Pragaash (, ''prāgāsh'' — «moonshine») was an Indian all-female rock band consisting of three

Kashmiri Muslim Kashmiri Muslims are ethnic Kashmiris who practice Islam and are native to the Kashmir Valley of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir. Quote: "Jammu and Kashmir: Territory in northwestern India, subject to a dispute between India and Pakistan ...

girls- Noma Nazir Bhatt, Aneeqa Khalid and Farah Deeba. The band was formed in December 2012 and received controversy from

Islamic scholars In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

, who claimed that the band members allegedly broke the codes of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

. The band members all received threats of

death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault involving sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, carried out against a person without consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or against a person ...

, and other physical harm, as well as a

fatwa A fatwa (; ; ; ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (sharia) given by a qualified Islamic jurist ('' faqih'') in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist issuing fatwas is called a ''mufti'', ...

from the

Grand Mufti A Grand Mufti (also called Chief Mufti, State Mufti and Supreme Mufti) is a title for the leading Faqīh, Islamic jurist of a country, typically Sunni, who may oversee other muftis. Not all countries with large Sunni Muslim populations have Gra ...

of India's

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...

, which prompted them to quit the band.

History

The band made their first public appearance on 10 December 2012 when they participated in a Battle of Bands competition in

Srinagar Srinagar (; ) is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the tertiary ...

, India, where they received the award for "Best Performance".

Death threats

Shortly after their win at the Battle of Bands, the group began to receive death and

rape threats A rape threat is a threat of rape or sexual assault made against another person. Rape threats are often made against prominent celebrities such as high-profile writers, actors, comedians, journalists, businessperson and politicians, and may often ...

via their

cell phones A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that allows users to make and receive Telephone call, calls over a radio frequency link while moving within a designated telephone service area, unlike fixed-location phones (landline phone ...

and Facebook profiles. The Grand Mufti publicly criticized the band, stating that they were exhibiting "indecent behaviour" and that "this kind of non-serious activity can become the first step towards our destruction". On 3 February 2013 he issued a

against the group, stating that music was "not good for society" and that all of the "bad things happening in the Indian society are because of music". Later that same month the police registered a First Information Report against the online attackers and

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...

Omar Abdullah Omar Abdullah (born 10 March 1970) is an Indian politician who is currently serving as the chief minister of union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. He had previously served as the chief minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir between 2009 and ...

ordered a probe in the matter. In February 2013 three people were taken into custody and arrested for "promoting enmity between classes" and "criminal intimidation". The band has received a large amount of global online support. The group initially received expressions of support and offers of security for the band from

via Twitter, but he later deleted his tweets.

Band members

*Noma Nazir Bhatt, Vocals and guitar *Farah Deeba, Drums *Aneeqa Khalid, Bass guitar

Popular culture

A authorized docu-drama, PRAGAASH (the song of silence) has been made on this Pragaash band by Marijuana Films. Written and directed by Janmejay Singh, it contains the interviews of Noma and Judges along with Adnan and famous music personalities of Jammu and Kashmir. The band is cited in Marlon James's

Man Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a prestigious literary award conferred each year for the best single work of sustained fiction written in the English language, wh ...

winning novel ''

A Brief History of Seven Killings ''A Brief History of Seven Killings'' is the third novel by Jamaican author Marlon James. It was published in 2014 by Riverhead Books. The novel spans several decades and explores the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in Jamaica in 1976 and ...

'' as "First Ray of Light".

References

External links