Amar Singh Shaunki (15 August 1916 – 14 August 1981), also spelled as Amar Singh Shonki, was a Dhadi singer of

Punjab, India Punjab () is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab, Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the States and union territories of India, Indian states ...

Early life

Shaunki was born as Amar Singh on 15 August 1916, in a

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

family to father

Sardar Sardar, also spelled as Sardaar (, , 'commander', literally 'headmaster'), is a title of royal family, royalty and nobility that was originally used to denote princes, noblemen, chiefs, kings and other Aristocracy (class), aristocrats. It ha ...

Moola Singh, in the village of Bhajjlan (now

Hoshiarpur district Hoshiarpur district is a district of Punjab, India, Punjab state in northern India. Hoshiarpur, one of the oldest districts of Punjab, is located in the North-east part of the Punjab state and shares common boundaries with Gurdaspur district in ...

) in

British Punjab The Punjab Province, officially the Province of the Punjab, was a province of British India, with its capital in Lahore and summer capitals in Murree and Simla. At its greatest extent, it stretched from the Khyber Pass to Delhi; and from th ...

(British India). He hailed from a farmer family and never went to school but learned Punjabi (Gurmukhi) from the other educated persons. He got married and had three sons, Sawraj Singh, Jaspal Singh and Pargat Singh.

Career

He was very much interested in folk music from his childhood and learned it from Sant Baba Maan Singh of

Sialkot Sialkot (Punjabi language, Punjabi, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of the Sialkot District and the List of most populous cities in Pakistan, 12th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined ...

. At first he sang under last name ''Mast'' but as started singing with

Dhadd Dhadd (), also spelled as Dhad or Dhadh is an hourglass-shaped traditional musical instrument native to Punjab that is mainly used by the Dhadi singers. It is also used by other folk singers of the region. Design and playing The dhadd is mad ...

and

Sarangi The sārangī is a bowed, short-necked three-stringed instrument played in traditional music from South Asia – Punjabi folk music, Rajasthani folk music, Sindhi folk music, Haryanvi folk music, Braj folk music, and Boro folk music (the ...

and made a team with Sarwan Singh and Mohan Singh Binda, he fixed ''Shaunki'' as his last name. The main themes of his songs evokes the culture and folk of

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

. He sang about every color of Punjabi folk. The main themes of his songs were the evergreen folk stories of Punjab like

Heer Ranjha '' Ranjha'' () is a classical Punjabi folk tragedy with many historic poetic narrations; with the first one penned by Damodar Gulati in 1600s, on the preexisting oral legend; and the most famous one, ''Heer'', written by Waris Shah in 17 ...

Mirza Sahiban ''Mirza Sahiban'' () is a classical Punjabi folk tragedy, originally recorded in literary form by the 17th-century poet Pilu. Set in a village in Jhang, the tragedy follows the romance between two youths, belonging to chieftain families ...

Sassui Punnhun ''Sassui Punnhun'' or ''Sassi Punnu'' is a traditional Sindhi, Balochi, and Punjabi tragic folktale. Set in Sindh and Makran, the tragedy follows the story of a faithful lover who endures many difficulties while seeking her beloved husb ...

, Rani Sundran and Pooran Bhagat, heroes of

Sikh history Guru Nanak founded the Sikhism, Sikh religion in the Punjab region of the northern part of the Indian subcontinent in the 15th century and opposed many traditional practices like fasting, janeu, Upanayana, idolatry, caste system in India, caste ...

likes

Hari Singh Nalwa Hari Singh Nalwa (29 April 1791 – 30 April 1837) was the commander-in-chief of the Sikh Khalsa Army, Sikh Khalsa Fauj, the army of the Sikh Empire. He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshaw ...

, the

masters and other freedom fighters. He wrote songs on various topics including the four tragic love stories of

Saka Sirhind The Saka Sirhind (Punjabi: ਸਾਕਾ ਸਰਹਿੰਦ) or the Nikke Sahibzada Saka (Punjabi: ਨਿੱਕੇ ਸਾਹਿਬਜ਼ਾਦੇ ਸਾਕਾ) refers to the martyrdom (Shaheedi) of the two sons of Guru Gobind Singh, named Zoraw ...

and Sikh heroes. Many Punjabi singers today, including

Manmohan Waris Manmohan Singh Heer (Manmohan Waris; born 3 August 1967) is a Punjabi folk/pop singer. He is the elder brother of record producer Sangtar and singer Kamal Heer. Waris is considered one of the Most gifted singers of Punjabi folk music. Birth ...

and

Kamal Heer Kamal Heer (born Kamaljeet Singh Heer) is an Indian born Canadian musician. He is the younger brother of Manmohan Waris and Sangtar, two other esteemed musicians. His live performances showcase his virtuosity with taan and his command of the ...

sings songs written by him.

Discography

A well known music company,

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

, recorded many of his records. There are about 138 phonograph records to his credit.

Remembering

People of his village Bhajjlan organized a fair, ''Dhadi Amar Singh Shaunki Sabhyacharak Mela'', every year in his memory. Punjabi singers from all around the world participate in the fair and pay tribute.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaunki, Amar Singh Dhadis Punjabi-language singers Punjabi-language lyricists 1916 births 1981 deaths 20th-century Indian male singers 20th-century Indian singers

Early life

Career

Discography

Remembering

See also

References