Waris Shah وارث شاہ
Born	1722 Jandiala Sher Khan, Sheikhupura, Punjab, Pakistan
Died	1798 Malka Hans, Pakpattan, Punjab, Pakistan
Occupation	Poet
Genres	Sufi poetry
Notable work(s)	Heer Ranjha

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Waris Shah (Punjabi: وارث شاہ, ਵਾਰਿਸ ਸ਼ਾਹ) (1722–1798) was a Punjabi Sufi poet, renowned for his contribution to Punjabi literature. He is best known for his seminal work Heer Ranjha, based on the traditional folk tale of Heer and her lover Ranjha. Heer is considered one of the quintessential works of classical Punjabi literature. The story of Heer was also told by several other writers—including notable versions by Damodar Das, Mukbal, and Ahmed Gujjar—but Waris Shah's version is by far the most popular today.

Background[link]

Waris Shah was born in Jandiala Sher Khan, Punjab, Pakistan into a reputed Syed family who claimed descent from prophet Muhammad. His father's name was Gulshar Shah. Waris Shah acknowledged himself as a disciple of Pir Makhdum of Kasur. Waris Shah's parents are said to have died when he was young, and he probably received his education at the shrine of his preceptor. After completing his education in Kasur, he moved to Malka Hans, a village twelve kilometers north of Pakpattan. Here he resided in a small room, adjacent to a historic masjid, now called Masjid Waris Shah. His mausoleum is a place of pilgrimage today, especially for those in love.

Shakespeare of Punjabi language[link]

Waris Shah is also called Shakespeare of the Punjabi language because of his great poetic love story, Heer Ranjha. Some critics say that through this story of romantic love, he tried to portray the love of man for God (the quintessential subject of Sufi literature).

He was a consummate artiste, deeply learned in Sufi and domestic cultural lore. His verse is a treasure-trove of Punjabi phrases, idioms and sayings. His minute and realistic depiction of each detail of Punjabi life and the political situation in the 18th century, remains unique. Waris Shah also sublimated his own unrequited love for a girl (Bhag Bhari) in writing romance.

Many verses of Waris Shah are widely used in Punjab in a moral context. One of the more popular is

"Waris Shah; Naa adataan jaandiyan ne, Bhavein katiye poriyan poriyan ji"

(Waris Shah says: A man never abandons his habits, even if he is hacked to pieces)

[edit] Excerpt from Heer Waris Shah

These are the opening lines^[1] from Waris Shah's rendering of Heer:

Translation: "First of all let us acknowledge God, who has made love the worth of the world, Sir,
It was God Himself that first loved, and the prophet (Muhammad) is His beloved, Sir "

See also[link]

• Punjabi language
• Punjabi people
• List of Punjabi language poets
• India
• Pakistan

References[link]

1. ^ From the book Heer Waris Shah (Chatur Singh Jeevan Singh) in Gurmukhi.

External links[link]

• Punjabi Literature and Poetry Punjabi Culture and Traditions
• Article on Waris Shah
• About Waris Shah
• Heer Complete
• Heer Complete

Further reading[link]

"Great Sufi Poets of The Punjab" by R. M. Chopra, 1999.

Inayat Hussain Bhatti (1928–1999) was a Pakistani singer, actor, producer, director, script writer, social worker, columnist, religious scholar and a protagonist of the development of Punjabi language and literature.

Descendants[link]

In 1953, Bhatti married Mohtarma Shahida Banoo, the daughter of Ahmed Din Butt, a retired superintendent of the Indian Railways. This was Bhatti's second marriage. Mohtarma Shahida Banoo died on 12 March 1997.

Bhatti's progeny includes three sons, three daughters, thirteen grandsons and six granddaughters. Bhatti's eldest son (from his first marriage) is Asmat Abbas. His son, Nadeem Abbas Bhatti, is a film producer, and played a lead role in the movie Ishq roug (1991) but then shifted his focus to film distribution. His youngest son Waseem Abbas is a film, TV and stage artist. His grandson, Junaid Abbas Bhatti - the son of Asmat Abbas - is a member of the British nobility titled "The Baron of Ballencrieff".^[1][2]

Bhatti's younger brother Kaifi, was an actor and director from the mid 1960s until the late 1990s.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Inayat Hussain Bhatti at the Internet Movie Database
• Inayat Hussain Bhatti's memorable songs
• Pakistan Film Magazine
• Songography
• music
• www.folkpunjab.com

Iqbal Bahu (1944 – 24 March 2012) was a Pakistani sufi singer.

Persona[link]

Iqbal Bahu was born as Muhammad Iqbal in Gurdaspur, Punjab, British India in 1944. His family migrated to Pakistan after partition, and settled in Lahore. Iqbal started his career as a banker but his mastery in Sufi music brought him fame and recognition. His involvement in the mysticism of the 17th century well-known Sufi saint Sultan Bahu made his name Bahu. He held a special command in Punjabi language poetry of Sufi tradition and included works of other saints such as Fariduddin Ganjshakar in his repertoire. He sang mainly for Radio Pakistan and Pakistan Television but later gave performances around the globe in his later life. He also concerted at BBC Bush House, London in 1992. ^[1] He was awarded Tamgha-i-Imtiaz in 2008. He died on 24th March 2012 due to heart attack in Lahore.^[2][3]

Main Recited Kalams[link]

Kalam-e-Bahu

Heer Waris shah

Maad dee shaan by Hazrat Baba Shah Hussain

Awards[link]

• Tamgha-i-Imtiaz
• Sultan Bahu Award
• National Award, PTV

TAMGHA E IMTIAZ Graduate Award PTV Award Baba Fareed Award Hazrat Sultan Bahoo Award International Sufi Festival Award Red Crescent Awards 6th PTV National Award Nigar Award Kalam-e-Bahoo Award State life Insurance Award Kuwait State Life Insurance of Pakistan Award Kuwait Pakistan National Organization Award Kuwait World Performing Award Herf-O-Awaz Awards

References[link]

1. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/entertainment/2012/03/120324_iqbal_bahu_died_tk.shtml
2. ^ http://www.geo.tv/GeoDetail.aspx?ID=41368
3. ^ http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/national/24-Mar-2012/sufi-singer-iqbal-bahu-passes-away

External links[link]

• A delightful confluence of cultures - The Tribune

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Alam Lohar
Background information
Birth name	Muhammad Alam Lohar
Born	1928 Achh,Pakistan
Origin	Pakistani Punjabi
Died	July 3, 1979 Sham ki Bhaitiyan
Genres	Punjabi folk
Occupations	Vocalist, musician, Bhangra Artist, Poet
Instruments	Chimta
Years active	1936–1979
Labels	EMI (Pakistan), Oriental Star Agency
Notable instruments
chimta

Muhammad Alam Lohar (Urdu: محمد عالم لوہار), (Punjabi: ਆਲਮ ਲੋਹਾਰ was a prominent Punjabi folk music singer of Pakistan. He died in 1979 in an accident.^[1] He is also credited with popularizing the term and song Jugni.^[2]

Early life[link]

Lohar was born in the small village Achh in Gujrat District, in Punjab, British India into a family of blacksmiths.^{[citation needed]} He was gifted with a melodious voice and began singing as a child.

Career[link]

Alam Lohar developed a new style of singing the Punjabi Vaar, an epic or folk tale. He is famous for his rendition of Waris Shah’s Heer, which he has memorized in 36 styles and forms. He recorded his first album at the age of 13 and has outsold all other singers in Pakistan (Verified in records kept with HMV Pakistan 1979)

In his childhood he used to read sufiana kalaams, Punjabi stories and participate as a young child in local elderly gatherings expressing a vocal only art form in reading passages of great poets. From many of the gatherings out of the rural background rose a great singer that could influence his audience with elements of joy peace, happiness and sadness. Further on: he started going to festivals and gatherings on a regular basis and within these performances he rose to become one of the most listened to singers in South Asia. In the 1970s it was the Queen's Jubilee event in the UK and there was a singing competition between all Commonwealth Countries and after all performances: Alam Lohar won the award as the best performance and was handed a gold medal for his unique and God given voice.

Throughout the period of 1930s and until his death in 1979 he has dominated folk singing in Pakistan and been a major singer in Punjabi and Sufi singing throughout the entire World. In many rural villages the local traditional people have called him 'Sher-e-Punjab' or 'Heerah' meaning diamond.

Alongside his God given voice and singing in difficult high and low pitches he had a unique style of singing with his Chimta. Now the Chimta has been around for centuries as it was a tool used in gathering livestock in rural settings or used as an aid in other activities, but Alam Lohar has the unique credit that he single-handedly popularised this instrument globally and modified its use and changed its outlook.

Alam Lohar's other qualities[link]

Other than being a famous singer, Alam lohar was also a great poet writing his own songs and kalaams and also had another quality that he used old books of Sufi saints and stories and brought them in a song format: which gave his songs overwhelming great lyrical content which could make people cry and express joy at the same time. The word "Jugni" was his creation (the word Jugni is also attributed to some runaway poet-singer duo, name unknown, who followed the Jubilee flame in the British Raj -and sang satires showing pitiable condition and sufferings of common Indians outside programme grounds, drawing huge crowds and later captured and killed by Brits. The incident goes back to the 1920s when the Silver Jubilee of George V's ascension of the throne was being celebrated in all cities around British India — Jubilee parks in many cities of India & Pakistan are proof) and he created this term from reading many Sufi writings and represented this word as a spiritual feeling of ones experience of the world. Furthermore he was the pioneer of introducing the writings of Saif Ul Mulook and Mirza Shabaan in a song format.

Alam Lohar had another quality that he had overwhelming singing stamina — he was renowned to sing all night and sometimes without the music technology we have with PA systems now-nevertheless his strong voice could be heard in large gatherings. In rural Punjab he used to sing from village to village and without any modern music technology: his voice reflected with the background of the natural echo caused by the stillness of the night.

In essence, later on Alam Lohar organised a full-fledged theatre with a complete orchestra. His troupe toured all over Punjab for religious and seasonal festivals and was one of the first Pakistani as well as South Asian singers to sing internationally in almost all countries that had people from the South Asian region.

Death[link]

Alam Lohar died in an accident near Sham ki Bhaitiyan on July 3, 1979. He was buried in Lala Musa, Punjab, Pakistan. He was given the Pride of Performance award in 1979 by General Zia Ul Haq in Islamabad and received numerous awards in his lifetime. He was a pioneer in cultural and Folk style singing and became his own folk story. He set a benchmark and many Punjabi and other folk singers have been greatly influenced. Therefore he has left a great legacy of a unique style of singing which is still followed in Pakistan by Punjabi as well as other folk singers. One of the greatest singers of all time: he is seen and remembered through his son Arif Lohar who has continued in the same tradition.

Legacy[link]

Decades after Alam's death his legacy is still living on, his songs are still being sung the way he used to sing them. His son has been taking his fathers music to the next level. The performance by Arif Lohar (Son of Alam) in Coke Studio shook the world, when he sung the Jugni by his father on International Television, the song hit millions of views on YouTube and was a hit again. The success even made Asha Bhosle do a exact copy of the song on Indian television. Arif Lohar is also a big Punjabi artist, he is one of the only legends alive until this day. Dr Zeus made a remix of Jugni by Alam and send it for free download, it was enacted by Kanika Kapoor and had a big budget music video with a lamborghini. Alam Lohar's Jugni was reaching new heights even after his death. Many big producers and artist have refreshed his songs by remixing them or doing covers of them. Alam Lohar's death anniversary is held every year in Pakistan, and is one of the days where Alam's song are on every single Radio channel to refresh the memory and the dedicaton he had for the Punjabi Folk industry.

Discography[link]

His famous songs are;

• Dharti Panj Daryavan Di
• Dil wala dukhra nahin kisse noon sunayee da
• Saiful Malook
• Qissa Hazrat Yousaf
• March ke modha hauly jaye sorry akh gaye
• Bol mitti diya bawiya
• Jugni
• Mirza
• Qissa Karbala
• Kalam baba Bulle shah
• Sohni Mahiwal
• Sassi ~Pannu
• Wajan mariayan bullayah
• England di Jugni
• Maa da Pyar (maa da qissa)
• Assan hun Tur Jaa naa
• Layee beqadran naal yaarey
• Qissa Hirni
• Qissa Puran Bhagat
• Rahee Khushay daa malka
• Me neel kariyan neelka
• 36 style formats of Heer Ranjha
• Kohee tu paneey motiyar nee
• Gabrro jat punjab daa
• Allah hoo haq Allah hoo
• Mohammed miah kee tarifan sunavaa
• Ghamaa vich jind mukh gaye
• Sutee rahgee nee maa patt dee phulegey
• kee dassa me kaun teh kidhroo sharher terey vich ayyah
• Jis din merah viah hohay gaa
• mee tee viah kar ke pachtayah
• mee vakh daa hee rehgeyah me vakh daa hee rehgayaa
• many versions of Dullah Bhatti
• too merey mohabbatein daa bootah putt gaye

References[link]

External links[link]

• Alam Lohar at the Internet Movie Database
• Alam Lohar Profile - Folk Punjab
• Alam Lohar website

Wadali Brothers
Wadali brothers performing at Qutub Festival, Mehrauli in Feb 2008
Background information
Origin	Amritsar, East Punjab
Genres	Sufi music, Folk

Wadali Brothers (Puranchand Wadali & Pyarelal Wadali) are Sufi singers and musicians from Guru Ki Wadali in the Amritsar District in Punjab, India. Born into the fifth generation of musicians given to singing the messages of Sufi saints, the Wadali brothers dabbled in the most unexpected of professions before they became Sufi singers. While Puranchand Wadali, the elder brother, was a regular in an akhara (English: wrestling ring) for 25 years, Pyarelal contributed to the meager family income by playing the role of Krishna in the village rasleela.

Early life and education[link]

Their father, Thakur Das, forced Puranchand into music. Puranchand studied music from celebrated masters like Pandit Durga Das and Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan of the Patiala Gharana. Pyarelal was trained by his elder brother, whom he considers his mentor and guru even today.

Career[link]

Their first musical performance outside their village was in Harballabh Temple in Jalandhar. In 1975, the duo went to Jalandhar to perform at the Harballabh Sangeet Sammelan but was not allowed to sing because their appearance did not pass muster. Disappointed, they decided to make a musical offering at the Harballabh temple, where an executive of All India Radio, Jalandhar, spotted them and recorded their first song.

The Wadali Brothers sing in the gurbani, kaafi, ghazal and bhajan genres of music. They live in their ancestral house in Guru ki Wadali, and teach music to those who promise to preserve it. They do not charge their disciples, and lead a very simple life devoted to the divine one.

They believe in the Sufi tradition deeply. They consider themselves as a medium through which the preaching of great saints is passed on to others. They have never indulged commercially, and they have only a handful of recordings to their name (mostly from live concerts). They believe in singing freely as homage to the divine one. They do not feel very comfortable in using electronic gadgets in their music, and stress on Alap and Taans. They believe that spiritual heights can only be attained if you sing unreservedly, in a free atmosphere.

Recently, they stepped into the world of Bollywood music, rendering music director and writer Gulzar’s soulful lyrics in their unique style in the film Pinjar. They also sang one song in Dhoop. On the cards is a documentary which the Discovery Channel is planning to make on them.

Discography[link]

• Aa Mil Yaar
• Paigham-E-Ishq,
• Ishq Musafir
• Folk Music of Punjab, all released by Music Today
• Yaad Piya Ki

Filmography[link]

• Pinjar (2003)
• Dhoop (2003)
• Chikku Bukku (2010, Tamil) Song: "Thooral Nindralum" Sung by: Hariharan, Wadali Brothers
• Tanu Weds Manu (2011)
• Mausam (2011)

Awards[link]

• Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, 1991.^[1]
• Tulsi Award, 1998.
• Punjab Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, 2003.
• Puranchand Wadali was awarded the Padma Shri award by the Government of India, 2005.^[2]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Interview - Wah ustad, wah! The Tribune

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