Mai Bhagi ( Sindhi:) (c. 1920 – 7 July 1986) was a Sindhi folk singer and musician.

Early life and career

Born Bhag Bhari in

Mithi Mithi (; , ) is a city and the administrative capital of Tharparkar District in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It became the district headquarter of Tharparkar District in 1990, after the area's separation from Mirpur Khas. Mithi is one of the v ...

in Thar,

Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...

in 1920. Mai Bhagi grew up in a village in the

Thar Desert The Thar Desert (), also known as the Great Indian Desert, is an arid region in the north-western part of the Indian subcontinent that covers an area of in India and Pakistan. It is the world's 18th-largest desert, and the world's 9th-large ...

. Her father was Wanhyun Fakir and her mother was Khadija Maganhar. Both her parents were known singers in their region at that time. Mai Bhagi's birth name was Bhag Bhari (which means 'a lucky person'). She was married to folk singer Hothi Fakir at the age of 16 in Islamkot Tharparkar. Then she shifted to Mithi Tharparkar in 1950 permanently. Record producer Sheikh Ghulam Hussain, husband of Pakistani folk singer

Abida Parveen Abida Parveen (; ; born 20 February 1954) is a Pakistani singer, composer, musician of Sufi music, painter and an entrepreneur. Parveen is one of the highest-paid singers in Pakistan. Her singing and music have earned her many accolades, and s ...

, offered her the opportunity to record at the

Radio Pakistan The Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (); also known as ''Radio Pakistan'', serves as the national public broadcaster for radio in Pakistan. Although some local stations predate its founding, it is the oldest existing broadcasting network in P ...

studios, and later her records were played on the radio. She started singing on Radio Pakistan, Hyderabad her folk song 'Kharee neem kay neeche' (underneath a neem tree) from 1960. Bhagi was paid only 20 rupees for this first radio broadcast. According to a major newspaper of Pakistan, "But it wasn't until she sang it on the state-owned PTV in 1974 that the song became a national mainstream hit and turned Bhagi into a Sindhi/Thari folk star". Her other folk songs 'Saman Sai Maan Ta Goli Ghulam Tohinji Dar Ji' became very popular among the Pakistani people and secured her stardom, her folk song 'Murli Wari Man Mohiyo also became popular in the rural areas of Sindh. The government of Pakistan provided financial support for her to tour overseas, and she continued her career in music until her death on 7 July 1986. You can read complete documentary of Mai Bhagi on popular Sindhi music website 'Media Music Mania'. Further Complete detailed Biography and selected best songs of Mai Bhagi listen on.

Awards and recognition

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

Award by the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

in 1981. *

Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai (; 1689/1690 – 21 December 1752), commonly known by the honorifics ''Lakhino Latif'', ''Latif Ghot'', ''Bhittai'', and ''Bhit Jo Shah'', was a Sindhi Sufi mystic and poet from Pakistan, widely considered to be the ...

Award *

Sachal Sarmast Sachal Sarmast or Sacho Sarmast (; – 1827), was an 18th and 19th century Sindhi Sufi poet, mystic and philosopher from Daraza (present-day Sindh, Pakistan), regarded as an important figure in the Sindhi-language literature. He is revered ...

Award

References

1920s births 1986 deaths Sindhi people Singers from Sindh Sindhi-language_singers Sindhi music People from Tharparkar District Performers of Sufi music Recipients of the Pride of Performance Pakistani folk singers 20th-century Pakistani women singers 20th-century Pakistani singers Sindhi women singers Pakistani radio personalities Pakistani television people {{Pakistan-musician-stub

Early life and career

Awards and recognition

See also

References