Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu:

Pankaj Udhas with his voice has reached over a million lives in the world. On July 2, he will be here in Kathmandu to add essence to the evening with his mesmerising voice. Presented by Mc Dowell’s No 1, the organisers Vivid Enterprises will also take him to Biratnagar on July 3. As co-sponsors, The Himalayan Times will keep you informed on all that you should know about this maestro’s musical journey. Not long ago, Pankaj Udhas was honoured in Africa where he was touring. Music was a voyage that he began in 1980 with his first album of ghazals titled ‘Aahat’.

In the last two decades, he has produced numerous ghazal albums. In those years, he also travelled extensively in India and the world, taking ghazal music to places where it had not reached before. He is now considered a pioneer in the popularisation and promotion of ghazal singing the world over. In India, where Bollywood songs rule the music scene, Udhas conquered with non-film music. Albums by Pankaj Udhas that are available in the market include ‘Mukarar’,‘Pankaj Udhas Live’, ‘Shamakhana’, ‘Tarrannum’, ‘Mehfil’, ‘Khazana’, ‘Pankaj Udhas Live at the Royal Albert Hall’, ‘Best of Pankaj Udhas’, ‘Paimana’ and ‘Nayaab’. Pankaj Udhas was the first person to have received the ‘Triple Platinum Status’ for his album ‘Aafreen’ in the year 1986 and is also the proud recipient of the KL Saigal Award.

With ‘Shagufta’ in 1987, Udhas became the first voice in the Indian sub-continent to be released on a CD. This initiative led to major foreign exchange earnings for India. The album was released by sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankhar. Pankaj Udhas was also awarded the ‘Outstanding Young Person’ award in the year 1988-89 by the Indian Junior Chamber. In 1989, the launch of the album ‘Nabeel’ fetched more than rupees one lakh for Cancer Patients Aid Society. His rendition of ‘Chithi Aayee Hai’ has helped spread a spirit of love and respect for home. Udhas’s first ever Gujarati album ‘Rajuat’ was released in 1991, followed by a Punjabi album titled ‘Baisakhi’. In the same year, a collection of Urdu ghazals was released titled ‘Geetnuma’. Besides these, other albums of his such as ‘Teen Mausam’ (featuring the three Udhas brothers — Pankaj, Manhar and Nirmal), ‘Kaif’, ‘Yaad’, ‘Aman’, ‘Humnasheen’, ‘Stolen Moments’, etc are in the market. Come July, you will have the opportunity to steal some unforgettable moments with the beautiful voice.