Author: Malka Pukhraj
Translator(s): Saleem Kidwai
Publisher: Kali/Zubaan
Year: 2004
Language: English
Pages: 377
ISBN/UPC (if available): 8186706607
Description
One of the grand singing ladies who began their lives in the first quarter of the twentieth century,
Malka Pukhraj was educated in Urdu, Persian, Music and dance. These later two became her life and she began her career as a court singer in the erstwhile princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, going on to become an independent performer, whose voice and words are now familiar to millions in the subcontinent.
In this remarkable, witty and candid account, Malka Pukharaj recalls her rich and eventful life. My birth she begins, was nothing short of a miracle. Then, in her simple and inimitable style, she takes us through her childhood as a court singer, her absorption in hr music, and her bewilderment and then gradual understanding of the intrigues of court life. From singing and dancing, to acting, from childhood to adolescence and romance, and finally to marriage and family, the author brings the reader close to her sorrows and joys, her dilemmas and concerns, and ends with a moving and poignant account of the acceptance of old age, and all that it brings with it.
EDITOR & TRANSLATOR:
Saleem Kidwai is a historian who taught at Delhi University. He is co-editor, with Ruth Vanita, of Same Sex Love in India: Readings from Indian Literature and History (2000)
REVIEWS:
This must be one of the most gripping memoirs ever translated from an Indian language.
-India Today
Song Sung True is one of those memoirs that make for compulsive reading. It is at one a rare and rich documental of a woman singer caught in changing times and a remarkable commentary on the social landscape of south Asia in the first half of the 20the century.
-The Telegraph
Contents
TRANSLATOR'S NOTE
My Birth
Childhood
My Father
My Education
My First Singing Teacher
My Love for Music
My Aunt
A Second Meeting with Baba Roti Ram
Baba Charas Sahib
Delhi
Ustad Mamman Khan
The Addition of Another Ustad
Our Return form Delhi
Guests at the Coronation
The Eve of the Coronation
The Coronation Procession
Maharaja Pratap Singh
Maharaja Hari Singh
The People of Jammu
My First Visit to Kashmir
Nishat Bagh
Maharani Dharamkot
The Birthday and the Basant Durbars
His Highness Visit to England
His Highness Cooks
Lachchigam
Mian Maula Bakhsh Talwandiwale
Maulana Sahib
Holi
The Maharani of Cooch Behar
The Royal Shikars
The Exhibition
The Houseboat Owners
Dussehra
Labhu Ram's Theatre
The Maharaja of Alwar
Kashmiri food
Polo in Lahore
Mehr Nigar
My Desire to Speak English
Maharajas and Their Affairs
Rani Billauran
Hindu Muslim Riots
The Lady from Amritsar
How the Maharajahs Acquired the Kingdom
After My Employment
Futile Dreams of Love
My Visit to Patiala
Rai Sahib
Lodhran and After
Select Glossary