Begum Akhtar - Citizendia

Beghum Akhtar
Birth name	Akhtaribai Faizabadi
Born	1914
Origin	Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh, India
Died	1974
Genre(s)	Ghazal
Occupation(s)	Musician
Years active	1929 - 1974

Begum Akhtar (b. Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> For the Faizabad in Tajikistan see Faizabad Tajikistan. Uttar Pradesh (उत्तर प्रदेश اتر پردیش pronounced, Translation: Northern Province) referred to as '''U India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Year 1974 ( MCMLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other In Poetry, the ghazal ( Arabic / Persian / Urdu: غزل; Hindi: ग़ज़ल Turkish gazel) is a October 7, 1914; d. Events 3761 BC - The epoch (origin of the modern Hebrew calendar ( Proleptic Julian calendar) Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year 1974) was a vocalist from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh in India. Year 1974 ( MCMLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. Lucknow is also a mansion in New Hampshire Lucknow ( लखनऊ لکھنؤ Lakhnaū) is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (उत्तर प्रदेश اتر پردیش pronounced, Translation: Northern Province) referred to as '''U India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country

Her real name was Akhtaribai Faizabadi. Her first public performance was at the age of fifteen. She also acted in several Hindi films.

1 Biography
2 Contributions to Hindi films
- 2.1 As an actress
- 2.2 As a singer
3 Awards and recognition
4 References
5 See also

Biography

Akhtaribai Faizabadi, or Begum Akhtar as she was more popularly known, was born on October 7, 1914 in the small town of Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh, in northern India. Events 3761 BC - The epoch (origin of the modern Hebrew calendar ( Proleptic Julian calendar) Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> For the Faizabad in Tajikistan see Faizabad Tajikistan. Uttar Pradesh (उत्तर प्रदेश اتر پردیش pronounced, Translation: Northern Province) referred to as '''U She was a hereditary performer from the community of tawaifs, or courtesans. She mothered a daughter with one of her patrons, whom in her later life as a respectable married woman she had to pretend was her cousin.

Beghum Akhtar was barely seven when she was captivated by the music of Chandra Bai, an artist attached to a touring theatre group. However, at her uncle's insistence, she was sent to train under Ustad Imdad Khan, the great sarangi exponent from Patna, and later under Ata Mohammed Khan of Patiala. Ustad Imdad Khan (1848–1920 was one of the greatest Sitar and Surbahar players of all time Paṭnā ( Hindi: पटना is the capital of the Indian state of Bihar, and one of the oldest continuously inhabited WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Patiala ( Punjabi: ਪਟਿਆਲਾ is a city in the Punjab state of India. Later, she travelled to Calcutta with her mother and learnt music from classical stalwarts like Mohammad Khan, Abdul Waheed Khan of Lahore, and finally she became the disciple of Ustad Jhande Khan. ( lahor is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and is the second largest city in Pakistan after Karachi.

Her first public performance was at the tender age of fifteen. She took the music world by storm. The famous poetess, Sarojini Naidu, appreciated her singing during a concert which was organised in the aid of victims of a Bihar earthquake. Sarojini Naidu or Sarojini Chattopadhyaya ( February 13, 1879, Hyderabad - March 2, 1949, Lucknow) also known Bihar ( Hindi:बिहार Urdu: بہار bɪhaːr) is a state in eastern India. This encouraged her to continue singing ghazals with more enthusiasm. She cut her first disc for the Megaphone Record Company, at that time. A number of gramophone records were released carrying her ghazals, dadras,thumris, etc. In Poetry, the ghazal ( Arabic / Persian / Urdu: غزل; Hindi: ग़ज़ल Turkish gazel) is a

Begum Akhtar's good looks and sensitive voice made her an ideal candidate for a film career in her early years. When she heard great musicians like Gauhar Jan and Malak Jan, however, she decided to forsake the glamour of the film world for a career in Indian classical music. Gauhar Jaan (or Gauhar Jan ( Hindi: गौहर जान (1873–1930 was an Indian Singer and Dancer meaning a Tawaif from Calcutta. The origins of Indian classical music can be found from the oldest of Scriptures part of the Hindu tradition the Vedas. Her supreme artistry in light classical music had its moorings in the tradition of pure classicism. She chose her repertoire in primarily classical modes, comprised of a variety of raags, ranging from simple to complex. Rāga ( Sanskrit, lit "colour" or "mood" or rāgam in Carnatic music) refers to melodic modes used

She received the Sangeet Natak Akademi award for vocal music as well as a Padma Shri. Sangeet Natak Akademi ( Devanāgarī: संगीत नाटक अकादेमी or The National Academy for Music Dance and Drama in Padma Shri (also spelt Padma Shree, Padmashree, Padma Sree and Padma Sri) is an award given by the Government of India generally She was posthumously awarded the Padma Bhushan. The Padma Bhushan award is an Indian civilian decoration established on January 2, 1954 by the President of India. To the public, though, Begum Akhtar was the Queen of Ghazals and it is this popular acclaim that seemed to be of most value to her.

In 1945, Akhtaribai married a barrister, Ishtiaq Ahmed Abbasi, and became known as Begum Akhtar. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar However, after marriage, due to her husband's restrictions, she could not sing for almost five years and subsequently, she fell ill. Music was prescribed as the only remedy! In 1949, she returned to the recording studios. Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. She sang three ghazals and a dadra at Lucknow Radio Station. She wept afterwards and returned to singing in concerts, a practice which lasted until her death.

Begum Akhtar is almost synonymous with the concept of ghazal gayaki. She immortalized her own definitive style of singing - a style that few have been able to match. She is rightly known as Mallika-e-Ghazal.

Her voice matured with time, adding richness and depth. She sang ghazals and other light classical pieces, singing them in her inimitable style. She has nearly four hundred songs to her credit. She was a regular performer on All India Radio. All India Radio (abbreviated as AIR) officially known as Akashvani ( Devanagari: आकाशवाणी ākāshavānī ( Urdu: اکاشوانی She usually composed her own ghazals and most of her compositions were raag based.

During her last concert in Ahmedabad, she had raised the pitch of her voice as she felt that her singing had not been as good as she had wanted it to be. She had not been feeling well that day to begin with. The additional demand and stress that she put herself under resulted in her falling ill and being rushed to the hospital. She died on October 7, 1974, in the arms of Nilam Gamadia, her friend, who had invited her to Ahmedabad, for her final performance. Events 3761 BC - The epoch (origin of the modern Hebrew calendar ( Proleptic Julian calendar) Year 1974 ( MCMLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. Begum Akhtar has left a big void in ghazal lovers' hearts.

Contributions to Hindi films

As an actress

With the advent of talkie era in India, Beghum Akhtar acted in a few Hindi movies in thirties. East India Film Company of Calcutta approached her to act in KING FOR A DAY (alias Ek Din Ka Badshah) and NAL DAMAYANTI in the year 1933. Like others of that era, she sang her songs herself in all her films. She continued acting in the following years. Subsequently Beghum Akhtar moved back to Lucknow where she was approached by the famous producer-director Mehboob Khan, as a result of which she acted in ROTI which was released in 1942 and whose music was composed by maestro Anil Biswas. ROTI contained six of her ghazals but unfortunately due to some trouble between producer and director, Mehboob Khan subsequently deleted 3-4 ghazals from the film. All the ghazals are available on Megaphone gramophone records. Beghum Akhtar, meanwhile, left Bombay and returned to Lucknow.

The movies she acted in are:

Mumtaz Beghum(1934)
Jawaani Ka Nasha(1935)
King for a Day (1933, director : Raaj Hans)
Ameena (1934, director : -)
Roop Kumari (1934, director : Madan)
Naseeb Ka Chakkar (1936, director : Pesi Karani)
AnaarBala (1940, director : A M Khan)
Roti (1942, director : Maadhav Kaale)
Jalsaghar(1958; director: Satyajit Ray)

As a singer

Naseeb Ka Chakkar | -

Kalyug Hai Jabse Aaya Maya Ne. Roti ( Hindi: रोटी; Dhivehi: ރޮށި; Punjabi: ਰੋਟੀ; Urdu: روٹی; Gujarati: રોટલી; roʈi Jalsaghar (জলসাঘর was released in 1958, sometimes released in the English-speaking world as Jalsaghar The Music Room, is the fourth Satyajit Ray (সত্যজিত রায় or সত্যজিৎ রায়) (2 May 1921–23 April 1992 was a Bengali Indian Filmmaker. . .

Roti | Anna Sahab Mainkar

Wo Hans Rahe Hain Aah Kiye Jaa. . .
Ulajh Gaye Nayanwa Chhute Nahin. . .
Char Dino Ki Jawani Matwale. . .
Ai Prem Teri Balihari Ho. . .
Phir Fasle Bahaar Aayi Hai. . .
Rehne Laga Hai Dil Me Andhera. . .

Panna Dai | Gyan Dutt

Hamen Yaad Teri Sataane Lagi. Panna Dai was a maid in the service of Rana Sanga or Sangram Singh of Chittorgarh, India. . .
Main Raja Ko Apne Rijha Ke Rahungi. . .

Dana Pani | Mohan Junior

Ishq Mujhe Aur Kuchh To Yaad Nahi. . .

EHSAAN

(1954 - hame. n dil me. n basaa bhi lo).

Contents

Biography

Contributions to Hindi films

As an actress

As a singer

Awards and recognition

References

See also