Ustad Muhammad Juman ( sd, استاد محمد جمن) (10 October 1935 – 24 January 1990) was a Sindhi musician and classical singer from

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, whose impact on Sindhi music is still pervasive.

Early life and career

Muhammad Juman was born on 10 October 1935 in the village of Sorra, located in the

Lasbela District Lasbela District (Urdu and bal, , Sindhi Lasi: لسبيلو) is a coastal district of Balochistan province of Pakistan. It is also called Sassi-Punnu Garh () among localites. History Alexander the Great passed through Lasbela on his way ...

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

, to a musician, Haji Ahmed Sakhirani of Sakhirani clan. It was only natural that he became fond of music from his childhood years. Juman took formal music lessons from a venerable Pakistani musician Ustad Nazar Hussain of

Pakistan Television Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore. Background Historical co ...

(

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Center), who had also been a music tutor to the renowned singer Madam Noor Jehan. He went to

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Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

to start a career as a "Surando" Player (

fiddler A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, the ...

). He played symphony of Kohyari in audition and started working as a staff musician of

. He played "Surrando" in harmany with many artists especially Ustad Muhammad Ibrahim. In 1955, he went to

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...

as a musician where he composed Kalams of various Sufi saints of Sindh.

Flute playing

He was fond of playing flute since childhood therefore he visited Radio Pakistan Karachi station several times. Eventually, he started program as a flute player.

Singing career

Some of his fellow radio artists advised him to sing as his voice had a quality. Within short time, he started singing regularly and appeared at Radio Pakistan Hyderabad as a singer. Here he became a student of Ustad Nazar Hussain and Wahid Ali Khan (elder). Afterwards he worked hard to learn the music of Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai’s poetry and became a successful singer.Profile of Ustad Muhammad Juman on encyclopediasindhiana.org website (in Sindhi language)
Retrieved 5 September 2022 Ustad Muhammad Juman was such a musician who brought out new colors, new ways and renovations to

Sindhi music Music from Sindh (), is sung and is generally performed in either the "Baits" or "Waee" styles. The Baits style is vocal music in Sanhoon (low voice) or Graham (high voice). Waee instrumental music is performed in a variety of ways using a s ...

. He used to work hard and composed countless musical melodies. He had his own unique style of singing which was appreciated not only by public but also by other musicians. He sang the poetry of mystic poets but specially sang Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai with great love. One of the famous

kafi Kafi ( pa, ਕਾਫ਼ੀ (Gurmukhi), (Shahmukhi), Hindi: काफ़ी, Urdu: کافی, Sindhi:ڪافي) is a classical form of Sufi music mostly in the Siraiki, Punjabi and Sindhi languages and originating from the Punjab, and Sindh re ...

song "Muhinjo Mulk Malir, Kotan Main Aaun Keean Guzariyan" was recorded for film Umer-Marvi. His famous and evergreen Kafi was "Yaar Dadhi Isaq Aatish lai Hai".The great singing of Sindhi raj: Muhammad Juman on sindhsalamat.com website
Published 24 January 2011. Retrieved 5 September 2022 Muhammad Juman also performed in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

, Japan, Australia and many other countries. Veteran singers like

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her con ...

Noor Jehan Noor Jehan ( Punjabi: ) (born () Allah Rakhi Wasai ; 23 September 1926 – 23 December 2000; sometimes spelled Noorjehan),Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen, ''Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema,'' British Film Institute, Oxford University Pres ...

and

Abida Parveen Abida Parveen ( Urdu, sd, ; born 20 February 1954) is a Pakistani singer, composer and musician of Sufi music. She is also a painter and entrepreneur. Parveen is one of the highest paid singers in Pakistan. Her singing and music has earned ...

have praised his singing talent. Former Prime Minister of Pakistan,

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar (or Zulfiqar) Ali Bhutto ( ur, , sd, ذوالفقار علي ڀٽو; 5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979), also known as Quaid-e-Awam ("the People's Leader"), was a Pakistani barrister, politician and statesman who served as the fourth ...

also was an admirer and used to invite him for his personal gatherings.

Awards and recognition

Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance ( ur, ), officially known as Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sports, an ...

Award by the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the four provinces, two autonomous territorie ...

in 1980. *

Government of Sindh The Government of Sindh ( sd, حڪومت سنڌ) ( ur, ) is the provincial government of the province of Sindh, Pakistan. Its powers and structure are set out in the provisions of the 1973 Constitution, in which 30 Districts of 7 Divisions u ...

, Culture department has inaugurated a music gallery for him in recognition of his services at Sindh Museum, Hyderabad, Sindh. * Latif Award.29th death anniversary of Ustad Muhammad Juman observed
Daily Times (newspaper), Published 27 January 2019, Retrieved 5 September 2022 * Sachal Sarmast Award.

Music training

Muhammad Jumman received his music education from Ustad Nazar Hussain and Bari Waheed Ali Khan, expert on Bhittai's Surs (Symphonies). He became very famous when he sang a Sindhi Kalam of Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai:
This Kalam (Song) was composed by the notable musician Deebo Bhattacharya. Muhammad Jumman became well-known everywhere after performing a Saraiki

Kafi Kafi ( pa, ਕਾਫ਼ੀ (Gurmukhi), (Shahmukhi), Hindi: काफ़ी, Urdu: کافی, Sindhi:ڪافي) is a classical form of Sufi music mostly in the Siraiki, Punjabi and Sindhi languages and originating from the Punjab, and Sindh re ...

of Usman Faqir: Muhammad Juman was a regular performer of

Sufi music Sufi music refers to the devotional music of the Sufis, inspired by the works of Sufi poets like Rumi, Hafiz, Bulleh Shah, Amir Khusrow, and Khwaja Ghulam Farid. Qawwali is the best-known form of Sufi music and is most commonly found in the ...

shows.Muhammad Juman performing on Pakistan Television
Uploaded 13 October 2012. Retrieved 5 September 2022 He also sang Mir Sikandar Khan Khoso's kafis "Ishq munjhon izhar thee ayo" and "Kech Punhal day hal kahay hal" at

. Juman's son, Shafi Muhammad, also followed his style of kafi singing.

Death

He died on 24 January 1990 at a Karachi hospital due to complications from hepatitis and diabetes. He was buried at

Mewa Shah Graveyard Mewa Shah Graveyard ( ur, ) is located in SITE Town, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. The Mewa Shah Qabaristan (Cemetery), one of the largest and oldest graveyards of Karachi. It is named after the 19th Century Sufi, Mewa Shah, was a Sufi and struggl ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Juman, Ustad Muhammad 1935 births 1990 deaths Sindhi people 20th-century Pakistani male singers 20th-century Pakistani singers People from Lasbela District Sindhi-language singers Singers from Sindh Performers of Sufi music Pakistani folk singers Sufi artists Recipients of the Pride of Performance