Aabha Hanjura
Born
Aabha Hanjura

Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • composer
Years active2012–present
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals

Aabha Hanjura is an Indian singer, songwriter and composer who sings primarily in the Kashmiri and Hindi languages, as well as in Punjabi, Dogri and other languages. Hanjura is the lead vocalist of pop band Sufistication, which she founded in 2012. An indie artist, she is known for music that blends Kashmiri and other Indian folk and Sufi styles with contemporary pop music.

Early life and education

Hanjura was born into a Kashmiri Pandit family in the Kanipora locality of Srinagar in the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India. When she was three, she and her family were displaced from the Kashmir Valley during the Hindu exodus due to insurgency in the state.[1][2] She grew up in Jammu, which she recalls also being unstable due to the insurgency, but less so than the valley.[3] She did her schooling in Jammu and received training in Hindustani classical music. In 2005, she and her family moved to Bengaluru in southern India.[1] In Bengaluru, she took classes for western classical music. She graduated with a degree in commerce from Jain College.[4]

Musical career

Hanjura auditioned for the second season of television show Indian Idol when she was seventeen and was slated to appear on it as a contestant but says she did not because she believed the music industry was not a safe space for women at the time[5] and instead wanted to continue her education.[6] In 2012, Hanjura founded a pop band called Sufistication, a play on the words Sufi and sophistication.[7][8] In 2013, she visited her former house in Kashmir in search of inspiration for her music.[1] She quit her corporate job to focus on music full-time.[6]

In June 2017, Hanjura released the single Hukus Bukus, combining several Kashmiri lullabies, poems and rhymes set to a chanson influenced composition with western and Kashmiri instruments.[4] The song eventually went viral and became popular,[9] and was used in a 2019 Indian film by Ashvin Kumar.[10] It also featured in the first season of Indian television series The Family Man the same year.[5] The song was also used in a video by INC politician Rahul Gandhi during the Kashmir section of his Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2023.[11]

In 2019, she released two singles titled Dilbar Yuier Valo and Chalo Chinaro Ke Gharon, respectively in Kashmiri and Hindi.[7] She released two singles in 2020, Nundbane, from a poem by poet Mahmud Gami, and Khoobsurat.[3][12] In 2022, she began releasing tracks for an extended play (EP) called Sufistication Folk Sessions, featuring several folk songs in multiple north Indian languages,[1] with Sahibo, a Kashmiri prayer by poet Mehjoor, and Punjabi folk song Kale Rang Da Paranda.[13] She also released a ghazal influenced romantic single in August 2022.[14] The last track of the EP, a Pahari folk song, was released in March 2023.[15]

Artistry

Aabha Hanjura is known for making music that combines Kashmiri and other Indian traditional and folk styles with contemporary pop music.[16] She describes her music as "eclectic folk-pop."[16] She lists Lalleshwari, Waris Shah, Bulleh Shah, Surinder Kaur, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Reshma, Jagjit Singh and Junoon among influences.[13][17][18] Her and her family's displacement from their homeland in the Kashmir valley, and a visit to her former house in the valley that she undertook as an adult, have shaped her artistry.[3] She states that she wishes to popularise Kashmiri music,[8] create a positive dialogue and build empathy towards Kashmiris—both Hindus and Muslims—through her music.[1] Apart from her mother tongue Kashmiri, she has also sung in other north Indian languages such as Dogri, Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu.[7]

Personal life

Hanjura is married and has a daughter.[5] She lives in Bengaluru.[19]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Song Notes
2019 No Fathers in Kashmir "Hukus Bukus"

Television

Year Show Song Notes
2019 The Family Man "Hukus Bukus"

Discography

Singles

  • "Hukus Bukus" (2017)
  • "Khanmoej Koor" (2018)[20]
  • "Dilbar Yuier Valo: Roshewalla Part 1" (2019)[21]
  • "Chalo Chinaro Ke Gharon: Roshewalla Part 2" (2019)[21]
  • "Nundbane" (2020)[22]
  • "Khoobsurat" (2020)[23]
  • "Madano" (2022)[24]

Albums and EPs

  • "Sound of Kashmir"
  • "Sufistication Folk Sessions" (2022–2023)
    • "Sahibo" (2022)
    • "Kale Rang Da Paranda" (2022)
    • "Punjabi Folk Boliyan" (2022)
    • "Kala Sha Kala" (2022)
    • "Banku Deya Chachua" (2023)
    • "Mere Hikduye Gadbad" (2023)[25]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Murthy, Neeraja (24 May 2022). "Aabha Hanjura's new folk song has a touch of Punjabi". The Hindu.
  2. ↑ Sharma, Maya (6 August 2019). Varma, Shylaja (ed.). ""May We Soon Reunite With Our Homes": Kashmiri Singer On Article 370 Move". NDTV.
  3. 1 2 3 Sharma, Sakshi (18 July 2020). "Her love letter to Kashmir". Daily Pioneer.
  4. 1 2 Govind, Ranjani (13 August 2019). "Voice of the Valley". The Hindu.
  5. 1 2 3 Chakravarti, Deepshikha (23 April 2023). "Kashmiri Folk Singer Aabha Hanjura Talks About Being A Woman In The Music Industry". SheThePeople.
  6. 1 2 Basu, Vijayeta (19 July 2020). "SMALL TALK: MEET THE SWEET VALLEY GIRL". Mumbai Mirror.
  7. 1 2 3 Saksena, Shalini (25 August 2019). "'Language is no barrier to music'". Daily Pioneer.
  8. 1 2 "Abha Hanjura show was a hit, officials". Kashmir Life. 17 September 2017.
  9. ↑ Singh, Deepali (17 July 2018). "Kashmiri music makes a foray into popular culture". DNA India.
  10. ↑ Ruchita (20 November 2020). "Kashmiri folk-fusion artist Aabha Hanjura on unheard 'Khoobsurat' melodies of Kashmir & more [Exclusive]". IBTimes India.
  11. ↑ "Singer Aabha Hanjura reacts to her song 'Hukus Bukus' being used in Rahul, Priyanka Gandhi video". Indian Express. 1 February 2023.
  12. ↑ Purkayastha, Pallabi Dey (11 October 2020). "Aabha Hanjura talks about the inspiration behind her song 'Khoobsurat'". Times of India.
  13. 1 2 Pinto, Nascimento (14 July 2023). "Uniqueness of Kashmiri music can be described with its sonic identity: Aabha Hanjura". Mid-Day.
  14. ↑ Tagat, Anurag (10 August 2022). "This Is My Music: Aabha Hanjura". Rolling Stone India.
  15. ↑ Kadam, Bhagyashri (24 March 2023). "Aabha Hanjura's Mere Hikduye Gadbad Is A New Age Blend Of Folk". Lehren.
  16. 1 2 "Bringing long lost sounds to the mainstream". The New Indian Express. 4 November 2020.
  17. ↑ Kejriwal, Rohini (7 February 2014). "The sound of Kashmir". Deccan Herald.
  18. ↑ Khurana, Suanshu (24 January 2020). "Art's job is to catalyse things: Sounds of Kashmir singer Aabha Hanjura". Indian Express.
  19. ↑ Sudeep, Theres (3 April 2020). "Not just a musician, also a storyteller: Aabha Hanjura". Deccan Herald.
  20. ↑ Singh, Deepali (3 September 2018). "'I wanted to make the song my own': Aabha Hanjura". DNA.
  21. 1 2 Tagat, Anurag (31 July 2019). "Watch Aabha Hanjura's New Two-Part Video Release 'Roshewalla'". Rolling Stone India.
  22. ↑ Britto, David (15 July 2020). "Sufi-Folk Artist Aabha Hanjura Sings About Kashmir's Beauty on 'Nundbane'". Rolling Stone India.
  23. ↑ Monalisa, Monika (23 November 2020). "Aabha Hanjura: With a note of positivity". The New Indian Express.
  24. ↑ Iyengar, Shriram (9 August 2022). "Sufi on her mind: Aabha Hanjura's Madano is a musical expression of her love for Kashmiri culture". Mid-Day.
  25. ↑ Lulla, Sonia (27 March 2023). "Kashmiri folk musician Aabha Hanjura showcases notes from her land". Mid-Day.
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