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Jagjit Singh was an Indian classical singer, composer, and musician known during his lifetime as "The Ghazal King." After Ravi Shankar, he is considered one of independent India's most important and recognizable artists, and certainly its best-selling due to his soundtracks and scores for film and television, and his musical interpretation of the works of poets. Including scores, he recorded over 60 albums during his lifetime. He is known not only for his 'ghazals' and singing in several languages, but also for Indian light classical music, including 'thumri' and 'bhajan'.

He and his wife, 'ghazal' singer Chitra Singh, came to prominence during the '70s and '80s and revived the style of traditional singing that had languished since the late '50s. Composing in the 'Bol-pradhan' style (sung poetry and vocal improvisation over set musical arrangements), he used simple melodies and modes to accompany lyrics that were considered current and relevant to contemporary life.

Born as Jagmohan Singh in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan on 8 February 1941, the ghazal singer was rechristened Jagjit by his father, Amar Singh Dhiman. The singer trained under Pandit Chhaganlal Sharma and then later under Ustad Jamal Khan of 'Sainia gharana' for six years and learned 'Khayal', 'Thumri' and 'Dhrupad' forms. He attained an arts degree from DAV College in Jalandhar and pursued post-graduate studies at Kurukshetra University in Haryana. Jagjit chose D.A.V. College, Jalandhar, for higher education since the principal of the institution waived hostel and tuition fees for talented musician students. Another reason was that Jalandhar's All India Radio (A.I.R.) station carried programs in classical singing. A.I.R. graded him a 'B' class artiste and allowed him six live music segments a year for small payments. In 1962, while in Jalandhar, Jagjit composed a welcome song for the visiting president of India, Rajendra Prasad.

In 1961, Jagjit went to Bombay to scout out prospects for a career in film playback singing. Music director Jaikishen liked his voice but could not offer any big break. Money ran out and a dispirited Jagjit did not have enough to even retrieve his clothes from the laundry or buy a ticket home. In March 1965, Jagjit decided to have another go at the celluloid singing in Bombay. He lived in a run-down hostel, sleeping on an iron cot surrounded by bedbugs and getting his foot chewed off by rats at night. He was financially in a precarious situation. But such was the purity and attraction of Jagjit's voice that he managed to get two Ghazals recorded for an EP (Extended Play, a 1960s gramophone record format) with HMV. Life in Bombay was hard and Jagjit eked out a living doing small 'mehfils' (musical gatherings) and house concerts. He sang at numerous film parties in the hope that a music director might notice him and give him a chance. But filmdom was run in cliques and newcomers were rarely accepted in a highly competitive environment.

Jagjit increasingly veered toward the Ghazal. Bollywood's loss was the Ghazal's gain, for those were the times when Ghazal music was turning into a forgotten and dying art. The Urdu language itself was in decline in India. Jagjit made the Ghazal his beloved and changed its destiny. Jagjit composed music for radio jingles, ad films, documentaries, etc to earn an income. It was at one such jingle recording that he met Chitra, who was at the tether end of a bad marriage. In 1970, the two got married.

In 1975, HMV asked Jagjit to compose his first ever LP (Long-Play) album, a signal that he had finally arrived on the scene. "The Unforgettables" featured Jagjit-Chitra Ghazals that sounded totally different from orthodox Ghazals. Modern instruments rubbed shoulders with traditional sarangi and tabla. "Unforgettables" brought Jagjit and Chitra Singh to national attention and helped finance the purchase of their modest flat in Bombay. In 1980, Jagjit agreed to sing Javed Akhtar's poetry for a low-budget film, "Saath Saath", without bothering for financial rewards. Raman Kumar, the director, could not spend much at the recording studio, but Jagjit footed the bills. A similar movie venture, "Arth", in the same year saw Jagjit and Chitra Singh's popularity climb higher and higher. Even now, "Arth" and "Saath Saath" are one of HMV's highest selling combination cassettes ever. In 1987, Jagjit crossed another milestone by recording the first purely digital CD album by an Indian musician, "Beyond Time". It was a memorable moment not just for Chitra and him, but for Ghazals as a whole. The year after, Jagjit sealed his name in history by composing the music for Gulzar's epic TV serial, "Mirza Ghalib". Jagjit's soft and serenading voice paid befitting tribute to the greatest 19th century poet of undivided India.

In 1990, Jagjit and Chitra lost their 18-year-old only son, Vivek, in a motor accident. Chitra retired from singing in the aftermath and never returned to the stage or to the recording studio. After Vivek's death, Jagjit began showing more of his spiritual and philosophical side, mellowing his already sobering voice, singing complicated metaphysical verses and also venturing into classical 'bhajans' (Hindu devotional songs).

In 1998, he was given the Sahitya Academy Award, a literary honor for popularizing the work of poet Mirza Ghalib with his score and soundtrack for the television series of the same name. In 2003, he was given the Padma Bhushan, a high-level civilian award by the Indian government. He received a Teacher's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.

In 2011, on the day a concert with Ghulam Ali was scheduled, Jagjit Singh was hospitalized after suffering a cerebral haemorrhage. The maestro was admitted to Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital, where he breathed his last on 10th October 2011. He was posthumously awarded the Rajasthan Ratna in 2013, the highest civilian award by the state government of Rajasthan.

His only son died in a car crash which prompted his wife Chitra Singh
to stop singing.

In 2014, Government of India released two postal stamps in the honour of Jagjit Singh.

Jagjit Singh was the first Indian musician to record a digital album in 1987 titled &#39;Beyond Time&#39;.

In the year 1970, Jagjit Singh got married to Chitra Dutta in a simple wedding ceremony that cost him just 30 rupees.

He is the only composer and singer to have composed and recorded songs written by former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

In 1961, Jagjit went to Bombay to scout out prospects for a career in film playback singing. Music director Jaikishen liked his voice but could not offer any big break. Money ran out and a dispirited Jagjit did not have enough to even retrieve his clothes from the laundry or buy a ticket home. So, he traveled by Train from Bombay to Jalandhar without a ticket, hiding in the bathroom.

Trivia

Jagjit Singh

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