Jagjit Singh, born Jagmohan Singh (8 February 1941 – 10 October 2011), was an iconic Indian Ghazal singer, composer and musician. Known as the "Ghazal King", he gained acclaim together with his wife, another renowned Indian ghazal singer Chitra Singhin 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 sang in numerous languages. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the government of India in 2003. In February 2014, Government of India released a postal stamp in his honour.
| Jagjit Singh | |
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Jagjit Singh performing at Rabindra Mandap,Bhubaneswar, on 7 September 2011
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jagmohan Singh |
| Also known as | The Ghazal King, Godfather of Ghazals |
| Born | 8 February 1941 Sri Ganganagar, Bikaner State, Rajputana Agency,India |
| Origin | India |
| Died | 10 October 2011 (aged 70) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India |
| Genres | Ghazal, Classical, Devotional,Folk |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, Singer, Music Director |
| Instruments | Vocals, Harmonium, Tanpura, Piano |
| Years active | 1961–2011 |
| Labels | EMI, HMV, Saregama,Universal Music, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, CBS,Polydor, TIPS, Venus, T-Series, Magna Sound, Big Music, Times Music |
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 five decades and a repertoire comprising over 80 albums,[2] 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 former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee – also a poet – in two albums, Nayi Disha (1999) andSamvedna (2002).[citation needed]
Singh's 1987 album, Beyond Time, was the first digitally recorded release in India.[3] He was regarded as one of India's most influential artists. 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 endeavours such as the library at St. Mary's School, Mumbai, Bombay Hospital, CRY, Save the Children and ALMA.
Early life and career[edit]
Jagjit Singh was born in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, India (then Bikaner State) in a Punjabi Sikh family.[4] His father, Sardar Amar Singh was a native of Dalla village in Punjab and was employed with the Government of India. His mother was from a village nearSamrala city of Ludhiana District.[citation needed]
Educated initially at the Khalsa College Sr. Sec. School (Boys), Sriganganagar (Estb. 1928), in Sriganganagar and later at Khalsa College, Sriganganagar, Singh obtained an arts degree from DAV College in Jalandhar where he also began his professional career in 1961 by undertaking singing and composing assignments at All India Radio's (AIR) Jallandhar station. Later, he studied to obtain 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 initially from a visually impaired master of Indian Classical music, Pandit Chaganlal Sharma and later from Ustad Jamaal Khan of Senia Gharana, who taught and trained him in all the prominent styles of Hindustani Classical vocal tradition such as Khayal, Dhrupad, Thumri and others. Throughout his teenage years, he performed on stage and composed music. Although his father, who was a government employee, had hoped that he would become an engineer,[5] Singh pursued his passion for music relentlessly. Like all parents in Indian middle class families, his father aspired for him to become a bureaucrat. However, he also encouraged Singh and his siblings to learn music.[6]
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.[7]
Albums[edit]
| Release Year | Album Name | Songs |
| 1982 | The Latest |
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| 1 December 1986 | Someone Somewhere |
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| 1 February 1996 | Mirage |
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| 1998 | Silsilay |
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Death[edit]
Singh toured the UK in 2011 and was due to perform with Ghulam Ali in Mumbai[5] but suffered a brain haemorrhage on 23 September 2011. He was in a coma for over two weeks and died on 10 October at Lilavati Hospital, in Mumbai. He was cremated the following day at Chandanwadi Crematorium near Marine Lines in Mumbai.[12][13]
