Play it Again

Khanum is relaxed in black velvet and appliqueacute; net, after making Delhi swoon the previous evening to Raga Shankara and a hallmark thumri in Piloo, Kaise Byahun Radhe. She is especially fond of Ragas Yaman, Megh, Durga and Bageshri, while Khamaj, she says, lends its lilt very well to thumris. Reminded of how Raga Bhimpalasi used to be the pre-Partition filmi fave, Khanum laughs that today in Pakistan, it8217;s the folksy Raga Pahari that rules Punjabi film music.

Growing up in Amritsar with her sister Muqtar Begum, Khanum frequented the royal darbars of Raigarh, Bharatpur, Jaipur and Udaipur before Partition. 8220;What a fabulous sight the Lake Palace used to be when Maharana Udaipur held a jashn. I remember Maharaja Jaipur and his lovely maharani both came to Lahore for a horse and cattle show.8221;

It was to Lahore that Khanum drifted after Partition, where she married the wealthy Mohammed Amin Khan, who died in 1971. The couple had four daughters, of whom Shabana, the youngest, is with her in Delhi. Khanum stepped into the top circle of performing artistes in her new country when President Ayub Khan invited her to sing in public fora in the 8217;60s.

Her guru, Barkat Ali Khan, a student of the Patiala gharana, often took her to hear that Patiala lion, Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan: 8220;My guru loved Khan Sahib with all his heart8212;ek jaan, ek jigar. We missed him terribly when he went back to India. Before Partition, all the great ustads would gather in Delhi to hear Pandit Onkarnath Thakur sing. I myself loved Rasoolan Bai of Kashi, Begum Akhtar, so many greats! But now the ghazal is more filmi. That8217;s public taste, isn8217;t it?8221;

But Khanum8217;s strong grasp of taal and the haunting romance of Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo will never go out of style.

8220;That8217;s the grace of God. I8217;m so grateful to you all in India for your love and affection,8221; she says. For Sufiyana lovers here, the Pakistanis whose recordings she recommends, besides the late Tufail Niazi, are the late Sain Allah Ditta, Bela and Sain Ikhtar, all maulaai log. She fondly recalls her friend Roshanara Begum, Ustad Amir Khan8217;s student, with whom she shared bumpy Dakota rides to perform in Dhaka in the 8217;60s8212;and who, she says, suffered terribly after Partition.

Khanum did come once to Mumbai in 1954 with her husband. They saw Vyjayantimala in Nagin and loved the music, especially Man Doley and all the songs from Madhumati. A long absence followed, but a visit to Delhi last year in the new cross-border thaw has encouraged Khanum to come again. She8217;ll be back.

Farida Khanum will perform at an event organised by SPIC-MACAY8217;s international wing, at Delhi8217;s Siri Fort on April 2