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The Bhonsle (or Bhosle, Bhosale, Marathi: भोसले) were a prominent clan within the Maratha clan system who served as rulers of several states in India.

The most prominent member of the clan was Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Empire. His successors ruled as maharajas from their capital at Satara, although de facto rule of the empire passed to the Peshwas, the Marathas' hereditary chief ministers, during the reign of Shahu I. In addition to the Bhosle Maharajas of Satara, rulers of the Bhosle clan established themselves at Nagpur and Kolhapur in modern-day Maharashtra in the 18th century. The Bhosle of Thanjavur were descendants of Shivaji's stepbrother Venkoji, while the Bhosle of Satara and Kolhapur were descended from Shivaji's sons, Sambhaji and Rajaram.

After the British defeat of the Marathas in the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1818, the Marathas were forced to accept British rule. The four Bhonsle dynasties continued as rulers of their princely states, acknowledging British sovereignty while retaining local autonomy. The states of Nagpur, Thanjavur, and Satara came under direct British rule in the mid-nineteenth century when their rulers died without male heirs; Kolhapur state until India's independence in 1947, when the rulers acceded to the Indian government.

Origin[link]

The Sources as well as Scholars both are at crossroads when it comes to the origin of Bhosle, early and contemporary texts such as Shivabharat, Radhav Vilas Champu, Sabhasad refers to Bhosle as Sisodia Rajputs whereas later texts such as 91-qalmi Bakhar, Shiva Digvijaya Bakhar and Shedgaonkar Bakhar refers to Bhosle as Shudra. Likewise Some scholars have more faith in early texts which represent Bhosle as rajputs and accept Bhosle family as sisodia whereas other scholars refers to Bhosle as Shudra and back themselves with late bakhars.^[1][2][3]

Some of the historical accounts stating that Shahaji and Shivaji were of Rajput descent include:

• In 1726 when Mahratta armies began to make incursions into the Rajputana terrotiries , Raja Chatrapati Shahu in a letter dated 1726 ordered his generals not to touch the Sisodia territory of pippila state in mewar as well as the other states in Rajputana which belonged to Sisodia rajputs telling them that only did the Rawat of Piplia and the Sisodia Rajputs belong to the same family as that of the Rulers of Satara(Bhosle) but it was mainly due to the courage and sacrifices made by Sisodia rajputs such as Rana Hammir, Maharana Kumbha, Maharana Sanga and Maharana Pratap that Hindu Raj was preserved in India till a certain extent.^[4]
• Radha Madhava Vilasa Champu of poet Jayarama (written in the court of Shahaji at Banglur, 1654) describes the Bhonsles as the descendants from the Sisodias of Chittor. Jayaramas poetry was composed much before Shivajis coronation. In a poem on Shahaji, Jayarama mentions that Shahaji was descended from Dalip (or Dilip Singh) born in the family of the Rana who was the foremost among all kings of the earth. This Dalip was a grandson of Lakshmanasen, Rana of Chittor, who came to the throne in 1303 CE.
• Shivabharata of Paramananda mentions that Shivaji and Shahji are of the Ikshvaku lineage like the Sisodiyas.
• Parnalaparvata Grahanakhyana states that Shivaji is a Sisodia
• Bhushan the Hindi poet speaks of the Bhosales being Rajput
• Shahji in his letter to the Sultan Adilshah states he is a Rajput^[5]
• The Mughal historian Khafi Khan describes Shivaji as a descendent of the Ranas of Chittor. Khafi Khan was a very harsh critic of Shivaji, and wrote accounts condemming Shivaji to hell. He claimed that though Shivaji's ancestors did come from the family of Ranas of Chittor, they descended through an illegitimate offspring Dilip Singh.
• Sabhasad Bakhar composed by Shivaji Minister Krishna Bhaskhar in 1694 refers to Bhosle as a Solar Dynasty clan of Sisodia Origin.^[1]
• Persian Farmans(Grants) given to the ancestors of Ghorpade and Bhosles by the Bahmani Sultans and Adil Shahi Sultans relate the Shivaji family of Bhosle and that of Ghorpades directly with the Sisodia family of Udaipur.^[1][4][6]

Scholars such as Sir Jadunath Sarkar have contested Shivaji Rajput origin and remarks that his Rajput origin was fabrication required during his coronation, however eminent Marathi Historian CV Vaidya don't believe this as works composed years before Shivaji rise to glory Radhav Vilas Champu by Poet Jayaram mentions Shahji Bhosle(Shivaji's Father) as Sisodia Rajputs. Shahji letter to Sultan Adil Shah in 1641 also mentions that Bhosle are Rajputs, these evidences are cited by supporters of Shivaji Rajput origin to reject notions like Shivaji rajput origin was fabricated only at the time of his coronation.^[4][7] The discovery of Persian Farmans in 1920s also dented the claim of those scholars who assumed that Shivaji sisodia origin was a fabrication to get his coronation done. The Mudhol Farmans which bear seals and tughra of Bahmani and Adil Shahi Sultans establish a direct descent of Shivaji(Bhosle Clan) and that of Ghorpade with that of Sisodia Rajputs of Chittod.^[4][8]

Subclans[link]

• Ghorpade
• Kharade
• Desale
• Shisode ( Sisode or Sisodiya )
• Aher

Maharajas[link]

Satara[link]

• Babaji Bhosle
• Maloji Raje Bhosle
• Shahaji Raje Bhosle
• Chatrapati Shivaji Raje Bhosle (the Maratha King)
• Sambhaji
• Shahu I (1708–1749). Son of Sambhaji I.
• Ramaraja (1749–1777). Grandson of Rajaram and Tarabai; adopted son of Shahu I.
• Shahu II of Satara (1777–1808). Son of Ramaraja.
• Pratapsinh (1808–1839)
• Shahaji III (1839–1848)
• 1848 to Great Britain
• Pratapsinh I (adopted)
• Rajaram III
• Pratapsinh II
• Raja Shahu III (1918–1950)
• Pratapsinhraje (1950–1978)
• Chatrapati Udayanraje Bhonsle (1978 till present)

Kolhapur[link]

Princely flag of Kolhapur

Shahaji II of Kolhapur (r. 1894 -1922)

• Shivaji II (1700–1714)
• Shambhuji I (1714–1760)
• Shivaji III (1760–1812) (adopted from the family of Khanwilkar)
• Shambhuji II (1812–1821)
• Shahaji I (1821–1837)
• Shivaji IV (1837–1866)
• Rajaram I (1866–1870) (adopted from the family of Patankar)
• Shivaji V (1870–1883)
• Shahaji II (1883–1922) (adopted from the family of Ghatge)
• Rajaram II (1922–1940)
• British rule (1940–1942)
• Shivaji VI (1942–1947)
• Shahoji II (1947–1949), titular Maharaja 1949-1983 (adopted from the family of Pawar)
• 1948 to India
• Shahu II as titular Maharaja (1983–present)(adopted from Kadam family of Bande)

Nagpur[link]

The royal Bhosles of Nagpur are closely connected with the Gujar family, and intermarried with them.^[9] The last representative of the Bhoslay family of Nagpur was of the Gujar clan.^[10]

• Raghoji I (1738–1755)
• Janoji (1755–1772)
• Sabaji (1772–1775)
• Mudhoji I (1775–1788)
• Raghoji II (1788–1816)
• Parsoji Bhonsle (181-1817)
• Mudhoji II (1816–1818)
• Raghoji III (1818–1853)
• 1853 to Great Britain
• Janoji II (1853–1881) (adopted)
• Raghujideo (1881)

Thanjavur Maratha kingdom[link]

• Shahajiraje (1594–1664)
• Venkoji (1676–1684)Half-Brother of Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj
• Shahaji I (1684–1712)
• Sharfoji (1712–1729) Brother of Shahaji I
• Tukoji (1729–1736) Brother of Shahaji I
• Venkoji II (1736–1737)
• Pratapsinh (1737–1763) Brother of Venkoji II
• Tuloji (1763–1787)
• Amarsinh (1793–1798) Brother of Tuloji
• Sarfoji (1787–1832) Son of Tuloji
• Shivaji (1832–1855)
• Sarfoji III (1855)
• Shivaji III
• Pratapsinh III Brother of Shivaji III
• Rajaram
• Shivaji
• Babajiraje

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bhonsle

• Shivaji
• Maratha Empire
• Marathas
• Marathi people
• Maratha clan system

References[link]

Jagjit Singh
Jagjit Singh performing at Jaidev Hall, Bhubaneswar, on 7 September 2011
Background information
Birth name	Jagmohan Singh
Born	(1941-02-08)8 February 1941 Sri Ganganagar, Bikaner State, India
Died	10 October 2011(2011-10-10) (aged 70) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Genres	Ghazal, Classical, Devotional, Folk
Occupations	Composer, Singer, Music Director, Activist, Entrepreneur
Instruments	Vocals, Harmonium, Tanpura, Piano
Years active	1965–2011
Labels	EMI, HMV, Saregama, Universal Music, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Polydor, TIPS, Venus, T-Series, Magna Sound, Big Music, Times Music

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.^{[citation needed]} Sajda (An Offering, 1991), Jagjit Singh's magnum opus double album with Lata Mangeshkar holds the same record in non-film category.^{[citation needed]} He had sung in numerous languages. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the government of India in 2003.

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 both 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).

Singh's 1987 album, Beyond Time, was the first digitally recorded release in India.^{[citation needed]} He was regarded as one of India's most influential artistes. Together 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 also 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.

Early life and career[link]

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.^[2] His parents were themselves Sikhs, called Amar Singh and Bachan Kaur, and had several other children, with sources variously reporting the number between six and eleven.^[3][4]

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 both 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.^[5] On another occasion his memory was that his father aspired for him to become a bureaucrat, and that his siblings also were encouraged musically.^[3]

In March 1965, and without the knowledge of his family,^[5] 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.^[2] In the same year he persuaded the record company HMV to produce an EP, and he also altered his Sikh image by abandoning his turban, shaving and cutting his hair.^[5] His first film role was in Dharati Na Chhoru, a Gujarati production by Suresh Amin.^{[citation needed]}

Fame[link]

Singh was still struggling to make a living in 1967 when he met the Bengali-born Chitra Dutta.^[5] She was also a jingle singer, and was unhappily married with a daughter. She subsequently divorced and then married Singh in December 1969.^[3] Following the birth of their son, Vivek, the couple performed as a singing duo but it was not until the 1976^{[clarification needed]} release of an album entitled 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,^[5] and especially those from Pakistan.^[6]

The Unforgettables, which was the couple's first LP,^[3] was an unconventional recording and it turned them into stars. The song Baat Niklegi from the album achieved great popularity for Singh and his wife.^[4] 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."^[2] 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 also success from involvement with the film industry and they amassed a considerable wealth,^[5] while Jagjit became known as "the Ghazal king".^[6]

Jagjit Singh's work in film^[7] encompassed playback singing for productions such as Arth, Saath Saath and Premgeet. He also 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.^{[citation needed]}

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".^[2] The joint projects ceased in 1990 when their eighteen 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.^[2][5]

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 also collaborated with Lata Mangeshkar on an album entitled Sajda, an Urdu word meaning "prostration".^[2][5]

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.^[4][8]

Death[link]

Singh toured the UK in 2011 and was due to perform with Ghulam Ali in Mumbai^[5] 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.^[9][10]

A number of tributes have been paid to Singh after his death,^{[11][12][13][14][15]} and some tried to encash his popularity which was criticised by his wife.^[16]

Awards[link]

• In 2003, Singh was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian award, by the Government of India^[5]
• In 1998, Jagjit Singh was awarded Sahitya Academy Award, a literary honor in India. He was awarded this literary honor for popularizing the work of Mirza Ghalib.
• Sangeet Natak Academy Award
• Sahitya Kala Academy Award by Rajasthan Government in 1998
• Ghalib Academy by Delhi Government in 2005
• Dayavati Modi Award
• Lata Mangeshkar Samman in 1998 by Madhya Pradesh Government
• D. Litt. by Kurukshetra University, Haryana in 2003
• Teacher's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006

Film scores[link]

Discography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Jagjit Singh on BBC
• 'Ghazal King' Jagjit Singh dies, BBC
• Jagjit Singh at Internet Movie Database

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jagjit Singh