib.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Among their subsequent duo recordings of the 1970s were Shiv Kumar Batalvi – Birha da Sultan (1978), Live in Concert at Wembley (1979) and Come Alive (1979). Of those released in the 1980s, Ecstasies (1984) has been described as "one of their finest". The joint projects ceased in 1990 when their 18-year-old son, Vivek, was killed in a road accident. Chitra felt unable to sing following these events. Monica, Chitra's daughter from her first marriage, committed suicide in 2009.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Although Jagjit continued to work and to have success after Chitra withdrew from public life he, too, was affected by the death of Vivek. The Guardian notes that he "suffered from deep depression and his anguish was often evident in his live performances." Aside from occupying himself with solo projects, which he performed in several languages,[6] he collaborated with Lata Mangeshkar on an album titled Sajda, an Urdu word meaning "prostration".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgniLXaBNCYHM9xDebQUUsozmT_44x11ThrnP1ImKTjr4Q1Un1RkskejXNP0VzweOLW_1aqjhyz9vqdeMO0ynJ9_XwEEaCpSfw2RgPUdkhlSXKb4ZKPc3aY2caZYhdjZE6IeX76tyeQk4/s1600/Jagjit+Singh+performing+at+Jaidev+Hall,+Bhubaneswar,+on+7+September+2011(Ghazal_Maestro).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Jagjit Singh" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgniLXaBNCYHM9xDebQUUsozmT_44x11ThrnP1ImKTjr4Q1Un1RkskejXNP0VzweOLW_1aqjhyz9vqdeMO0ynJ9_XwEEaCpSfw2RgPUdkhlSXKb4ZKPc3aY2caZYhdjZE6IeX76tyeQk4/s320/Jagjit+Singh+performing+at+Jaidev+Hall,+Bhubaneswar,+on+7+September+2011(Ghazal_Maestro).jpg" title="Jagjit Singh performing at Jaidev Hall, Bhubaneswar, on 7 September 2011" width="233" /></a>On 10 May 2007, in the presence of numerous political and diplomatic luminaries at an event held in the Central Hall of the Parliament of India, Jagjit Singh rendered Bahadur Shah Zafar's famous ghazal Lagta nahin hai dil mera to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Indian Rebellion of 1857.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Death</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Singh toured the UK in 2011 and was due to perform with Ghulam Ali in Mumbai but suffered a cerebral hemorrhage on 23 September 2011. He was in a coma for over two weeks and died on 10 October 2011 at Lilavati Hospital, in Mumbai. He was cremated the following day at Chandanwadi Crematorium in Mumbai.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">A number of tributes have been paid to Singh after his death, and some tried to encash his popularity which was criticised by his wife.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Awards</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><ul><li>In 2003, Singh was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian award, by the government of India</li>
<li>In 1998, Jagjit Singh was awarded Sahitya Academy Award, a literary honor in India. He was awarded for popularizing the work of Mirza Ghalib.</li>
<li>Sangeet Natak Academy Award</li>
<li>Sahitya Kala Academy Award by Rajasthan government in 1998</li>
<li>Ghalib Academy by Delhi Government in 2005</li>
<li>Dayavati Modi Award</li>
<li>Lata Mangeshkar Samman in 1998 by Madhya Pradesh government</li>
<li>D. Litt. by Kurukshetra University, Haryana in 2003</li>
<li>Teacher's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006</li>
</ul><div><br />
</div></div><b>More Details of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jagjit_Singh" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Jagjit Singh</a></b></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-6894083973022039002012-06-16T04:00:00.000-07:002012-06-16T04:00:27.898-07:00Begum Akhtar<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name:</b> Akhtaribai Faizabadi</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born: </b>October 7, 1914</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Origin: </b>Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh, India</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Died: </b>October 30, 1974 (aged 60)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres:</b> Ghazal, Thumri, Dadra</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations: </b>Musician, Singer, Playback Singer</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years active:</b> 1929–1974</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih9LVGLX7TsR4A6q7YoQtMv2G9phhemakQgCmJEigjLNZs1VgM94nIFsy9POev6lwq419cINbepI6CjLD42G5881v8vx2TJLnIkhyphenhyphenRU8BU7oml5jUY-4LNo8kORCSeX0hu1fQqI3Dl1dco/s1600/Begum+Akhtar+-+Thumris+and+Dadras+(ECLP+2374,+1968).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;" target="_blank"><img alt="Begum Akhtar" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih9LVGLX7TsR4A6q7YoQtMv2G9phhemakQgCmJEigjLNZs1VgM94nIFsy9POev6lwq419cINbepI6CjLD42G5881v8vx2TJLnIkhyphenhyphenRU8BU7oml5jUY-4LNo8kORCSeX0hu1fQqI3Dl1dco/s320/Begum+Akhtar+-+Thumris+and+Dadras+(ECLP+2374,+1968).jpg" title="Begum Akhtar" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Begum Akhtar was born on 7th October, 1914 in Faizabad town of Uttar Pradesh. Her name was Akhtaribai Faizabadi though she was much popular as Begum Akhtar. Her family belonged to the upper class of the society and was not even inclined towards music. She showed interest in music at a very young age and was sent to train under the great sarangi player, Ustad Imdad Khan. Later, she learnt classical music from great exponents of this field like Mohammad Khan, Abdul Waheed Khan and Ustad Jhande Khan Saheb. Read the life history of Begum Akhtar in this short biography. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">At the tender age of fifteen she gave her first public performance. People were moved by her voice and she gained instant recognition. Her ghazals even impressed the famous poetess of India, Sarojini Naidu and was appreciated at a concert that was organized for helping victims of Bihar earthquake. Her first recording was done by the Megaphone Record Company and they released many gramophone records with her melodious Ghazals, thumris, dadras, etc. In 1930's, Begum Akhtar also acted in a few Hindi films which include Ameena (1934), Mumtaz Begum (1934), Jawaani Ka Nasha (1935), Naseeb Ka Chakkar (1935). In all these films, she sang all her songs herself. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSj6wNa-o9fqufqLbwSzrloLr76_-1DIfMBM7TcVfsVm-AiDkmm7Q8o2sCeg8sfgG5qBC8oB46E8i564vUi7BNzFf4O69dKR_657WU_iYHGaJ6JI0dp5U8dLmgy2KwKFOgJSkWzUlGwxvb/s1600/Begum-Akhtar-Playback.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Begum Akhtar" border="0" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSj6wNa-o9fqufqLbwSzrloLr76_-1DIfMBM7TcVfsVm-AiDkmm7Q8o2sCeg8sfgG5qBC8oB46E8i564vUi7BNzFf4O69dKR_657WU_iYHGaJ6JI0dp5U8dLmgy2KwKFOgJSkWzUlGwxvb/s320/Begum-Akhtar-Playback.jpg" target="_blank" title="Begum Akhtar" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Begum Akhtar moved back to Lucknow after a while where the renowned director Mehboob Khan approached her for a film titled "Roti". The music was composed by the famous Anil Biswas. The movie was released in the year 1942 in which Begum Akhtar had sung six Ghazals. Unfortunately, four of the Ghazals were deleted due to some tension between the producer and the director. The film was appreciated by one and all and the music took the industry by storm. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Begum Akhtar married barrister Ishtiaq Ahmed Abbasi in the year 1945. Due to family restrictions, Begum Akhtar could not sing for almost five years. She fell ill and her only medicine was music. In the year 1949, she returned to record at the Lucknow Radio station and sang three Ghazals and a dadra. She felt so satisfied and happy that she wept with joy. She then continued to give public performances and sing in concerts till she passed away. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Begum Akhtar was persuaded by Madan Mohan, a famous music director to sing in two movies "Daana Paani" (1953) and "Ehsaan" (1954). The songs "Aye Ishq Mujhe Aur to Kuch Yaad" and "Hamein Dil Mein Basa Bhi Lo" were absolutely melodious and were liked by one and all. Her last movie stint was that of a classical singer in Satyajit Ray's film "Jalsa Ghar". Begum Akhtar was a refined Ghazal singer and was called as Mallika-e-Ghazal or the Queen of Ghazals. Her style of singing is inimitable and few can match upto her style. Most compositions were self composed and based on Ragas. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Begum Akhtar performed last in a concert in Ahmedabad. That day she felt that her voice was not upto the mark and raised her pitch. This put much stress on her and her health deteriorated. The situation became critical and she had to be rushed to the hospital. She breathed her last on 30th October 1974, leaving many fans disappointed and heart broken.</div></div><br />
<b>More Details of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Begum_Akhtar" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Begum Akhtar </a></b></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-3207196131939168902012-06-16T03:33:00.003-07:002012-06-16T03:37:25.936-07:00Asha Bhosle<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name:</b> Asha Mangeshkar</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born:</b> September 8, 1933 (age 78), Sangli, Bombay Presidency, British India</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres: </b>Pop, Folk, Indian classical music</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations: </b>Singer, Playback Singer</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years Active: </b>1943–present</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrn-JFA3jFw-l78J-LXiaWCWuVrIOc26zixmwNSms2f9bIbThiZ2Sje221dfWomKvY3KmNydCgFocV80O8iZm0_PbrWglX75NJqkgWCWmrbH6aBU3EvNS54hDw5P12XC1CYBcmui3OCEcM/s1600/Asha+Bhosle-Playbacksinger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Asha Bhosle" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrn-JFA3jFw-l78J-LXiaWCWuVrIOc26zixmwNSms2f9bIbThiZ2Sje221dfWomKvY3KmNydCgFocV80O8iZm0_PbrWglX75NJqkgWCWmrbH6aBU3EvNS54hDw5P12XC1CYBcmui3OCEcM/s400/Asha+Bhosle-Playbacksinger.jpg" title="Asha Bhosle" width="296" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With versatility as her middle name, the famous Asha Bhosle still sings the way she used to during her prime. Though she is over 70 years of age, she still continues to give stiff competition to singers who are half her age. This talented singer can sing a ghazal and a peppy cabaret number with amazing levels of energy and style. Be it the romantic "Oh Mere Sona Re" or the sensuous "Aaiye Meherban" or the peppy "Kambakth Ishq", Asha Bhonsle can add life to any song. Her life history is no less than a roller coaster ride. Check out the biography of Asha Bhonsle as given here. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Asha Bhosle was born on 8th September, 1933 in a Marathi family. Her father was the renowned singer and actor Dinanath Mangeshkar. He trained her in classical music at a very young age. Though she had her brush with acting as a child artist, it was quite natural for her to choose playback singing like her older sister Lata Mangeshkar. Sadly, her father expired suddenly in the year 1942 causing much commotion in her family. They had to move from Pune to Bombay and settle again. Asha got the chance to sing in a Marathi film when she was ten years old. Her initial years saw a lot of struggle since her elder sister Lata was in much demand and unfair comparisons rose every now and then. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipfnxk6plNTNWw4JtRX5XEr0KQwM2Y8LwWQJ71rKJ6Mv9VM59aTHlM6TBgd5Q_vrt1GRWtBS4gzMiJOGMIozmjflQy6TCbvkOOYRqxAoL92c-pUYPktr1RGTOLDBr2InN4ObmIF43Dw1nB/s1600/R.D.+Burman+And+Asha_Bhonsle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Rahul Dev Burman With Asha Bhosle" border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipfnxk6plNTNWw4JtRX5XEr0KQwM2Y8LwWQJ71rKJ6Mv9VM59aTHlM6TBgd5Q_vrt1GRWtBS4gzMiJOGMIozmjflQy6TCbvkOOYRqxAoL92c-pUYPktr1RGTOLDBr2InN4ObmIF43Dw1nB/s320/R.D.+Burman+And+Asha_Bhonsle.jpg" title="Rahul Dev Burman and Asha Bhosle" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the year 1948 she got to make her playback debut in Hindi in a film called Chunariya. The song was called "Saawan Aaya" and Asha was noticed for her different playful voice. When she was 16, she eloped with Lata's personal secretary Ganpatrao Bhosle and married him much against the family's wishes. The marriage failed miserably and Asha Bhosle was driven out by Ganpatrao following some misunderstanding. She came back to her maternal home with two kids and pregnant with the third one. However, this did not deter her from pursuing her dreams and she continued to sing for films. During 1950's she got assignments that were rejected by leading singers like Geeta Dutt, Lata Mangeshkar and Shamshad Begum. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3K-mnT17wG7SplQjgi6PJmKuZE-SBMKl-H96RzGKrX2b6ljyEDuRf3RA6W5rrNSYyez_zOQVYvY00B3qF7g_ScpE3vJ2HIYB7g6UiHkrsmH4hyQflWV7VQz5gnXOXCpRep3gHd0RuFw9x/s1600/Asha+Bhosle+And+Kishor+Kumar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Kishor Kumar With Asha Bhosle" border="0" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3K-mnT17wG7SplQjgi6PJmKuZE-SBMKl-H96RzGKrX2b6ljyEDuRf3RA6W5rrNSYyez_zOQVYvY00B3qF7g_ScpE3vJ2HIYB7g6UiHkrsmH4hyQflWV7VQz5gnXOXCpRep3gHd0RuFw9x/s320/Asha+Bhosle+And+Kishor+Kumar.jpg" title="Kishor Kumar and Asha Bhosle" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">These songs were basically meant for the sidelined roles like vamps, cabaret numbers or C-grade movies. It took a lot of perseverance from Asha to make it to the top. Her hard work and efforts paid off when she was given her first big break with the movie C.I.D (1956). Under the patronage of O.P Nayyar she got more and more offers and began belting out hits after hits. She tasted huge success with the movie Naya Daur (1957). With O. P Nayyar, Asha gave out hits after hits like Aaiye Meherban, Deewana Hua Badal, Isharon Isharon Mein, Aao Huzur Tumko, Ude Jab Jab Zulfein Teri, etc. The last song she recorded with him was "Chain Se" of the movie "Pran Jaaye Par Vachan Na Jaaye" (1974) and then parted ways. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWrN7MmHeDsZAPnLVa7jXBjjlDWsJaP-SKno2j9DBNFagMm_rBrbvkuwEfswvahGuYxQ-x-CjsF1iEYfhs1SVu6wv4lPUyUU_PlRlxsb5U1T0lJEROKYf0Q9pPfwSyMXJcsi1ICZ473lP/s1600/asha-bhonsle-mohd-rafi.jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt=" Rafi & Asha Bhosle" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWrN7MmHeDsZAPnLVa7jXBjjlDWsJaP-SKno2j9DBNFagMm_rBrbvkuwEfswvahGuYxQ-x-CjsF1iEYfhs1SVu6wv4lPUyUU_PlRlxsb5U1T0lJEROKYf0Q9pPfwSyMXJcsi1ICZ473lP/s320/asha-bhonsle-mohd-rafi.jpg.jpg" title="M. Rafi & Asha Bhosle" width="320" /></a></div>She was noticed by other music directors like S.D Burman after the phenomenal success of these songs. She and S.D Burman created many hit soundtracks for movies like Kaala Pani, Kaala Bazaar, Insaan Jaag Utha, Lajwanti, Sujata and Teen Deviyaan. Most famous of these songs were Asha Bhosle's duets with Mohammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar. After the mid 60's Asha collaborated with R.D Burman and reached the peak of her career. The movie "Teesri Manzil" released in 1966 shot her to fame and she won popular acclaim. The duo of Asha and R.D Burman produced hits after hits and their collaboration resulted in marriage. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1E2qFSqztAoaooOu2Z5uPgT4X1iuG4ILhieyhrTvTwDW-imbGKG-o0zeW3S5rwS7txcv9czrISf-ONi7kwa7HuPYreoEaa8BaqnSjwmt4Y9crBpZ1qSBYtvEwCmyFE3voJuWhqsa3Lc9H/s1600/Asha+Bhosle+AshaBhosle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Asha Bhosle" border="0" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1E2qFSqztAoaooOu2Z5uPgT4X1iuG4ILhieyhrTvTwDW-imbGKG-o0zeW3S5rwS7txcv9czrISf-ONi7kwa7HuPYreoEaa8BaqnSjwmt4Y9crBpZ1qSBYtvEwCmyFE3voJuWhqsa3Lc9H/s320/Asha+Bhosle+AshaBhosle.jpg" title="Asha Bhosle" width="320" /></a></div>Asha became the voice of Helen, one of the most graceful dancers of that era. Helen would visit Asha during her recordings to understand the feel of the song and choreograph her steps accordingly. Some of her evergreen hits featuring Helen are Piya Tu Ab To Aaja (Caravan), O Haseena Zulfon Wali (Teesri Manzil), and Yeh Mera Dil (Don). A popular song "Jaane Jaa" from the movie Jawaani Diwaani (1972) required her to switch from high pitch to low almost simultaneously which she did with utmost ease and perfection. The song "Dum Maro Dum" of the movie "Hare Rama Hare Krishna" showed an entirely new side of her talent. The romantic "Chura Liya Hai Tumne" from the movie "Yaadon Ki Baarat" is hummed even today and is considered to be one of the most romantic songs of this century. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Asha proved critics wrong in 1980's when she sang beautiful Ghazals for the movie Umrao Jaan. She proved that she can sing classical with as much panache as other genres. The great composer Khayyam told her to sing two notes lower than usual. The rest as they say is history! The songs turned out to be chart toppers and till date are sung with much elegance and respect, though it is picturized on a courtesan. In the 90's she experimented with peppy numbers and produced hits like Tanha Tanha, Yaire, Kambakth Ishq, Chori Pe Chori, etc. she also a number of pop albums to her credit and has acquired international by singing with artists like Boy George, Black Eyed Peas and cricketer Brett Lee. She has many awards including eight Filmfare awards and two National Awards apart from numerous other accolades. Time has really not touched her voice and she sounds exactly like what she used to sound 30 years back.</div></div><br />
<b>More Details of</b> <b><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0080427/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Asha Bhosle</a></b></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-70672615822969211432012-06-16T02:33:00.001-07:002012-06-16T02:50:50.853-07:00Alka Yagnik<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name: </b>Alka</div><b>Height: </b>5' 6" (1.68 m) <br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born: </b>20 March 1966 (age 46), Kolkata, West Bengal</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres: </b>Bollywood and regional filmi playback singing</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations: </b>Singer, Playback Singer</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Instruments:</b> Vocals</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years Active:</b> 1979–present</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzfRRoeg27FRLURhohHzp4tpsAM6Rcv7tpIkzRjsut7JVzsxcdjOsBeRh2-dmd3TYDPa3hZ1xbFryNGoj1VM-XNsueoTnldEFrFyAffEGfKaxzot9uNQlQzBbwxV7F7arJCT3i76NGZfvJ/s1600/alka-yagnik-Indian+Playback+Singers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Alka Yagnik" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzfRRoeg27FRLURhohHzp4tpsAM6Rcv7tpIkzRjsut7JVzsxcdjOsBeRh2-dmd3TYDPa3hZ1xbFryNGoj1VM-XNsueoTnldEFrFyAffEGfKaxzot9uNQlQzBbwxV7F7arJCT3i76NGZfvJ/s400/alka-yagnik-Indian+Playback+Singers.jpg" title="Alka Yagnik" width="265" /></a></div>Alka Yagnik is one of the leading singers of the Hindi film who has made an indelible mark for herself. In an industry where big and already established names were ruling, it was not easy for anyone to even get noticed. But real talent never goes waste and she finally got her big break after which there was no turning back. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Alka Yagnik was born in Kolkata to a Gujarati family. Her mother Shubha Yagnik was a singer of Indian classical music. At the age of 6, she started singing for Calcutta Radio. At age 10, her mother brought her to Bombay as a child singer. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">She was advised to wait till her voice matured but her mother remained determined and on a subsequent visit, Alka got a letter of introduction to Raj Kapoor from his Kolkata distributor. Raj heard the girl and sent her with a letter to noted music director Laxmikant. Impressed, Laxmikant gave her two alternatives - an immediate start as a dubbing artist, or a later break as a singer.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Alka Yagnik is classically trained and has been one of the leading playback singers in Bollywood since the late 1980's. She began singing bhajans for Calcutta Radio at the age of six. Her first song was for the film Payal Ki Jhankaar in (1979), followed by Laawaris (1981) with the hit song "Mere Angene Mein", followed by the film Hamari Bahu Alka (1982). She got her big break with the song "Ek Do Teen" from the film Tezaab (1988). The song turned her into a star overnight and went on to become a pop hit, also winning her a Filmfare Best Female Playback Award. Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak was also a career maker for her, as she along with Udit Narayan, Kumar Sanu and Kavita Krishnamurthy became household names. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8_LsgOpSxOxscw-Y8aOPQkQiYswPGBfhWEUKtuhAgu110BWL9Et3IygHHpsP1BS3TNsj5Qby5Ys6akoxeSv3LKxW4uomWVpm-c5v1FA4LSdRcPw8sDnznlzdEKEzaHjnxS6BbQL8xjSHb/s1600/Alka-Yagnik-With-Kumar+Sanu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Alka Yagnik Singing With Kumar sanu" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8_LsgOpSxOxscw-Y8aOPQkQiYswPGBfhWEUKtuhAgu110BWL9Et3IygHHpsP1BS3TNsj5Qby5Ys6akoxeSv3LKxW4uomWVpm-c5v1FA4LSdRcPw8sDnznlzdEKEzaHjnxS6BbQL8xjSHb/s400/Alka-Yagnik-With-Kumar+Sanu.jpg" title="Alka Yagnik and Kumar Sanu" width="397" /></a></div>She has sung in many languages other than Hindi, including Gujarati, Oriya, Assamese, Nepali, Rajasthani, Bengali, Bhojpuri, Punjabi, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam. In addition, she has been the number one choice for film songs due to the versatility of her voice, in which more film heroines have requested her voice be dubbed over their performance. She has worked with many Indian composers such as, Kalyanji-Anandji, Laxmikant-Pyarelal, A R Rahman, Anand-Milind, Viju Shah, Himesh Reshammiya, Shankar-Eshaan-Loy, and others. Additionally, she is the personal favorite of composers Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Anu Malik, Rakesh Roshan, Nadeem-Shravan, and Jatin-Lalit, for whom she is the first choice for their compositions. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">She shares the title with Asha Bhonsle for the most number of Filmfare Awards won (7) by a single female playback singer. Alka has also been the judge of various Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge shows, and Star Voice of India, both singing competition shows, in which children or adults of various age groups compete with one another to win the award for best vocals. In addition to this, her song "Chamma Chamma" from China Gate was featured in the song "Hindi Sad Diamonds" from the soundtrack of the film Moulin Rouge!.<br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Alka Yagnik's voice is the sound of many young-generation heroines of the present day. She has done playback-singing for many famous actresses such as Rakhee Gulzar, Hema Malini, Farida Jalal, Rekha, Kajol, and Preity Zinta. Besides Hindi-language songs, she has also sung in Bengali, Marathi, Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, and Punjabi.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In 2012 she along with Sonu Nigam sang a song 'Shiksha Ka Suraj' as part of National Literacy Mission of India. She has also been involved in various projects pertaining to empowerment of the girl child .</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><b>List of songs by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_by_Alka_Yagnik" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Alka Yagnik</a></b></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-31231929585505137072012-06-16T01:41:00.001-07:002012-06-16T02:51:10.813-07:00Abhijeet Bhattacharya<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name: </b>Abhijeet</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born: </b>30 October 1958 (age 53), Kanpur, India</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres:</b> Bollywood, regional filmi playback</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations:</b> Singer, Playback Singer</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years Active: </b>1985–present</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Spouse:</b> Sumati Bhattacharya</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYwrYszzMcvsZMyRTDStZXxij74_R_zcAq2v9SHxzHKEHsiYYN4vwEoxZZgz9N26JFbPpCyg29GztQ7XleebbqYs-lwUJQwguSc_7b-S35xLYwklsLgJJ4mhnQgTUIhjnCphXDAO3w4jfu/s1600/Abhijeet+Bhattacharya.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Abhijeet Bhattacharya" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYwrYszzMcvsZMyRTDStZXxij74_R_zcAq2v9SHxzHKEHsiYYN4vwEoxZZgz9N26JFbPpCyg29GztQ7XleebbqYs-lwUJQwguSc_7b-S35xLYwklsLgJJ4mhnQgTUIhjnCphXDAO3w4jfu/s400/Abhijeet+Bhattacharya.jpg" title="Abhijeet Bhattacharya" width="300" /></a></div>Abhijeet was born in a Bengali family in Kanpur, the youngest of four. He passed his matriculation from Ramakrishna Mission Higher Secondary School, Kanpur and Class XII from BNSD Inter College Chunni Ganj, Kanpur; and graduated in commerce (B.Com.) from Christ Church College, Kanpur in 1977. He started singing on stage from 1970.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Abhijeet was born as Abhijeet Bhattacharya, in a middle-class Bengali family from Kanpur (UP). His parents were against his singing but Abhijeet went against his parent's wishes to become a singer. In Kanpur his family members were all musical, and educated professionals. Money was never a contextual concern. In Kanpur education and culture was all his family courted, leisure was driving around the tree-lined lanes on bicycles. Confident and feted for his success, today the star-singer lives in a Bollywood dream bungalow (named Sunny vistas) of white façade and red-tiled roof.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">He was the apple of the community eye for his singing talents and Pampered and cosseted by a fond family, Abhijeet was the youngest of four brothers. He came to Mumbai in 1981 to study Chartered Accountancy. But owing to his fascination for singing and music he decided to pursue a career in playback singing. Despite being gifted with a melodious voice, he had to struggle for a very long time.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvbV4q3Ru8E2HretiaHML1x0O_sxjkNhhmLykpio0PgW-fzSU1tFGFc8tVqpeUPDwyvQb6Zp9u5E9r0ugoKhEyif9ONj16VdVIFXaszxWmDnJ_0aqsDZvn1mprQqIkjrwg8aONtQonYpEQ/s1600/Indian+Singer+Abhijeet+Bhattacharya.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Abhijeet Bhattacharya" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvbV4q3Ru8E2HretiaHML1x0O_sxjkNhhmLykpio0PgW-fzSU1tFGFc8tVqpeUPDwyvQb6Zp9u5E9r0ugoKhEyif9ONj16VdVIFXaszxWmDnJ_0aqsDZvn1mprQqIkjrwg8aONtQonYpEQ/s400/Indian+Singer+Abhijeet+Bhattacharya.jpg" title="Abhijeet Bhattacharya" width="400" /></a></div>During his struggle period due to economic constraints Abhijeet had to reside in tiny rooms and stingy guesthouses. He returned to Kanpur but each time was drawn to the magnetism of Mumbai with a dream to be fulfilled. He was packing his bags after a long struggle in Bombay when he received a call from R.D. Burman to sing for Dev Anands son's debut film. Abhijeet also got to sing with Kishore Kumar, his idol, in the same film. It all happened to Abhijeet as he received a new lease of life when music director Ravindra Jain, gave him an offer to live with him. It was during his stay with Ravindra that Abhijeet's proximity to Bollywood grew in a phased and gradual manner. He began visiting R.D. Burman's residence and started getting frequent opportunities to sing for stage shows. Abhijeet got opportunities to sing as a chorus singer for music directors Rajesh Roshan and Jagjit Singh.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">It was R.D. Burman who acted like a mentor to Abhijeet and gave him his first break as a playback singer in Dev Anand's Anand Aur Anand. The song was 'Waadon ki shaam aayi, yaaron ke naam aayi'. But the film flopped and he was struggling to find work again. For quite a few years after that he resorted to singing cover versions of Kishore Kumar hits.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the 1990s he got his due rewards when the songs of Baaghi of Anand-Milind, 'Ek chanchal shokh hasina', 'Chandni raat hai' and 'Har kasam se badi hai' were Superhits. Today Abhijeet is one of the top names when it comes to male playback singers. He has entrenched himself firmly in the music world, with several other hits like 'Ole Ole' in Yeh Dillagi, the title track of Main Khiladi Tu Anari, 'Zara sa Jhoom loo main' Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge 'Teri ankhen jhuki jhuki' Fareb, 'Shaher Ki ladki' Rakshak, 'Jhanjhriya' Krishna, 'Tan tana tan tan tara' Judwaa. Be it a Sunil Shetty, Anil Kapoor, Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, or Salman Khan, Shahrukh Khan and now Hrithik Roshan, Abhijeet has sung for them all. He performed for many films like Baaghi, Sadak, Khiladi, Raja Babu, Yeh Dillagi, Yes Boss, Baadshah, Josh and Dhadkan and many more. After his success in playback singing he thought of singing pop. He launched two albums, Main Deewana Hoon and Tapori No. 1. But both albums did not click commercially. After these two pop albums, he launched Aashiqui, which was appreciated by audience. Recently he has launched a pop album, Tere Bina, whose songs and video are chartbusters.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">He won the Filmfare Award and Screen Award for the best singer for his song 'Main Koi Aisa Geet Gaoon' in Yes Boss. He also won the MTV ASIA Award 2004. After that singing with most of the big banner movies and top music composers, the singer has once again hit the top charts.</div></div><br />
<b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_by_Abhijeet_Bhattacharya" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">List of songs by Abhijeet Bhattacharya</a></b></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-18540356888714780532012-06-15T06:25:00.002-07:002012-06-15T06:30:24.773-07:00Tansen<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name: </b>Ramtanu Pandey</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born: </b>c.1506</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Died: </b>1589</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres:</b> Hindustani Classical Music</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations: </b>Classical Mughal Era Vocalist</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIUk14Pb5nTJP58DG0ZyAkBgvHixuyuOYLZhyphenhyphenbjyXrsJr7x9TN223KwPo6Oms4Q8uBw97aPxlaeiC9aOU_1ER8EV2yo5fXV5DOgD2df5te-XRSvJKZyqjU-jx2H3nQuAY5Hiobk1kn8QK7/s1600/tansen.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Tansen" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIUk14Pb5nTJP58DG0ZyAkBgvHixuyuOYLZhyphenhyphenbjyXrsJr7x9TN223KwPo6Oms4Q8uBw97aPxlaeiC9aOU_1ER8EV2yo5fXV5DOgD2df5te-XRSvJKZyqjU-jx2H3nQuAY5Hiobk1kn8QK7/s400/tansen.gif" title="Tansen The Magical Musician of India" width="263" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Mia Tansen (born 1493 or 1506 – died 1586 or 1589 as Ramtanu Pandey) is considered among the greatest composer-musicians in Hindustani classical music. He was an extraordinarily gifted vocalist, known for a large number of compositions, and also an instrumentalist who popularized and improved the plucked rabab (of Central Asian origin). .Considered as the greatest musician in India, Tansen (1506 - 1589) is instrumental in the creation of the classical music that dominates the north of India. He was considered as one of the Navaratnas (Nine Gems) in the court of Emperor Akbar. Tansen was born in a Hindu family in a place called Gwalior located in Madhya Pradesh. His father was a famous poet by the name of Mukund Mishra. Tansen was named Tannu Mishra when he was born. To know more about the fascinating life history of this great musician, go through this biography of Mian Tansen. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">He received the prefix "Mian" from Emperor Akbar. As a young boy, Tansen learnt music from his Guru, Shri Haridas Swamy. He was considered to be a legendary teacher of that time. It is said that Tansen has no equal apart from his teacher. Such was his passion for music that he is said to have performed astonishing miracles merely by singing. He could bring rain by singing in a particular Raag known as Megh Malhar. Similarly he could start a fire by singing in Raag Deepak. He has also composed several Ragas that have been the foundation of classical music like Bhairav, Darbari Todi, Darbari Kanada, Malhar, Sarang and Rageshwari.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix1JtE0FDAUw299ZBC34GS0mFJetJMzWR_K8BwRZnmLit3JIG_wrXHXBPuqwubXKeew_q-2cHVGtZ-C8RD0sjNgKyhZHNy81PS4vlg8E3X5zYq_VdbG4PNhC0y9p_rUCb3CMtdVLrJT9Rn/s1600/Tomb-of-Tansen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Tomb of Tansen" border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix1JtE0FDAUw299ZBC34GS0mFJetJMzWR_K8BwRZnmLit3JIG_wrXHXBPuqwubXKeew_q-2cHVGtZ-C8RD0sjNgKyhZHNy81PS4vlg8E3X5zYq_VdbG4PNhC0y9p_rUCb3CMtdVLrJT9Rn/s400/Tomb-of-Tansen.jpg" title="Tomb of Tansen" width="400" /></a></div>There is no particular evidence of the origin of each and every school of music. Since he is the greatest musician, every school of music tries to trace its origin from him. The Dhrupad style of music is likely to have been started by him and his Guru. Some of his important works on music are the Rajmala and Sangeet Sara. Such was the power of his music that when he used to sing in the court of Akbar, candles used to light up automatically. Even today, Tansen is considered to be the greatest of all and there is no comparison when it comes to his style of singing. His contribution to the world of music is priceless and is still worshipped by leading singers and composers of the world.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-6942832290321947912012-06-15T06:08:00.000-07:002012-06-15T06:08:53.943-07:00M.S Subbulakshmi<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name: </b>Subbulakshmi (Kunjamma to her family)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born:</b> September 16, 1916, Madurai, Madras Presidency, India</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Origin: </b>India</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Died: </b>December 11, 2004 (aged 88), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres:</b> Indian classical music</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations: </b>Classical Vocalist</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years Active: </b>1930–2004</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Labels:</b> HMV</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXv1JuWehCMmBXebi5TSF2qpdTZraiCNJJ7_SnqpAPMzouD9p2NdyuPL9lIplGgStNI4k51h8Ew_mj6nadr2rhax-thIHJanglOA0ZC__BpinUosrpwftIcEHHMQrlHtcueYyBKTf_3WHz/s1600/M.S+Subbulakshmi1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;" target="_blank"><img alt="M.S Subbulakshmi" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXv1JuWehCMmBXebi5TSF2qpdTZraiCNJJ7_SnqpAPMzouD9p2NdyuPL9lIplGgStNI4k51h8Ew_mj6nadr2rhax-thIHJanglOA0ZC__BpinUosrpwftIcEHHMQrlHtcueYyBKTf_3WHz/s400/M.S+Subbulakshmi1.jpg" title="M.S Subbulakshmi" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">M.S Subbulakshmi is a name that is synonymous with the world of Carnatic music. This flawless singer whose voice had a divine power is the first singer in India to be presented with the Bharat Ratna, the highest award given to any civilian. Born on 16th September, 1916 in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, this singer had a family that had a musical background. Her full name was Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi and she was fondly known as M.S or M.S.S. Her mother tongue was Kannada. Read the life history of M S Subbalakshmi in this short biography. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">M.S was introduced to Carnatic music at a very early age. She released her first album at the mere age of 10! She received training in classical carnatic music under the famous Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer and then learnt Hindustani classical music under Pundit Narayan Rao Vyas. M.S gave her first public performance at Kumbakonam during Mahamaham festival. Then M.S went to the Madras Music Academy and gave a stunning performance at the age of 17. Apart from her mother tongue Kannada, M.S sang in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Hindi, Sanskrit, Bengali, Gujarati, etc. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbJnHGxJzDrIIlDZ4zxylwnQUbjUHgzMODZeE3ajXswi1CJkcmdWM1bhSANaNGTDl1nDfquB9RdxGBL_R63kvr-LxEKUDg-sRCsT2iznazJMA2TQp3WkoYpoR7iPwNmhae3lMom2q4oQqI/s1600/M.S+Subbulakshmi2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;" target="_blank"><img alt="M.S Subbulakshmi" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbJnHGxJzDrIIlDZ4zxylwnQUbjUHgzMODZeE3ajXswi1CJkcmdWM1bhSANaNGTDl1nDfquB9RdxGBL_R63kvr-LxEKUDg-sRCsT2iznazJMA2TQp3WkoYpoR7iPwNmhae3lMom2q4oQqI/s320/M.S+Subbulakshmi2.jpg" title="M.S Subbulakshmi" width="308" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">M.S also did her stint as an actress and one of the most memorable films was Bhakta Meera (1945). The versatile singer sang all famous Meera bhajans in her melodious voice and these bhajans are enjoyed by people even today. Her other films include Sevasadanam, Savitri and Meera (Tamil). She attained much acclaim and success in films, but they did not appeal to her after some time. She quit films and continued to give public performances and concerts. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the year 1936, she met Sadasivam who was a freedom fighter. They both got married after four years in 1940. Sadasivam already had children from his last marriage and did not have any further children with M.S. She treated his kids like they were her own and showered them with love and affection. She was affectionately called "Amu Paati" by the kids Radha, Viji and Thangam (Sadasivam's orphaned niece adopted by M.S). </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg005Qb_p6Ul3wT1HHYYdPrldH4DUQPgXOUwYmRFoJrM8uyiMihIqtuXx4EG_ZAli7HI1QhtOT5_8oQfzAgT-PzDvXjxbaGvz224p1wCPKNvLar6xO-9eQIbqoIQDOmhZFxgBAB-TzgXeIh/s1600/M.S+Subbulakshmi3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;" target="_blank"><img alt="M.S Subbulakshmi" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg005Qb_p6Ul3wT1HHYYdPrldH4DUQPgXOUwYmRFoJrM8uyiMihIqtuXx4EG_ZAli7HI1QhtOT5_8oQfzAgT-PzDvXjxbaGvz224p1wCPKNvLar6xO-9eQIbqoIQDOmhZFxgBAB-TzgXeIh/s400/M.S+Subbulakshmi3.jpg" title="APJ Abdul Kalam Pray for M.S Subbulakshmi" width="261" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">M S Subbulakshmi has performed in London (Royal Albert Hall), New York (Carnegie Hall), Canada, Far East, Moscow, etc. These performances are regarded among her best performances. She was applauded by not just Indians, but foreigners as well. People who did not even understand the language she was singing in said that she is a divine manifestation. Her fan list included Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, among other elite people. Mahatma Gandhi commented that he would rather hear Subbulakshmi speak the songs rather than hear someone else sing it. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Some of her most famous works include Suprabhatam (Early Morning Hymns), Bhajagovindam (composed by Adi Shankaracharya praising Lord Krishna), Kurai Onrum Illai (composed by Rajagopalachari), Vishnu Sahasranamam (1000 names of Lord Vishnu), Hanuman Chalisa (Prayers to Lord Hanuman), etc. Any ardent fan of Carnatic classical music is sure to have all these and much more works of M.S Subbulakshmi. Another moving composition is the song Vaishnava Janato that can bring tears to anybody. The way she sang, her devotion, her tone, her pitch, her perfect pronunciation is inimitable and flawless. She has been a recipient of innumerable awards. This great soul passed away on 11th December 2004 in Chennai at the age of 88. The rich legacy of music that she gave us will live forever.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-48454409508241324032012-06-15T05:45:00.000-07:002014-11-20T00:08:45.454-08:00Pandit Kumar Gandharva<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Birth Name: </b>Shivaputra Siddramayya Komkalimath</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Born:</b> April 8, 1924, Sulebhavi, Erstwhile Bombay Presidency, India</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Died: </b>January 12, 1992 (aged 67), Dewas, India</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Genres:</b> Hindustani classical music</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Occupations: </b>Singer</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkTvt4THMEJ31BPlCax83MMW4FHIqgeZbJ11bSOGDimm40zqDYFdqBkk6uGbW9ez1tb2wTu3zE-jjgV7yD15yZYYsUDgGiOFM5b-xM38XqQB6dY0H9sH4W0iWz04rMB4-GiVvz4gVJXAVe/s1600/kumar-gandharva.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkTvt4THMEJ31BPlCax83MMW4FHIqgeZbJ11bSOGDimm40zqDYFdqBkk6uGbW9ez1tb2wTu3zE-jjgV7yD15yZYYsUDgGiOFM5b-xM38XqQB6dY0H9sH4W0iWz04rMB4-GiVvz4gVJXAVe/s1600/kumar-gandharva.jpg" height="296" width="400" /></a></div>
One of the most famous classical musicians in India was undoubtedly Pandit Kumar Gandharva. His real name was Shivaputra Siddharamayya Komkali. Pandit Kumar Gandharva was born on 8th April, 1924 in a place called Dharwad located in Karnataka. The most unique thing about him was that he refused to be tied down by any kind of Gharana and believed in being innovation and trying out his own new styles. The life history of Pandit Kumar Gandharva is truly fascinating. Read this short biography of Pt. Kumara Gandharv. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
When he was still very young, Kumar Gandharva was inflicted with the deadly disease Tuberculosis. As a result, he was left with just one functioning lung. He was determined to make his mark and that is what took him to the heights he has reached in his lifetime. The title "Kumar" was given to him when he was a child because he showed extraordinary talent in music. Gandharva was the God of music according to the Hindu mythology. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Though his voice was affected after the illness, he developed his own style of singing. Though he may not have reached the same heights as his contemporaries like Bhimsen Joshi, his style won him appreciation and accolades from one and all. His style of pronunciation was unmatched and he believed that words, if pronounced properly with the correct feel can be very powerful. His style of singing also included many dramatic gestures and smiles, which was thoroughly enjoyed by his audience. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
He also experimented with other genres of music like devotional songs known as "Bhajans", folk songs, etc. His unique style and creativity made him compose songs in the same Raga in both fast and slow pace; this was something rarely done by a north Indian musician. Though he refused to follow the tradition of a Gharana, he never rejected completely the rich tradition of music. The great legend passed away on 12th January, 1992, leaving behind disappointed fans but a rich legacy of classical music.</div>
</div>
Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-45998638732570397722012-06-15T05:12:00.000-07:002012-06-15T05:12:40.925-07:00Bhimsen Joshi<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Birth Name:</b> Bhimsen Gururaj Joshi</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Born: </b>February 4, 1922, Gadag, Karnataka</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Died: </b>January 24, 2011 (aged 88), Pune, Maharashtra</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Genres:</b> Hindustani classical music</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Occupations: </b>Singer</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Years Active: </b>1941–2011 </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicE7UMJqbl7dGtv_GtZYEZwHGHnRmsXdWuMRC6aVldmnAiUzn4B9608HoY0k8fLZBvtoabvIf9wa7MPQA8vwGWmoW8J9DO-mRjtPdcIwjWlrwHaj_V7OoaEwbKXx7rmL0tj37LfzGMuTTg/s1600/BhimsenJoshi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Bhimsen Joshi" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicE7UMJqbl7dGtv_GtZYEZwHGHnRmsXdWuMRC6aVldmnAiUzn4B9608HoY0k8fLZBvtoabvIf9wa7MPQA8vwGWmoW8J9DO-mRjtPdcIwjWlrwHaj_V7OoaEwbKXx7rmL0tj37LfzGMuTTg/s400/BhimsenJoshi.jpg" title="Bhimsen Joshi" width="270" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">One of the most prominent and legendary Hindustani vocalist living today is of course Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. He can very easily be called a living legend and someone who has not just earned true fans but has also won over critics. Born on 4th February, 1922 in Karnataka, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi is the descendant of Kirana stream of Hindustani classical music. He is famous for the "Khayal", a form of Hindustani classical. Bhimsen Joshi was interested in music since a very young age and at the age of 11 he left home in search of a Guru. Read the fascinating life history of Pt. Bhimsen Joshi in this short biography. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">He found the apt teacher for him very close to his house. Under the tutelage of Savai Gandharva he learnt many ragas and perfected his tone, pitch and the best of Kirana gharana. His sheer determination and hard work has made him what he is today. In the last five decades, his popularity has increased manifold because of the intensity and passion he brings in his songs. Other concert artists truly appreciate his style and the passion that he gets into his songs. His first public performance was at the age of 19. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bhimsen Joshi has perfected not just the Khayal interpretations but has also sung Bhajans in Hindi and Marathi. His bhajans are widely heard by not just ardent music lovers but people all over. This versatile singer has also recorded Kannada Dasa Krithis in Dasavani, which are usually sung by Carnatic musicians. His sheer grit and determination earned him his first Platinum Disc in 1986. He has also been presented the Padma Shree in 1972, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1976 and the Padma Bhushan in 1985. Perhaps some of his best performances have been at Savai Gandharva Sangeet Mahotsav, which is held in Pune annually. It has been a regular feature since the past 3 decades and has become an institution of sorts. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">His most memorable performance that is remembered till date is of course the national integration song "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara". His golden voice appealing to Indians to come together and stand as one nation is an evergreen number that is hummed by one and all even today. He has collaborated with many other renowned musicians like Hariprasad Chaurasiya, Pandit Ravi Shankar and Dr. Balamuralikrishna and has come out with many albums. He is a living legend who continues to weave magic with his unique voice even today</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-5757646305276834662012-06-15T01:31:00.000-07:002012-06-15T01:31:17.489-07:00Dr. Balamuralikrishna<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth Name: </b>Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna<br />
<b>Born:</b> July 6, 1930 (age 81)<br />
<b>Origin:</b> Sankaraguptam, East Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh<br />
<b>Genres:</b> Carnatic music<br />
<b>Occupations:</b> vocalist of Indian classical music<br />
<b>Instruments: </b>vocals, viola, mridangam, kanjira<br />
<b>Years Active: </b>1938–present<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfzHa7U8SD-B5irGXrDWGwl8dG81-DXo-6sPoMa733fmiZdsJ4Y7r7Zt7GWJJNipYWC3gOGwXI0CQOtYXv5ZtPAF959IR5JW-RIi0YQyU8mj-z3bRBww2BehNQySsAmxcijcO1L1FInXDm/s1600/Dr.+Balamuralikrishna.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Dr. Balamuralikrishna" border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfzHa7U8SD-B5irGXrDWGwl8dG81-DXo-6sPoMa733fmiZdsJ4Y7r7Zt7GWJJNipYWC3gOGwXI0CQOtYXv5ZtPAF959IR5JW-RIi0YQyU8mj-z3bRBww2BehNQySsAmxcijcO1L1FInXDm/s400/Dr.+Balamuralikrishna.jpg" title="Dr. Balamuralikrishna" width="400" /></a></div>One of the most famous names associated with Classical Carnatic Music is that of Dr. Balamuralikrishna. This legendary musician and Padmabhushan awardee is an able composer, singer, poet and instrumentalist who can sing perfectly in three octaves. He was born on 6th October, 1930 in a place called Sankaraguptam located in Andhra Pradesh. He was named Murali Krishnan by his father. The prefix Bala was given by a Hari Katha performer Musunuri Satyanarayana and thereafter he came to be known as Balamuralikrishna. Read the interesting life history of Dr. M Balamurali Krishnan in this short biography. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">As a young boy of five, Balamuralikrishna had started to give musical concerts. His brilliant voice gained him instant fame and recognition. He was touted as a child prodigy who perfected almost every song and every tune. His father Pattabiramayya was a very popular musician who perfected the Flute, Veena and Violin. His mother Suryakantamma played the Veena perfectly. Balamuralikrishnan perfected Violin, Viola, Khanjira, Veena and Mrudangam. In India, he is the only musician who has won National Awards for classical music, music direction as well as film playback singing.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Dr. Balamurali Krishnan has immensely contributed to the world of Carnatic music. He was not content with the fame and recognition that he gained by performing in concerts. So he composed a detailed work known as Raganga Ravali on 72 Melakarta (basic scales of Carnatic music). All this at the mere age of 14! Balamurali Krishnan also has over 400 compositions in different music scales that are widely accepted by music lovers and critics alike. He has also created many new ragas Like Mahati, Sumukham, Trisakthi, Sarvashri, Omkari, Janasamodini, Manorama, Rohini, Vallabhi, Lavangi, Pratimadhyamavathi, Sushama, etc.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Dr. Balamuralikrishna has contributed a lot in the world of music. He established the "Academy of Performing Arts and Research" in Switzerland. He is also working on music therapy. For extensive research in the field of music therapy, he also established the MBK Trust to develop art and culture and spread the knowledge. "Vipanchee", a dance and music school is a part of this trust and is managed by his trustee Kalaimamani Saraswati.</div></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-42624330535017485282012-06-14T09:54:00.000-07:002012-06-14T09:54:23.831-07:00Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth Name:</b> Bade Ghulam Ali Khan<br />
<b>Also known as: </b>Sabrang<br />
<b>Born: </b>April 2, 1902, Kasur, Punjab, British India<br />
<b>Died:</b> April 25, 1968, Hyderabad, India<br />
<b>Genres:</b> Hindustani classical music<br />
<b>Occupations: </b>Singer<br />
<b>Years active: </b>? - 1967<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-bDZxOIvqKrL0D5nSAX2kd2DoZ59CXijXUgWyW9AZlOoYFTnmZErAHm8CL4WOhp5gslFE0v55RaSiuaSpMt-BIj6mO_chJ3_JaRTWIaVpHiblecbF-4299XjSdmQqaN-ShpibSAhx9iT/s1600/bade-ghulam-ali.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan" border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-bDZxOIvqKrL0D5nSAX2kd2DoZ59CXijXUgWyW9AZlOoYFTnmZErAHm8CL4WOhp5gslFE0v55RaSiuaSpMt-BIj6mO_chJ3_JaRTWIaVpHiblecbF-4299XjSdmQqaN-ShpibSAhx9iT/s400/bade-ghulam-ali.jpg" title="Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan" width="400" /></a></div>One name that truly epitomizes the 20th century Hindustani classical music tradition is that of Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. Often touted as the Tansen of 20th Century, this music maestro has blended the best of classical music and created a unique style of his own. His style of music had an effervescent melodic quality with a sense of enthusiasm. He had one of the most flexible voices, which could easily master the flow of words and deliver the real essence of the song. This great musician has contributed immensely in his short career span. Read his life history in this short biography of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bade Ghulam Ali Khan was born in the year 1902 in the great musical lineage from Kasur, located in Western Punjab. He blended the best of the four traditions of music: Patiala that was own, the elements of Dhrupad, the delicacy of Jaipur and the embellishments of Gwalior. Bade Ghulam Ali looked beyond the "Bol-banav" tradition of Thumri. He wanted to break the age old tradition and wanted to play with the notes with greater abandon and less restraint. This kind of Thumri is now well established by the efforts of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">He approached the traditional form of Khayal without much of changes. He did not want to create any sort of variations in the presentation. His style was straightforward, avoiding any sort of drastic changes in the style of presentation. He had an inclination of looking beyond the traditional method of toning a musical note to derive the perfect melody. This was usually achieved by very subtle modulation of notes. This tact was innate in Bade Ghulam Ali; he had the knack of playing with musical notations and find the perfect expression and melody. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The career span of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan was relatively short. He made his mark in Calcutta in the year 1938 and All India Music Conference in Bombay in the year 1944. He was titled the Master in each and every field of music that he explored. But, he breathed his last at the age of 66, much to the shock of his fans and music lovers. On 25th April, 1968 he breathed his last, depriving the world of much more priceless treasure that he could have given.</div></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-66925499498910010292012-06-14T09:19:00.000-07:002012-06-14T09:19:15.788-07:00Ustad Amjad Ali Khan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth Name:</b> Masoom Ali Khan<br />
<b>Born: </b>9 October 1945 (age 66), Gwalior, Central Provinces and Berar, British Raj<br />
<b>Genres:</b> Hindustani classical music<br />
<b>Instruments:</b> Sarod<br />
<b>Associated Acts:</b> Hafiz Ali Khan, Amaan Ali Khan, Ayaan Ali Khan, Gurdev Singh<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TBPzbGKtH_CGSE4wCLxRbFrcGp_YhqtM85QAPvAYxw2LDFjtTmsafJWmFtOfXrrkKiAZ4kKKxJMcGmUSoCjpC_UjWNSnLmfzea20Psja30MNA8af-uguzJaNC7Us62Eg7VRtKdUh4ayf/s1600/Ustad+Amjad+Ali+Khan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Ustad Amjad Ali Khan" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TBPzbGKtH_CGSE4wCLxRbFrcGp_YhqtM85QAPvAYxw2LDFjtTmsafJWmFtOfXrrkKiAZ4kKKxJMcGmUSoCjpC_UjWNSnLmfzea20Psja30MNA8af-uguzJaNC7Us62Eg7VRtKdUh4ayf/s400/Ustad+Amjad+Ali+Khan.jpg" title="Ustad Amjad Ali Khan" width="300" /></a></div>A distinguished maestro in the field of playing Sarod, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan is popularly known as the "Sarod Samrat". He is the sixth generation Sarod player in his renowned family. The credit of modifying the Sarod as a classical instrument goes to his ancestors of the Bangash lineage originating from Senia Bangash School of Music. The present day Sarod has been derived by modifying the ancient folk instrument of Iran known as Rabab. Ustad Amjad Ali Khan has come to this stage of life after much determination and hard work. Read his life history in this short biography of Amzad Ali Khan. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Amjad Ali Khan was born on 9th October, 1945 at a place called Gwalior located in Madhya Pradesh. His father Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan was a musician in the court of the royal family of Gwalior. He received training from the descendants of Miyan Tansen, who is considered to be the greatest musician of all times. Amjad Ali Khan was the youngest son in his family. His first tutor was his father and he began playing at a very young age. At the mere age of twelve years, Amjad Ali Khan gave his first solo recital. The rest as they say is history. It was his love for the instrument and passion for music that made him famous and recognized as one of the greatest Sarod players. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Amjad Ali Khan has contributed immensely in the field of classical music. He plays the Sarod with his finger nails instead of finger tips. This gives a clear ringing sound and is also the most difficult technique to apply on the Sarod. This innovative genius has composed many ragas of his own like Kiran Ranjani, Haripriya Kanada, Shivanjali, Shyam Shri, Suhag Bhairav, Lalit Dhwani, Amiri Todi, Jawahar Manjari and Bapukauns. He has also acquired international acclaim by composing for the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. It was titled "Tribute to Hong Kong". The other musicians involved with this project were guitarist Charley Byrd, Violinist Igor Frolov, Suprano Glenda Simpson, Guitarist Barry Mason and UK Cellist Matthew Barley. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">He has also given performances in Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Kennedy Center, House of Commons, Singapore, Mozart Hall in Frankfurt, Chicago Symphony Center, St. James Palace and the Opera House in Australia. The talented musician has received Honorary Citizenship to the States of Texas, Massachusetts, Tennessee and the city of Atlanta. Amjad Ali Khan is the first north Indian artist to have performed in honor of Saint Thyagaraja at the Thiruvaiyur shrine. He has also been a recipient of many awards like Padmashree Award, Sangeet Natak Academy Award, Tansen Award, UNESCO Award, UNICEF National Ambassadorship, Padma Bhushan, International Music Forum Award, etc. Amjad Ali Khan has two sons who are promising Sarod players. The legacy shall live on.</div></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-7206630565656985772012-06-14T05:32:00.000-07:002012-06-14T05:32:55.191-07:00Pandit Ravi Shankar<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth Name:</b> Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury<br />
<b>Born:</b> 7 April 1920 (age 92) Varanasi, United Provinces, Indian Empire<br />
<b>Genres:</b> Hindustani classical music<br />
<b>Occupations: </b>composer, musician<br />
<b>Instruments: </b>sitar<br />
<b>Years active:</b> 1939–present<br />
<b>Associated Acts: </b>Uday Shankar, Allauddin Khan, Ali Akbar Khan, Lakshmi Shankar, Yehudi Menuhin, Chatur Lal, Alla Rakha, George Harrison, Anoushka Shankar, Beatles.<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_QAIS1Bn9Ri8Uz9tzf8iajPFEDvTwkUws4hrhouYQCRoGVDcdDN0_-7PxHfuXtSO-plPQ9Wos0BxTxUy8EE1dn8FWYlli1S07LwGC50fmlIvoBKwSyKyn7rI3ExVwtI9ksh1km1FH0ZAc/s1600/Ravi-Shankar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Pandit Ravi Shankar" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_QAIS1Bn9Ri8Uz9tzf8iajPFEDvTwkUws4hrhouYQCRoGVDcdDN0_-7PxHfuXtSO-plPQ9Wos0BxTxUy8EE1dn8FWYlli1S07LwGC50fmlIvoBKwSyKyn7rI3ExVwtI9ksh1km1FH0ZAc/s400/Ravi-Shankar.jpg" title="Pandit Ravi Shankar" width="323" /></a></div>Pandit Ravi Shankar is a living legend who is a genius Sitar player. Born on 7th April, 1920 in Banaras, his family was a Bengali Brahmin family who named him Ravindra Shankar. Shyam Shankar, his father, was a barrister. He had an elder brother Uday Shankar who was a famous Indian classical dancer. In his younger years, Ravi played Sitar the dance troupe of Uday Shankar, especially with Anna Pavlova. In 1938, he studied under his guru, Allaudin Khan. The dedication and determination shows in the fact that Ravi Shankar's career span extends over six decades and has been recorded in the Guinness World Record as the longest international career. An account of his fascinating life history is given here as the biography of Pt. Ravi Shankar. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the year 1939, Ravi Shankar gave his first public performance in India. His formal training concluded in the year 1944 and he moved out of Bombay. He then started a recording career with HMV's Indian affiliate and began by composing scores for films and ballets. In the 50's he became the music director of All India Radio. It was during the 50's that he became famous in the world of music outside India. He performed in Soviet Union (1953) and the West (1956). He has performed in prestigious events like Edinburgh Festival and also at important places like Royal Festival Hall, London. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the year 1965, George Harrison, a member of the band The Beatles began experimenting with the Sitar. Consequently, the two musicians met and their interest in the Sitar made them really good friends. Ravi Shankar's career got instant boost as he came to be known as Harrison's mentor. He got many opportunities to showcase his skill as a classical musician in events like Monterey Pop Festival, California (1967) along with the tabla maestro Ustad Allah Rakha. Ravi Shankar also performed an opening act during George Harrison's U.S tour in the year 1974. George Harrison fondly calls him the Godfather of World Music. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ravi Shankar has composed two symphony masterpieces for Sitar and orchestra; Violin and Sitar composition for Yehudi Menuhin. He has also composed music for flute maestro Jean Pierre Rampal, Japanese flute player Hozan Yamamoto and Koto (Japanese stringed instrument) player Musumi Miyashita. He has composed the musical score for movies like Charly, Chappaqua, Apu Trilogy and Gandhi. He even got nominated for an Academy Award for his composition in this movie. His recording named "Tana Mana" (1987) skillfully infuses the traditional instruments with electronics. He also composed the Sitar part in Philip Glass's composition "Orion". </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ravi Shankar has two daughters who are talented musicians themselves. Anuoshka Shankar is a famous Sitar player like her father and has won many awards. She has her own recordings and also performs frequently with her father. His other daughter is Norah Jones who is an acclaimed singer in the international arena. She has won many Grammy awards and her records sell like hot cakes. Ravi Shankar has really contributed to not just Indian music but has also made sure that music lovers here get to listen to world music as well.</div></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-4742364590274058632012-06-14T05:26:00.000-07:002012-06-14T05:26:38.779-07:00Ustad Zakir Hussain<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth Name:</b> Zakir Hussain<br />
<b>Born: </b>9 March 1951 (age 61)<br />
<b>Origin: </b>Mumbai, Maharashtra, India<br />
<b>Genres: </b>Hindustani classical music, jazz fusion<br />
<b>Occupations: </b>Tabla Maestro<br />
<b>Instruments:</b> Tabla<br />
<b>Years active: </b>1963–present<br />
<b>Labels: </b>HMV<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiChL0kEFxrZ4JKThz5fq9mkyI_C86P5EEb7Mz420rprGCmckjd_x1ldPfTueuJQQh7XRi3gDsOwElxC-G7oFprCVAYRpIeHe6fJWlVKQvRqsr06lZ1p9V76w8ISEIUziUJGkrPgjAerfVS/s1600/Ustad+Zakir+Hussain.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Ustad Zakir Hussain" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiChL0kEFxrZ4JKThz5fq9mkyI_C86P5EEb7Mz420rprGCmckjd_x1ldPfTueuJQQh7XRi3gDsOwElxC-G7oFprCVAYRpIeHe6fJWlVKQvRqsr06lZ1p9V76w8ISEIUziUJGkrPgjAerfVS/s400/Ustad+Zakir+Hussain.gif" title="Ustad Zakir Hussain" width="341" /></a></div>Popularly known as Tabla Maestro, Ustad Zakir Hussain is the son of the renowned tabla player Ustad Allah Rakha. He was born on 9th March, 1951 and showed much interest in tabla since a very young age. This child prodigy started touring by the time he was twelve and started to perform at concerts and gain much recognition and fame. He went to in St. Michael's High School in Mahim and did his graduation from St. Xavier's Mumbai. In his twenties, he started to tour the United States frequently and performed in not less than 150 concerts per year. Read the fascinating life history of the famous musical genius in this biography of Zakhir Hussein. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Zakir Hussain has had the opportunity to perform with many talented musicians not just in India but also all over the world. He became a famous international phenomenon. He has composed for many English movies like Apocalypse Now, In Custody, Little Buddha, The Mystic Masseur, Heat and Dust, etc. Zakir Hussain also acted in a brilliant documentary named "The Speaking Hand: Zakir Hussain and the Art of the Indian Drum" that was released in the year 2003. But it was not released on DVD due to lack of audience response. He also composed, performed and provided his valuable advice for Vanaprastham, which was screened at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Zakhir has performed with many artists and has created brilliant works of fusion. His partnership with the famous band The Beatles truly deserves a special mention. He also recorded with the American psychedelic band called "Shanti" in the year 1971. In 1975, he worked with John McLaughlin in the band "Shakti". This band had John McLaughlin, Zakir Hussain, L. Shankar, T.H. "Vikku" Vinayakram and R. Raghavan. It was disbanded by late 70's. However, the band was reunited a few years later by the name of Remember Shakti with some new members. The new band has released many albums like Saturday Night in Bombay, The Believer and 38th Montreux Jazz Festival. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Zakhir Hussain also released his first solo album "Making Music" in the year 1987, which was proclaimed to be one of the most inspired East-West fusion albums ever. He was awarded the "Padma Shree" by the Government in the year 1988, thus making him the youngest percussionist to ever receive this award. Zakir Hussain has also received the National Heritage Fellowship (1999) which the most prestigious honor for a master in traditional arts in U.S. He has also been honored with Sangeet Natak Akademi Award by the President of India in the year 1991. He was also awarded the Grammy for the album "Planet Drum" which was produced and created by Zakir Hussain and Mickey Hart. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Zakir Hussain married an Italian-American Kathak Dancer, Antonia Minnecola. She earlier worked as his manager for some time. Zakir Hussain has two daughters Anisa Qureshi and Isabella Qureshi. Anisa Qureshi graduated from UCLA and is trying her hand in video production and film making. The other daughter, Isabella is studying as a dance major in Manhattan. Zakhir Hussain has truly made his indelible mark in the field of music and has also acquired international acclaim. A true legend, his music shall continue to enthrall us for many more years to come.</div></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-78892529949370261862012-06-14T05:18:00.000-07:002012-06-14T05:18:46.319-07:00Pandit Shivkumar Sharma<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth Name: </b>Pandit Shivkumar Sharma<br />
<b>Born: </b>January 13, 1938 (age 74)<br />
<b>Origin: </b>Dogra from Jammu, India<br />
<b>Genres:</b> Hindustani Classical Music<br />
<b>Instruments:</b> Santoor<br />
<b>Years active: </b>1955–present<br />
<b>Associated acts: </b>Rahul Sharma<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNVNDT5RunifXMzIaya-ruXNFG4OE2KWuDCvM8fWfkjv71YSVgPGhaJ3OmoDAxY014SefCPZcptTP_QZYRxwVpn_IlNKwLUUR4Jn8TrwbiCtPefovmYU6uJkei8bnUH1aeAhhrhigbAhpV/s1600/Pandit+Shivkumar+Sharma.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Pandit Shivkumar Sharma" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNVNDT5RunifXMzIaya-ruXNFG4OE2KWuDCvM8fWfkjv71YSVgPGhaJ3OmoDAxY014SefCPZcptTP_QZYRxwVpn_IlNKwLUUR4Jn8TrwbiCtPefovmYU6uJkei8bnUH1aeAhhrhigbAhpV/s400/Pandit+Shivkumar+Sharma.jpg" title="Pandit Shivkumar Sharma" width="318" /></a></div>Pandit Shivkumar Sharma is a very famous classical musician who has acquired international fame by playing the classical instrument, Santoor. The Santoor is a trapezoid-shaped hammered dulcimer often made of walnut wood and has 72 strings, which are struck with two delicate carved wooden mallets. The santoor is essentially a folk instrument that originated in the Kashmir Valley, which was given the status of a classical instrument due to the persistent efforts of Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Reaching at this level in life was not easy for him and it is because of the determination of Shivkumar Sharma that the Santoor is a popular classical instrument. Know his life history in this short biography of Pt. Shiv Kumar Sharma. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Shivkumar Sharma was born on 13th January, 1938 in Jammu. He was introduced to the Santoor by his father and teacher, Pandit Uma Dutt Sharma. He was renowned player of the instrument and also a vocalist. He was a disciple of Pandit Bade Ramdasji of Banaras. Shivkumar Sharma learnt the tabla and also vocal singing before dedicating himself to learn the Santoor extensively. The Santoor was known as the Shata-Tantri Veena in earlier days. It was used to accompany a particular type of singing known as Sufiana Mausiqi. Pandit Uma Dutt Sharma gave the responsibility of taking the Santoor on the world stage to his son Shivkumar after extensive research on its possibilities. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Today, Shivkumar Sharma and the Santoor are synonymous. Shivkumar Sharma has truly been successful in giving the Santoor the position of a popular classical instrument. Shivkumar Sharma modified the folk instrument in order to make it more suitable for classical music. He increased its range to full three octaves and also created a technique for smoother gliding between music notes in order to imitate human voice quality. Shivkumar Sharma also created a new way of playing it so that the notes and sound continuity could be maintained for a long time. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Shivkumar Sharma has collaborated with many musicians like Zakir Hussain and Hariprasad Chaurasiya. He also composed music for Hindi films like "Darr", "Silsila", "Lamhe", etc. Some of his famous albums are Call of the Valley, Sampradaya, Elements: Water, Music of the Mountains, Megh Malhar, etc. His son Rahul is also a famous Santoor player. Shivkumar Sharma is the recipient of many prestigious awards like Padmashree, Padma Vibhushan, Sangeet Natak Academy Award, Honorary Doctorate from the University of Jammu, Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan Award, Maharashtra Gaurav Puraskar, etc. He also has an honorary citizenship of the city of Baltimore, USA. This flawless musician truly deserves these honors and more. His Santoor recitals shall keep us mesmerized for many more years to come.</div></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-51474020709437884872012-06-14T05:08:00.000-07:002012-06-14T05:08:19.464-07:00Ustad Bismillah Khan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Birth name:</b> Qamaruddin Khan<br />
<b>Born:</b> March 21, 1916<br />
<b>Origin: </b>India<br />
<b>Died:</b> March 21, 1916 – August 21, 2006 (aged 90)<br />
<b>Genres: </b>Indian classical music<br />
<b>Occupations:</b> Musician<br />
<b>Instruments:</b> Shehnai<br />
<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbhfKQKJzaSV-ExxAhRZUKHu9aB8jSpC5q0jVwY4FndkI9e3EnRUtxETj3PUtKKbtrhvw9gNXE2I_qB-D8kgjRQuRtMk2SXE52O9jPzjo3XZ7PzMZsDaF7wZLr3vpsOj2dI1PyfSlu59Wd/s1600/ustad-bismillah-khan-final.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Ustad Bismillah Khan" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbhfKQKJzaSV-ExxAhRZUKHu9aB8jSpC5q0jVwY4FndkI9e3EnRUtxETj3PUtKKbtrhvw9gNXE2I_qB-D8kgjRQuRtMk2SXE52O9jPzjo3XZ7PzMZsDaF7wZLr3vpsOj2dI1PyfSlu59Wd/s400/ustad-bismillah-khan-final.jpg" title="Ustad Bismillah Khan" width="291" /></a></div>Ustad Bismillah Khan was undoubtedly a gem that India is proud of. This Shehnai maestro of India was a Bharat Ratna awardee and also has been awarded all the top four civilian awards namely Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan along with the Bharat Ratna. Born on 21st March, 1916 in Dumraon, Bihar, he was the second son of Paigambar Khan and Mitthan. His family had a musical background and his ancestors were musicians in the court of the princely states of Bhojpur. Read about the life history of this blessed soul in this short biography of Bismillah Khan. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bismillah Khan was named Qamaruddin to sound like his elder brother's name Shamsuddin. However, when his grandfather Rasool Baksh Khan saw him as a baby he uttered the word "Bismillah" and hence he came to be known as Bismillah Khan. His father used to be a shehnai player in the court of Maharaja Keshav Prasad Singh of Dumraon. Despite the fame that he achieved, Bismillah Khan always remained where his roots were. He never accumulated wealth and other materialistic possessions and lived in humble surroundings in the holy city of Benares. Such was his love for his city that he declined an offer for permanent Visa for settling in US. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjamv03XGBkIImxjN-kJ3v4Oyh-mY4xv_LWNmvit-m2VY-HFjjiSGd-x13WF057-UeYhFUnvsq0siXeq7lPbRzmQBG797WEWQfSIjb4WmeHr6euakor0nhjlcgbw7IxMxREO7ZRocx_-B9Y/s1600/Bismillah-Khan-The-Soul-of-Shahnai.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Ustad Bismillah Khan" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjamv03XGBkIImxjN-kJ3v4Oyh-mY4xv_LWNmvit-m2VY-HFjjiSGd-x13WF057-UeYhFUnvsq0siXeq7lPbRzmQBG797WEWQfSIjb4WmeHr6euakor0nhjlcgbw7IxMxREO7ZRocx_-B9Y/s320/Bismillah-Khan-The-Soul-of-Shahnai.jpg" title="Ustad Bismillah Khan" width="319" /></a></div>His teacher and mentor was his uncle Ali Baksh 'Vilayatu', a renowned shehnai player. Bismillah Khan religiously practiced the shehnai and attained perfection in a very short time. He fully takes the credit for making the shehnai one of the most famous classical music instruments. His concert in All India Music Conference (1937) in Calcutta brought shehnai into limelight and was hugely appreciated by music lovers. He monopolized shehnai recital in the post independence era and kept the legacy of classical music alive with his recitals. He can be truly called a pure artist who always believed that music will survive even if the world perishes. He believed in Hindu-Muslim unity and spread the message of brotherhood through his music. He always announced that music has no caste. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKzG57bkzZAd_1o5HRZYkPV7-bk58bSQ7F87k61vNdKvntJAdygYr_ngaDZM1j5hsjzJVwHXoBvsjs5-Ub5VzhCysMxiTE2N2-E0l4Yc1284eu8tRna43gLlDH7aAhfO_NMbpOZAsXZaA/s1600/_photos_music.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Ustad Bismillah Khan" border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKzG57bkzZAd_1o5HRZYkPV7-bk58bSQ7F87k61vNdKvntJAdygYr_ngaDZM1j5hsjzJVwHXoBvsjs5-Ub5VzhCysMxiTE2N2-E0l4Yc1284eu8tRna43gLlDH7aAhfO_NMbpOZAsXZaA/s320/_photos_music.jpg" title="Ustad Bismillah Khan" width="320" /></a></div>Bismillah Khan had the rare honor of playing his shehnai on the eve of India's independence in the year 1947. He performed at the Red Fort in Delhi and since that year he has always played on 15th August right after the Prime Minister gave his speech. Bismillah Khan has played in many countries and has a huge fan following. He has performed in Afghanistan, USA, Canada, Bangladesh, Europe, Iran, Iraq, West Africa, Japan and Hong Kong. He shared a special bond with his shehnai and called it "Begum" after his wife died. On 21st August 2006, at the age of 90, Bismillah Khan breathed his last after having a cardiac arrest. His shehnai was buried with him in his grave.</div></div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-46137248333497249862012-06-14T04:55:00.000-07:002012-06-14T04:55:09.426-07:00Shayari<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Shayari or rhyming poetry basically comprises of a couplet known as Sher. This is the way that this unique and beautiful form of poetry derives the name Sher O Shayari. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGlo9DC435nurfgwhoEc48QZ332H4VS0hFnu8MHxLDtDcSbB0Q2CWy6ak8zT9nvtbx8qFyURoQTR_kNFHZ5NXNClykRCbJrPlVHkC6Q3W85N179q10iXmqkvwhHGUTZRZEars7kbUTz-f6/s1600/mirza-ghalib.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Mirza Ghalib" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGlo9DC435nurfgwhoEc48QZ332H4VS0hFnu8MHxLDtDcSbB0Q2CWy6ak8zT9nvtbx8qFyURoQTR_kNFHZ5NXNClykRCbJrPlVHkC6Q3W85N179q10iXmqkvwhHGUTZRZEars7kbUTz-f6/s400/mirza-ghalib.jpg" title="Mirza Ghalib" width="275" /></a>Most of the forms of Shayari are found in the Urdu language. However, one may find Shero Shayari in Hindi, Punjabi, etc. It is the most outstanding fields of poetry that is dominant even today. Sher o Shayari is an inseparable part of the culture of India. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Sher o Shayari has been prevalent since a long time in our country. Though the exact time of its origin is not known, it was much prevalent during the time Emperors ruled the land. The poetry is usually very emotional in nature and the right kind of couplet can set the right atmosphere for a poetic evening. There are many such connoisseurs of Shero Shayari who collect different kinds of couplets and Sher to add to their rich collection. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Even in today's fast paced life one can find many such people who attend "Mushairas", which is essentially a public gathering of Shayar (people who do Shayari). Many Urdu and Hindi poets still write Shayari and indulge in a soul satisfying experience. Even a dull day can seem bright if one listens to different kinds of Sher o Shayari. They have the power to tease your emotions and at the same time, put you at complete ease.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-43907996282328502852012-06-14T04:49:00.001-07:002012-06-14T04:49:47.624-07:00Folk Music<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">India is a land of cultural diversities. Every region in India has its own form of folk music. This rich tradition of folk music is very much alive in not just rural India, but also in some metros. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHCl_yCcEhZOsdDrTvuiMqIXXxx5J7kddC3yAfO6SQ-RIEqGIk64_jB8l-4xwSmzdJJBIhdcAQfd0nBDo8QSwTjzewT8n1yH-UJbho7WmV-Vm6Y_VzN9D9xKO8MUulc_vIqFIKKgytCYPk/s1600/Folk+Music+of+India+(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Folk Music of India" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHCl_yCcEhZOsdDrTvuiMqIXXxx5J7kddC3yAfO6SQ-RIEqGIk64_jB8l-4xwSmzdJJBIhdcAQfd0nBDo8QSwTjzewT8n1yH-UJbho7WmV-Vm6Y_VzN9D9xKO8MUulc_vIqFIKKgytCYPk/s400/Folk+Music+of+India+(2).jpg" title="Folk Music of India" width="393" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Though one may say that music has acquired a totally different definition with the arrival of pop culture and new age cinema, there are many who would beg to differ. The realm of traditional folk music in India is very large and it is basically a countryside representation of the urban Indian society. Many people tend to mix up Indian folk music with tribal music. There is a huge difference between thee two genres of music. Read on to know about folk music of India. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Folk music is very different from classical music as well. To begin with, it is not taught in the same way as classical music is taught. Classical music usually requires a student devoting their entire life perfecting the forms of this music. Folk music is more like a daily ritual without affecting the daily lives of people. People learn it since their childhood and grow up on these songs. One can always carry on with their daily life routine while listening to or singing folk music. Most of the songs are sung in small village functions like weddings, births, etc. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Folk music also uses a number of instruments. The refined versions of these instruments are used for classical music. For instance the "Tabla", which is a very important instrument of classical music, is used in a crude form like daf, dholak or nal. The cruder versions of Sitar or Sarod are used in folk music, which are known as ektara, dotar, saringda, rabab and santur. Not all regions use the same instrument. In fact, the same instrument may not even be called by the same name every where. Most of these instruments are made of easily available material like bamboo, clay pots, empty coconut shells, etc. Most of the folk music in India is dance oriented and many popular forms of dance like Dandiya, Lavani, Garba, etc. are danced along the tunes of popular folk music. They are very enjoyable, as most of them very catchy tunes.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-31236711231647596372012-06-14T04:36:00.000-07:002012-06-14T04:36:48.540-07:00Ghazals<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Ghazal is a common and popular form of music in Indian and Pakistan. Strictly speaking, it is not a musical form at all but a poetic recitation. However, today it is commonly conceived of as an Urdu song whose prime importance is given to the lyrics. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNcyJ1jSs0IWs0bm62lL8NS1YEYhHvf1CvEsHafyW9aoyFPnjzmNQTR_Eczvtk4pC0KyHOOuGUWOPB3ntxmOsb1BM3amQKDMgGgSV3uFhA_t_FLZxYOg1ysOR7bcT0pb7gIzgTHsUpZZf9/s1600/Begum+Akhtar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Begum Akhtar" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNcyJ1jSs0IWs0bm62lL8NS1YEYhHvf1CvEsHafyW9aoyFPnjzmNQTR_Eczvtk4pC0KyHOOuGUWOPB3ntxmOsb1BM3amQKDMgGgSV3uFhA_t_FLZxYOg1ysOR7bcT0pb7gIzgTHsUpZZf9/s200/Begum+Akhtar.jpg" title="Begum Akhtar" width="170" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ghazal traces its roots in classical Arabic poetry. Ghazal grew from the Persian qasida (a verse form that had come to Iran from Arabia around the 10th century A.D).The qasida was usually a eulogy composed in praise of the emperors or their noblemen. Many a times the Qasida often had 100 couplets or more. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">With the coming of the Muslims, Ghazal got introduced in the 12th century. Thus Ghazal was imported into India from the 12th to the 18th centuries. Slowly and gradually Ghazal acquired local color and form. The most notable contributor to Ghazal music in India was the famous poet Amir Khusro. Soon Ghazal came to enjoy widespread popularity among Indian Muslims and rulers for many centuries. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqu15NlVd_59Hq-Tyrn5-6BKNswk_-n61yjGb5KHBMDMPBMxuoxm1EOKXqIxeXxSxH6fNV96iRUeqiczKFdtrCa92Zj-DKRSmTXYbhLtkHuFU2ddFMMRCLz6EJWO7ZDlxnpsqmbkRbDyr/s1600/Jagjit+Singh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Jagjit Singh" border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqu15NlVd_59Hq-Tyrn5-6BKNswk_-n61yjGb5KHBMDMPBMxuoxm1EOKXqIxeXxSxH6fNV96iRUeqiczKFdtrCa92Zj-DKRSmTXYbhLtkHuFU2ddFMMRCLz6EJWO7ZDlxnpsqmbkRbDyr/s200/Jagjit+Singh.jpg" title="Jagjit Singh" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It is interesting to note that the Ghazal was introduced first in the north but it got Urdu character in the south. In the north, the rulers were very much oriented toward Persian but Urdu was beginning to be used for literary purposes in the south. The Golconda and Bijapur rulers encouraged this tradition of Urdu. Some important patrons of Ghazal and Urdu were Nusrati, Wajhi, Hashmi, Mohammad Quli Qutab Shah and Wali Dakhini. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">From just a poetic form, Ghazal acquired musical form in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was the period when the Ghazal became associated with courts. The "tawaif" tradition in the courts played an important role in the growth and development of Ghazal music. However, with the decline of the "tawaif" tradition in the 19th and the early 20th century, the performance part of Ghazals also underwent change. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFspppF5SpGVEv13BSUA-PrmOEsZ7B5xMtzfcjQ_h9wRGn7lus56lrM9jVDK6Y0a-MQajj93BrLICNv79FSHFvgoZMYEyDHZHEyB8H5V3Mt-nlypb1POseRdv4kC8RrJYWq0V0fydXcbv3/s1600/Pankaj+Udhas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Pankaj Udhas" border="0" height="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFspppF5SpGVEv13BSUA-PrmOEsZ7B5xMtzfcjQ_h9wRGn7lus56lrM9jVDK6Y0a-MQajj93BrLICNv79FSHFvgoZMYEyDHZHEyB8H5V3Mt-nlypb1POseRdv4kC8RrJYWq0V0fydXcbv3/s200/Pankaj+Udhas.jpg" target="_blank" title="Pankaj Udhas" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With the development of recording and film industries, the Ghazal music became more popular as it went out from the confines of the courts to the masses. This had tremendous economic advantages for performers and producers of the Ghazals. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The poetic arrangement of the Ghazal is precise. The Ghazal is based upon a series of couplets which are woven together by a rhyming formation. The first couplet of the Ghazal is called "matla" and is the most important one. At times there are two matlas, where the second one is referred as "matla-e-sani". </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOfg2gSS88bxG6l66GcfhVgUDdbhdnRTdoox6-hs_F8GzZRbxswzWKxNBItBtJZdGWbQFgUTI45Vun1p0sfNSF4IKqDZeunnC1VndhYaIKh8cdNvuGnSwO2m3G3-xdouae3himskSn2OAn/s1600/Chandan+Das.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Chandan Das" border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOfg2gSS88bxG6l66GcfhVgUDdbhdnRTdoox6-hs_F8GzZRbxswzWKxNBItBtJZdGWbQFgUTI45Vun1p0sfNSF4IKqDZeunnC1VndhYaIKh8cdNvuGnSwO2m3G3-xdouae3himskSn2OAn/s200/Chandan+Das.JPG" title="Chandan Das" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The last couplet of the Ghazal is vital and is called the "maqta". The "maqta" usually contains the pen name of the poet. The maqta is generally different from rest of the Ghazals as it is a personal statement. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Ghazal music revolves usually around a few common themes. The Ghazals are woven around unreciprocated love, madness, mystical reflection and even social commentaries ridiculing and highlighting religious orthodoxy. But the most important theme of Ghazals is unrequited love. The traditional Ghazals are similar to the Hindustani classical music forms such as "Dadra" and "Thumri". Then there are some Ghazal forms that are similar to Qawwali. India has produced some of the exceptional talents in the field of Ghazal singing like Begum Akhtar, Jagjit Singh, Pankaj Udhas and <span style="color: #2c2c2c; font-family: arial, tahoma, verdana;"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><b>Chandan Das</b></span></span>.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-13024922761829939552012-06-14T03:56:00.000-07:002012-06-14T03:56:17.869-07:00Indian Fusion Music<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Fusion is not a very old trend in Indian music. Fusion trend is said to have begun with Ali Akbar Khan's 1955 performance in the United States. Indian fusion music came into being with rock and roll fusions with Indian music in the 1960s and 1970s. But it was limited to Europe and Europe and North America. For some time the stage of Indian fusion music was taken by Pt Ravi Shankar, the Sitar maestro. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQjRKQSFUAxh-yqq_yWtyB0L_-FInHObD3KsrdjlCgQhDopEePCoUAPpqHcn3c4PgnwnuVa2pT7yq64yOhBmqyY4hdSHd7bMbR4aUm3wsUp-HcIX10GF6C8Ij3ZC_GPDL2FnquZoKP0eZ8/s1600/Pt+Ravi+Shankar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Indian Fusion Music" border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQjRKQSFUAxh-yqq_yWtyB0L_-FInHObD3KsrdjlCgQhDopEePCoUAPpqHcn3c4PgnwnuVa2pT7yq64yOhBmqyY4hdSHd7bMbR4aUm3wsUp-HcIX10GF6C8Ij3ZC_GPDL2FnquZoKP0eZ8/s400/Pt+Ravi+Shankar.jpg" title="Pt Ravi Shankar " width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Pt Ravi Shankar began fusing jazz with Indian traditions along with Bud Shank, a jazz musician. Soon the trend was imitated by many popular European and American music exponents. In the year 1965, George Harrison played the song, "Norwegian wood" on the Sitar. Another famous Jazz expert, Miles Davis recorded and performed with the likes of Khalil Bal Krishna, Bihari Sharma, and Badal Roy. Some other prominent Western artists like the Grateful Dead, Incredible String Band, the Rolling Stones, the Move and Traffic soon integrated Indian influences and instruments and developed the trend of fusion. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Mahavishnu Orchestra of John McLaughlin pursued fusion with great integrity and authenticity in the mid-1970s. In the process John joined forces with L. Shankar, Zakir Hussain and others. The trend of fusion took over the Indian-British artists in the late 1980s, who fused Indian and Western traditions. In the new millennium, a new trend of fusing Indian Film and Bhangra music has started in America. Many of the mainstream artists have taken inspiration from Bollywood movies and have worked with Indian artists.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-52286563509539153042012-06-14T03:13:00.000-07:002012-06-14T03:13:22.951-07:00Indian Film Music<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">One of the most popular Indian music forms is the Filmi music. Hindi film industry, popularly known as Bollywood, along with Indian regional film industries, produces thousands of films a year, most of which are musicals and feature elaborate song and dance numbers. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GAIGDf3sez7Yxhm38UOT9O6ZnsEWbHK4ENXLMDOOqFqbFhCpEk4fuk6ajsmZ7HTWIfQ_cIzhnlFTVC_bIagmn9wr0cIeazsQOXti6_gbAwlEdjLAZakFfgjZk235txnkWEQXqG-Z_HK0/s1600/Indian+Film+Music2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Indian Film Music" border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GAIGDf3sez7Yxhm38UOT9O6ZnsEWbHK4ENXLMDOOqFqbFhCpEk4fuk6ajsmZ7HTWIfQ_cIzhnlFTVC_bIagmn9wr0cIeazsQOXti6_gbAwlEdjLAZakFfgjZk235txnkWEQXqG-Z_HK0/s640/Indian+Film+Music2.jpg" title="Indian Film Music" width="420" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It is interesting to note that some of the movies become successful because of their music only. Movie soundtracks are released as tapes and CDs much before the movie is released. Earlier, radio was the main media of Film music but with the coming of satellite TV and FM radio the scenario has completely changed. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">It is because of the huge popularity of the Indian film music that a large number of talented music directors, singers, composers and lyricists are attracted to the Indian Film industry. India is a land of great musical heritage. It is mainly because of the same reason that almost all our means of entertainment are inspired by music. The Indian film music has given a number of great music talents over the years. Some of the notable are Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhonsle, K L Sehgal, Mohd Rafi, Kishore Kumar, R D Burman, S D Burman, A R Rehman, Khaiyyam and many others. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Indian Film Music is said to have begun with the release of Alam Ara in 1931. In the early years of Indian cinema, the music was mainly classical and folk in inspiration, with some Western elements. The most fascinating part of Indian film music is its evolution with time. The Indian film music experts have always experimented with new things to cater to the changing tastes of music lovers. Another trend in Indian film music is that of integration of some popular regional languages such as Punjabi, Oudhi etc. Though in the process of evolution, music experts have flirted with western influences too yet the Indian flavor has always remained there.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7224209448813868494.post-31653687833378549202012-06-14T02:55:00.001-07:002012-06-14T02:56:17.267-07:00Carnatic Music<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Carnatic music or Carnatic sangeet is the south Indian classical music. Carnatic music has a rich history and tradition and is one of the gems of world music. Carnatic Sangeet has developed in the south Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUs71fyuefFDZrujxIKIFZy9mBFG0Ayr8txn-PP8kpF52mRIe7TQj8xahv0NLGG845cb-ch-o8F-6uW7c9hI52kNsEansOfvS9Rmp7xVYM1zKqAKP-GPkxRTG9rHcdV4jtxypVHNareUBL/s1600/Carnatic+Music.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Carnatic Music" border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUs71fyuefFDZrujxIKIFZy9mBFG0Ayr8txn-PP8kpF52mRIe7TQj8xahv0NLGG845cb-ch-o8F-6uW7c9hI52kNsEansOfvS9Rmp7xVYM1zKqAKP-GPkxRTG9rHcdV4jtxypVHNareUBL/s400/Carnatic+Music.jpg" title="Carnatic Music" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">These states are known for their strong presentation of Dravidian culture. Purandardas (1480-1564) is considered to be the father of Carnatic music. To him goes the credit of codification of the method of Carnatic music. He is also credited with creation of several thousand songs. Another great name associated with Carnatic music is that of Venkat Mukhi Swami. He is regarded as the grand theorist of Carnatic music. He also developed "Melankara", the system for classifying south Indian ragas. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">It was in the 18th century that Carnatic music acquired its present form. This was the period that saw the "trinity" of Carnatic music; Thyagaraja, Shamashastri and Muthuswami Dikshitar compile their famous compositions. Numerous other musicians and composers have also enriched the tradition of Carnatic music. Some other notable Carnatic music exponents are Papanasam Shivan, Gopala Krishna Bharati, Swati Tirunal, Mysore Vasudevachar, Narayan Tirtha, Uttukadu Venkatasubbair, Arunagiri Nathar and Annamacharya. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In Carnatic music there is a very highly developed theoretical system. It is based upon a complex system of Ragam (Raga) and Thalam (Tala). Raga is basically the scale and the seven notes of this scale are Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha and Ni. Though unlike a simple scale there are definite melodic restrictions and compulsions. The Ragams are classified into various modes. These modes are referred to as mela, which are 72 in number. The Tala (thalam) is the rhythmic foundation of the Carnatic music. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">There are a number of sections to the Carnatic performance. Varanam is a composition usually played at the beginning of a recital. It literally means a description. Varanam is made of two parts- the Purvanga or the first half and the Uttaranga or the second half. The kritis are fixed compositions in the rag. They have well identified composers and do not allow much scope for variation. The "Alapana" offers a way to unfold the Ragam to the audience and at the same time allows the artist substantial scope for creativeness. Ragam is a free melodic improvisation played without mridangam accompaniment. Tanam is yet another style of melodic improvisation in free rhythm. Pallavi is short pre- composed melodic theme with words and set to one cycle of tala.</div></div>Surya Mishrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03546934094706553268noreply@blogger.com