Prabha Bharti (died 2000s) was a noted

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n qawaali and

ghazal ''Ghazal'' is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry that often deals with topics of spiritual and romantic love. It may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss, or separation from the beloved, and t ...

singer of the 1960s to the 1990s. She was one of the first women

qawwali Qawwali is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing originating in the Indian subcontinent. Originally performed at Sufi shrines throughout the Indian subcontinent, it is famous throughout Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Afghanistan and has ...

-singer (

qawwal Qawwali is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional song, devotional singing originating in the Indian subcontinent. Originally performed at Sufi shrines throughout the Indian subcontinent, it is famous throughout Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Afgha ...

) of

, a form of

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 ...

devotional music A devotional song is a hymn that accompanies religious observances and rituals. Traditionally devotional music has been a part of Hindu music, Jewish music, Buddhist music, Islamic music and Christian music. Each major religion has its own trad ...

traditionally a reserve of male singers. She is known for her album, "Rang-e-Qawwali" (1978), which features qawaalis, "Chhaap Tilak" and "Mai Ni Mai", besides album, "Prabha Bharti Ghazal & Qawali" with music by Kesar Singh Narula released 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 ...

Career

When she started her career, she found herself being "taken in more as a prop", however subsequently the trend of female qawwals became popular. Later

filmi qawwali Filmi qawwali (. , ) is a form of qawwali music found in the Lollywood, Dhallywood, Tollywood, and Bollywood film industries. It represents a distinct subgenre of film music, although it usually bears little resemblance to traditional qawwali, w ...

in Bollywood started depicting the battle of sexes, wherein male and female qawwal competed against each other. Born in a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

family, she was a sought after singer in Sufi circles, and performed at commercial as well as private venues and shrines. At the peak of her career in the 1970s and 1980s, he was a leading qawwal in states of

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 ...

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and large cities. She won many qawwali competitions against male qawwals, including Ustad Chhote Ussaf, Nazir Bharati, Afzal Iqbal, and Imam Khan. She even organized concerts to raise funds for Indian Army soldiers during the 1971 Indo-Pak War. In 1980, as a part of Indian Republic day celebrations, the Indian Council for Public Relation sponsored a series of her performances along with her "party" (group) in Middle-Eastern countries like

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

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and

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. She was also performed a few song as a Bollywood playback singer, she flourished during the 1970s and 1980s and remained active till the 1990s. She lived in

Andheri Andheri (Help:IPA/Marathi, �n̪d̪ʱeɾiː is a suburb situated in Western Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Government and politics For administrative purposes, Andheri is bifurcated into Andheri (west) and Andheri (east). Andheri (west) comes ...

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

, and died in the late 2000s.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bhart, Prabha Indian qawwali singers Indian women ghazal singers Indian ghazal singers 2000s deaths Year of birth unknown Hindi-language singers Urdu-language singers 20th-century Indian singers 20th-century Indian women singers