Saddened to see Muslim youths not pursuing classical music’

From the Times of India

Nagpur: The doyenne of Hindustani classical music Begum Parveen Sultana was in the city for the two-day music festival Swara Zankar that concluded with her presentation on Sunday.

“I have been coming to Vidarbha since I was 18. I bought my first car with the money I earned from my concerts in cities like Akola, Yavatmal, Amravati and Nagpur,” she said. Happy with the rise in number of classical music concerts in smaller cities now, Sultana said, “The audience are remarkable and listen intently. I know especially of Vidarbha where I have performed dozens of time. In Nagpur, my first concert was the one organized by Babasaheb Uttarwar. I have no doubt about the fact it is Maharashtrians who have preserved this legacy of classical music so well,” she said.

The vocalist, who has been giving performances for more than 50 years, added, “I am glad so many organizers of concerts are now holding these events in Tier 2 cities. We happily accept their invitation to perform as it is all for the cause of classical music that gets promoted through these events.”

Her repertoire is a fine melange of both Hindustani classical as well as popular music. Endowed with a matchless voices of three and half octaves range, she has also sung for Bollywood composers.

Born in Assam to Janab Ikramul Mazid of Afghanistan and Maroofa Begum of Iran, Sultana got her initial training in music from her father. “He and my husband (Ustad Dilshad Khan) have been my biggest supporters. Today I am saddened to see that Muslim boys and girls are not pursuing classical music at all. I know of so many promising voices that are not being trained citing religious reasons,” she rues.

A sample of her voice, from an earlier concert in Moscow.