Bhanwari Devi (singer)
Bhanwari Devi | |
|---|---|
 Bhanwari Devi | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Bhanwari Devi |
| Born | 1964 Rajasthan, India |
| Genres | Rajasthani folk music |
| Occupation | Folk singer |
Bhanwari Devi (born 1964) is a folk singer from Rajasthan, India. She belongs to the Bhopa community, and has gained wide recognition for her performances of traditional and folk music from Rajasthan.[1]
Career
[edit]Devi is one of the first women from the Bhopa community to perform widely before national and international audiences, despite social disapproval for women in public performances. She performs, in accordance with Rajasthani social custom, from behind a veil that covers her face.[1][2][3] As part of the Bhopa tradition of performances by a husband and wife together, she initially sang devotional music accompanied by her husband, performing a traditional piece of religious literature over five nights, accompanied by a phad, or hand-painted scroll which illustrates the story being performed. Following his death, she continued to perform individually, which was unusual for a female Bhopa singer, and expanded her repertoire to include Rajasthani folk songs outside the Bhopa traditions.[4]
Devi has performed Rajasthani folk music in Indian as well as international fora to wide acclaim, and has collaborated with folk artists from different traditions. In 2003, Devi performed at a music festival in Shimla, in the state of Himachal Pradesh, and was invited to join the Jaipur Virasat Foundation, a civil society group working to promote Rajasthani folk music in India.[3] She subsequently performed at the Jaipur Heritage Festival in 2004.[5] Devi has performed folk music for several years at the Rajasthan International Folk Festival.[1][6] In 2009, she was invited to accompany singer Rekha Bhardwaj at this festival, and received critical acclaim for her singing. Following that, she collaborated with producers Ram Sampath and singer Sona Mohapatra at the Rajasthan International Folk Festival.[2] In In 2011, she performed at the Edinburgh International Festival, and the Herald Scotland described her performance as consisting of "deeply expressive, beautifully ornamented singing"[7][8] Jonathan Mills, the director of the Edinburgh International Festival, described her performance as having received an "overwhelming response".[9]
in 2011, as well, she was featured in the Rajasthan International Folk Festival as a "Living Legend", and performed at the historic Moti Mahal palace inside Mehrangarh Fort.[10] In 2013, her participation was described as one of the "...most anticipated acts" of the same festival, in which she performed individually as well as in collaboration with the French ensemble, Gipsy Kings.[11]
In 2013, she collaborated with composer and music producer to perform a version of a traditional folk song, called 'Kattey' on Coke Studio, an Indian television program featuring live studio performances by Indian musicians. Devi's singing was accompanied by rap by British rapper, Hard Kaur, and the song gained popular attention.[12] 'Kattey' was also featured as part of the soundtrack for the 2015 Indian feature film, 'Angry Indian Goddesses'.[13] She later performed a second version of this song with Romani musicians from the Gipsy Kings group.[14] Musician Kutle Khan also featured her on his album, Sounds from the Desert, which recorded folk music from Rajasthan and the Thar desert region.[15]
Personal life
[edit]Devi was married as a child, and has nine children, one of whom accompanies her on tour and performs with her.[1] Her father was also a folk musician, and Devi credits him with encouraging her to learn to perform and sing. As a child Devi accompanied her father on his performances.[3] Devi has trained her sons to sing, but has not been able to train her daughters, who are married into families that have objected to their participation in the performance tradition.[3][16]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Gupta, Gargi (7 November 2015). "An equal music". DNA India. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ a b "A different kind of music". The Financial Express. 1 November 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ a b c d Pioneer, The. "Songstresses from the dunes". The Pioneer. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "Women Musicians of Rajasthan - Jaipur Virasat Foundation". Google Arts & Culture. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "Jazz masters join folk singers at Rajasthan International Folk Festival". Hindustan Times. 2 November 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ Bhatia, Ritika (26 September 2015). "Reggae at RIFF". Business Standard India. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "The Legendary Music of Rajasthan - Edinburgh Festival". edinburghfestival.list.co.uk. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "The Legendary Music of Rajasthan, National Museum of Scotland". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "New music revolution from India's margins". Free Press Journal. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "RIFF up the sound system - Indian Express". archive.indianexpress.com. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "Memories Unveiled – Backstage with Bhanwari Devi". RIFF Diaries. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "'Kattey' By Ram Sampath: Rajasthan Learns To Rock". The Coca-Cola Company. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "'Angry Indian Goddesses' album is a mix of genres". The Times of India. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 24 May 2022.
- ^ Rabe, Nate. "Tune in to some truly spectacular global gypsy music – with India in its soul". Scroll.in. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "Popular Rajasthani folk musician Kutle Khan speaks about challenges, growth in music and more". www.radioandmusic.com. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- ^ "Women vocalists mesmerise at Rajasthan folk music festival". DNA India. 12 October 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2021.