Remembering Mallika-e-Ghazal Begum Akhtar

Under the aegis of Ministry of Culture and supported by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), Naad Saagar Archives and Documentation Society for South Asian Music organised the Begum Akhtar Centenary Commemoration Project. The first festival as part of this project was held at the University of Hyderabad on Friday and Saturday.

The first event of the two-day festival began with the screening of the documentary film ‘Hai Akhtari…(1994), directed by senior music and art critic S Kalidas. He spoke in detail about the context in which the film was made, citing the release of a commemorative stamp featuring Begum Akhtar in 1994.

It was a conversation with Mallika Pukhraj, the chief guest on the occasion, that prompted him to consider the story of Begum Akhtar’s life in detail. Over the course of the year, S Kalidas made several trips to Lucknow and met with people who were closely connected with various aspects of her life – Ustad Nizamuddin (Munne) Khan, the Tabla player who stayed close to Begum Akhtar for over four decades; Saeeda Ahmed who worked in All India Radio and was instrumental in getting Begum Akhtar married to Janab Ishtiaq Ahmed Abbasi; Shammo Apa, who was Begum Akhtar’s younger sister and lived with her for much of her life; Shiela Dhar who was herself a vocalist and a close confidante of Begum Akhtar, among others.

The film itself is presented as a series of conversations about Begum Akhtar with the aforementioned and other people that were then tied together as a narrative. Some of the iconic renditions by Begum Akhtar, such as ‘Deewana banana hai toh deewana bana de…’, ‘Mere hamnafas mere hamnawa…’ and others are featured on the soundtrack of the film, adding to its appeal.

The old house of Begum Akhtar on Havelock Road in Lucknow comes alive again in the film with her memories and the musical instruments she used for concerts add nostalgia value to the experience of her narrative. In the discussion following the film screening, there was a stimulating conversation between Vidushi Shanti Hiranand, the senior-most disciple of Begum Akhtar and Laxmi Raj, senior music connoisseur from Hyderabad wherein the latter recalled her memories of Begum Akhtar’s recitals in the city. On her part, Vidushi Shanti Hiranand reminisced on her guru’s personality, recounting incidents related to her style of teaching, her learning under Ustad Ata Mohammed Khan and Ustad Abdul Wahid Khan, concert experiences, etc.

In the evening of the first day of the festival, the performances commenced with a thumri-dadra and ghazal recital by Shubha Joshi. She learnt thumri-dadra from Shobha Gurtu, Ninu Mazumdar and Koumudi Munshi and ghazals from Ustad Taj Ahmed Khan. She was ably accompanied on the Sarangi by Ustad Ghulam Sabir Khan, on the tabla by Kishor Pande and on the harmonium by Janab Salamat Ali Khan.

This was followed by a qawwali recital by Ustad Mohammed Ahmed Warsi Nasiri Qawwal and Group from Rampur. Given that the festival is dedicated to the memory of Begum Akhtar, the Qawwals decided to only open with the customary qaul ‘Man kunto maula…’ before commencing to sing a selection of ghazal-s by Jigar Moradabadi, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Shakeel Badayuni, all of whom were close to Begum Akhtar. The Qawwals concluded with Shakeel Badayuni’s ‘Wohi abile hain…’ to a thunderous applause.