Naima Khan Upreti (; 25 May 1938 – 15 June 2018) was an Indian theatre actor, singer and a producer at

Doordarshan Doordarshan (), abbreviated as DD, is India's State-owned enterprise, state-owned public broadcasting, public television broadcaster. Established by the Government of India on 15 September 1959, it is owned by the Ministry of Information and B ...

. She was also the wife of Mohan Upreti, considered to be one of the pioneers in Indian theatre music. Naima Khan Upreti is a popular figure in Kumaon and she is remembered for her contribution towards the preservation and revitalisation of Uttarakhand's folk music along with her husband Mohan Upreti. She is famous for singing the popular Kumaoni-language song " Bedu Pako Baro Masa" along with her husband. She is also known for her efforts towards preserving old Kumaoni ballads, songs and folk traditions as a member and later the President of Parvatiya Kala Kendra, Delhi. During her time in

, she was involved in the production of Doordarshan's first

colour television Color television (American English) or colour television (British English) is a television transmission technology that also includes color information for the picture, so the video image can be displayed in color on the television set. It improv ...

program along with Sharad Dutt.

Biography

Early life and education

Naima Khan Upreti was born on 25 May 1938 in

Almora Almora ( Kumaoni: ') is a municipal corporation and a cantonment town in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Almora district. Almora is located on a ridge at the southern edge of the Kumaon Hills of the ...

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...

to a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

father and a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

mother. She received her schooling from Adam's Girls School followed by Ramsay Inter College school in Almora. In 1958 she received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

English Literature English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

and

Economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

from

Agra University Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar University, formerly Agra University, is an Autonomous University located in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. The university, formerly named as Agra University, was later named after Bhimrao Ambedkar. Affiliated colleges The U ...

. Later, she graduated from the

National School of Drama National School of Drama (NSD) is a drama school situated at New Delhi, India. It is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It was set up in 1959 by the Sangeet Natak Akademi and became an independent school ...

in 1969 with a three-year diploma in acting and also worked with the NSD Repertory Company for some time. She also received a diploma from the

Film and Television Institute of India The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) is a film institute under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India and aided by the Central Government of India. ...

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

Career

As a member of the NSD Repertory Company, Naima Khan Upreti participated in a number of theatre productions and worked along with many personalities of theatre such as

Ebrahim Alkazi Ebrahim Alkazi (18 October 1925 – 4 August 2020) was a Saudi Indian theatre director and drama teacher. A rigid disciplinarian, he instilled in his acting students an awe and reverence that they still carry with them, with several of them ...

Surekha Sikri Surekha Sikri (19 April 1945 16 July 2021) was an Indian actress widely known for her performance in theatre, films and television. She has received several awards, including a Filmfare Award and three National Film Awards. A veteran of Hind ...

, Uttara Baokar, M. K. Raina and others. She worked in many theatre productions of that time such as

Othello ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'', often shortened to ''Othello'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare around 1603. Set in Venice and Cyprus, the play depicts the Moorish military commander Othello as he is manipulat ...

The Caucasian Chalk Circle ''The Caucasian Chalk Circle'' () is a play by the German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht. An example of Brecht's epic theatre, the play is a parable about a peasant girl who rescues a baby and becomes a better mother than the baby's wealthy b ...

, Natak Polampur Ka,

Skandagupta Skandagupta (Gupta script: ''Ska-nda-gu-pta'', r. –467) was a Gupta Empire, Gupta Emperor of India. His Bhitari pillar inscription of Skandagupta, Bhitari pillar inscription suggests that he restored the Gupta power by defeating his enemies, ...

etc. She has been associated with Parvatiya Kala Kendra since its inception in 1968 and has participated in many of their productions such as Rajula Malushahi, Ajuwa Baphaul, Rami,

Ramlila Ramlila or Ramleela (; literally 'Rama's lila or play') is any dramatic folk re-enactment of the life of Rama according to the ancient Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' or secondary literature based on it such as the '' Ramcharitmanas''. It particular ...

, Indra Sabha, etc. After Mohan Upreti's death in 1997, Naima Khan Upreti took charge of Parvatiya Kala Kendra as it is president. She carried forward Mohan Upreti's work and organised many theatre productions such as Meghdutam, Rami, Goridhana,

Amir Khusrau Abu'l Hasan Yamīn ud-Dīn Khusrau (1253 – 1325 AD), better known as Amīr Khusrau, sometimes spelled as, Amir Khusrow or Amir Khusro, was an Indo-Persian Sufi singer, musician, poet and scholar, who lived during the period of the Delhi Sult ...

, Algoza etc. She lent her voice to many folk songs, theatre productions and radio programs of

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

. Until her retirement, she worked in

and was a producer of a number of their television productions such as Krishi Darshan, coverage of Khajuraho Dance Festival etc. She also won a number of accolades such as a Lifetime Achievement Award from Natsamrat theatre group in 2010. She died on 15 June 2018 in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

, aged 80.

Family

Naima Khan Upreti was married to Mohan Upreti.

Legacy

Naima Khan Upreti and Mohan Upreti together sang many folk songs from Uttarakhand. The songs "Bedu Pako Baro Masa" and "O Lali Hausiya" were also recorded by

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 ...

. Naima Khan Upreti also published a compilation of Muslim wedding songs in the book - Nagmati Rasm. She also contributed to the archives of Natarang Pratishthan.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Upreti, Naima Khan 1938 births 2018 deaths Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar University alumni Indian women singers Indian stage actresses Indian women television producers National School of Drama alumni