TheIndian Music Archive

Hindustani classical · 1917–1982

Roshan Ara Begum

Malika-e-Mauseeqi — the "Queen of Music" — Abdul Karim Khan's outstanding Kirana disciple, who sang from Bombay to Lahore and became Pakistan's first great woman of classical music.

On these dates
Sources differ on the death date (6 or 12 December 1982) and on award years (Pride of Performance 1960; Sitara-e-Imtiaz given as 1960 or 1962), so only the month and year are shown.

We have no checked official pages for Roshan Ara Begum yet. Suggest an official link.

Where to start

Begin listening

Aaye balam rangeele — Raga Kamod

Saregama Hindustani Classical

The Kamod Baithak singles out as typical of her style.

Saregama.

Watch on YouTube

Catalogue entry

Rasiya na jao — Raga Maru Bihag

Saregama Hindustani Classical

One of the ragas she was most praised for.

Saregama.

Watch on YouTube

Catalogue entry

Raag Hansadhwani

AIR Raagam

A radio archive recording.

All India Radio.

Watch on YouTube

Catalogue entry

Recordings are embedded from official or authorised channels and never rehosted. Nothing plays on its own, and starting one closes another. Where an editor has added a note, it explains why that recording was chosen — not what happens inside it.

Biography

Life

Roshan Ara Begum was born Waheed-un-Nisa in Calcutta in 1917, the daughter of Ustad Abdul Haq Khan and the singer Chanda Begum, who recognised her talent early. Her family was related to Ustad Abdul Karim Khan of the Kirana gharana. She first trained with Mumtaz Hussain and Laddan Khan, and after hearing her sing Multani, Abdul Karim Khan took her as his disciple; ten years of rigorous practice preceded her career. In her teens she sang at house concerts in Lahore, and All India Radio broadcasts from 1936 made her famous as "Bombaywali" Roshan Ara Begum.

In 1944 she married Chaudhry Ahmed Khan, a Bombay police officer, on condition that she could keep singing. After Partition the couple settled in 1948 in Lalamusa, his hometown in Punjab, and she travelled to Lahore for concerts, radio and television. The news that she might stop singing helped spur the first All Pakistan Music Conference in 1960, where she sang as its star through to dawn. She recorded for films including "Jugnu" (1947), "Qismat" (1956) and "Roopmati Baz Bahadur" (1960), and in 1977 she was a guest of All India Radio's golden jubilee in Delhi alongside Malika Pukhraj.

Pakistan honoured her with the Pride of Performance and the Sitara-e-Imtiaz; she was the first woman vocalist to receive the latter. Her last years in Lalamusa were lonely and secluded. She died in December 1982.

Suggest a correction to this section

Musical contribution

What they brought to music

Full-throated, mature Kirana voice with delicate sur passages, swift and intricate sargam taans and layakari; ragas such as Shankara, Shuddh Kalyan, Maru Bihag and Kedar were celebrated, as were her dadras.

Suggest a correction to this section

Lineage & company

Teachers, students and musical connections

People

Grouped by the kind of relationship the sources record — who taught this musician, who they taught, family, and the people they played with.

Teachers and gurus

Family

Recognition

Honours and recognition

Highest national honour first, then by year.

  • 1960Pride of PerformancePresident of Pakistan
  • Sitara-e-ImtiazFirst woman vocalist to receive it; year given as 1960 or 1962

Community

Memories from the community

Personal recollections, not verified history

These are memories shared by listeners and musicians. They sit apart from the sourced biography above, and an editor reads each one before it appears.

  • No memories have been shared yet.

Members can share a memory of Roshan Ara Begum. Sign in or create an account.

Provenance

Sources and image credits

No photograph of this musician is published here yet; we use only images we are permitted to show, with credit.

Suggest a correction to this section

Continue exploring