Iqbal Bahu (; 4 September 1944 – 24 March 2012) was a Pakistani

sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

and a

folk singer Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

Early life and career

Iqbal Bahu was born as Muhammad Iqbal in

Gurdaspur Gurdaspur is a city in the Majha region of the Indian state of Punjab, between the rivers Beas and Ravi. It houses the administrative headquarters of Gurdaspur District and is in the geographical centre of the district, which shares a bord ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

in 1944. His family migrated to

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

after partition in 1947, and settled in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

. Iqbal started his career as a banker. He worked for

National Bank of Pakistan National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) is a Pakistani government-owned multinational commercial bank which is a subsidiary of State Bank of Pakistan. It is headquartered in Karachi, Pakistan. As of December 2022, it has over 1,500 branches across Paki ...

from 1971 to 1997, but his singing in

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

music brought him fame and recognition. Bahu started his singing career in 1964 from

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 ...

, Lahore. He was introduced to Radio by ''Muhammad Azam Khan'', former chief controller Radio Pakistan. His involvement in the mysticism of the 17th century well-known Sufi saint

Sultan Bahu Sultan Bahu (also spelled as Sultan Bahoo; ; 17 January 1630 – 1 March 1691), was a Punjabi Muslim poet, Sufi, scholar, and historian of the 17th century. Renowned for his mystical poetry, he was active during the reigns of Mughal emperors ...

made him add ''Bahu'' to his name. He held a special command in Punjabi language poetry of

tradition and included works of other saints such as

Fariduddin Ganjshakar Farīduddīn Masūd Ganjshakar ( – 16 Oct 1265), commonly known as Bābā Farīd or Sheikh Farīd (also in Anglicised spelling Fareed, Fareed ud-Deen, Masood, etc.), was a 13th-century Punjabi Muslim mystic, poet and preacher. Revered by ...

in his repertoire. In the beginning, he sang mainly for

and then later for

Pakistan Television Pakistan Television Corporation (; reporting name: PTV); also known as ''Pakistan Television'', is the Pakistani state-owned broadcasting, broadcaster founded by the Government of Pakistan, operating under the Ministry of Information & Broadc ...

. Playwright

Amjad Islam Amjad Amjad Islam Amjad, Pride of Performance, Sitara-e-Imtiaz, Hilal-i-Imtiaz (; 4 August 1944 – 10 February 2023) was a Pakistani Professor, Urdu poet, screenwriter, playwright and lyricist.Ally Adnan (September 2016), The author of more than ...

also created a small role for Bahu in drama serial ''Waris''. He mastered the Sufi tradition of well-known saint Sultan Bahu. He sang many Sufi songs for Radio Pakistan and Pakistan Television. He also gave concert performances around the globe in his later life including at BBC

Bush House Bush House is a Grade II listed building at the southern end of Kingsway between Aldwych and the Strand in London, England. It was conceived as a major new trade centre by American industrialist Irving T. Bush, and commissioned, designed, ...

, London in 1992. He was awarded

Tamgha-i-Imtiaz Tamgha-e-Imtiaz (), also spelled as Tamgha-i-Imtiaz, is a state-organised Civil decorations of Pakistan, honour of Pakistan. It is given to any civilian in Pakistan based on their achievements. While it is a civilian/military award, it can be ...

(Medal of Excellence) Award by the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...

in 2008.

Death

Bahu died on 24 March 2012 due to a heart attack in

at age 68 and was laid to rest at

Miani Sahib Graveyard The Miani Sahib Graveyard ( Punjabi, ) is the largest graveyard in the city of Lahore, Pakistan. It is in the centre of Lahore. Its origins date back to the Mughal era, making it one of the oldest graveyards in the region. Miani Sahib Graveyard ...

, Lahore next day. Among the survivors were his wife, 3 daughters and 2 sons.

Awards

(Medal of Excellence) Award in 2008 by the

Sufi singer Bahu dies
The Nation newspaper, Published 25 March 2012. Retrieved 29 April 2024 * Sultan Bahu Award * PTV Award * Graduate Award * Baba Fareed Award * Hazrat Sultan Bahoo Award * International Sufi Festival Award * Red Crescent Award * Kalam-e-Bahoo Award * Herf-O-Awaz Award

References

External links

A delightful confluence of cultures
– The Chandigarh Tribune newspaper
Sufi singer Iqbal Bahu passes away on Academy of the Punjab in North America - Archived
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bahu, Iqbal 1944 births 2012 deaths Pakistani Sunni Muslims Pakistani male singers People from Gurdaspur Performers of Sufi music Pakistani folk singers Punjabi-language singers Recipients of Tamgha-e-Imtiaz Singers from Lahore Pakistani performers of Islamic music PTV Award winners People from Punjab Province (British India) Pakistani radio personalities Pakistani television people