Asha Bhosle is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur, actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in the media as one of the greatest and most influential singers in Hindi cinema. In her career spanning over eight decades she has recorded songs for films and albums in various Indian languages and received several accolades including two National Film Awards, four BFJA Awards, eighteen Maharashtra State Film Awards, nine Filmfare Awards including a Lifetime Achievement Award and a record seven Filmfare Awards for Best Female Playback Singer, in addition to two Grammy nominations. In 2000, she was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India's highest award in the field of cinema. In 2008, she was honoured by the Government of India with the Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian honour of the country. The Guinness Book of World Records acknowledged her in 2011 as the most recorded artist in music history.
Mehdi Hassan Khan, known mononymously as Mehdi Hassan, was a Pakistani ghazal singer and playback singer of great renown. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential figures in the history of ghazal singing, Hassan is referred to as the Shahenshah-e-Ghazal. Known for his "haunting" baritone voice, Hassan is credited with bringing ghazal singing to a worldwide audience. He is unique for his melodic patterns and maintaining integrity of the ragas in an innovative way.
Mohammed Zahur Khayyam Hashmi, better known mononymously as Khayyam, was an Indian music director and background score composer whose career spanned four decades.
Madan Mohan Kohli, better known as Madan Mohan, was an Indian music director of the 1950s, 1960s and the 1970s. He is considered one of the most melodious and skilled music directors of the Hindi film industry. He is particularly remembered for the immortal ghazals he composed for Hindi films. Some of his best works are with singers Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi and Talat Mahmood.
Hariharan Anantha Subramani is an Indian playback, bhajan and ghazal singer who predominantly sings in Tamil, Hindi and Telugu languages. He has also sung over 15,000 notable songs in 10+ languages including Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi, Sinhala, Maithili, Bhojpuri, Odia, Bengali, Sanskrit, Gujarati and English. He is an established ghazal singer and one of the pioneers of Indian fusion music.
Karsh Kale is an Indian-American musician born in England. Known primarily for his experimental tabla playing within electronic music contexts, Kale's career has seen him take on roles of an Indian classical tabla player, singer, songwriter, film and TV score composer and DJ. He is considered a pioneer of the Asian Underground genre, bringing elements of Indian music to Electronica and Dance. His career highlights include touring as the supergroup Tabla Beat Science, 6 solo studio records from 1999, the seminal 2005 album "Breathing Under Water" with Anoushka Shankar, scoring and production for the 2019 Bollywood smash hit "Gully Boy", curating 6 acclaimed songs for the Indian Coke Studio in 2012, amongst many others. Kale is also popular for his eclectic collaborations with Sting, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Ustad Sultan Khan, U2, Norah Jones, Yoko Ono, and Herbie Hancock to name a few.
Pankaj Udhas was an Indian ghazal and playback singer known for his works in Hindi cinema, and Indian pop. He started his career with the release of a ghazal album titled Aahat in 1980 and subsequently recorded many hits like Mukarar in 1981, Tarrannum in 1982, Mehfil in 1983, Pankaj Udhas Live at Royal Albert Hall in 1984, Nayaab in 1985 and Aafreen in 1986. After his success as a ghazal singer, he was invited to appear and sing for a film by Mahesh Bhatt, Naam, in which his song "Chitthi Aayee Hai" became an instant hit. He did playback singing for many Hindi films after that. Albums and live concerts around the globe brought him fame as a singer. In 2006, Pankaj Udhas was awarded Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award. His brothers Nirmal Udhas and Manhar Udhas are also singers.
Ahmed Hussain and Mohammed Hussain are ghazal singers from Jaipur, India. They are two brothers who sing classical ghazals and devotional music.
The MTV Immies are held every year with an aim to award the best talents in the Indian music industry. In 2005 The Immies supported relief for the quake victims of India and Pakistan. Also, proceeds from donor passes were given to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund. In keeping with tradition, a number of Pakistani as well as international artists performed at the event.
Ustad Amanat Ali Khan was a Pakistani classical vocalist from the Patiala gharana tradition of music and is widely regarded as one of the finest classical and ghazal singers of all time. Together with his younger brother, Ustad Bade Fateh Ali Khan, he formed a famed singing duo that garnered widespread popularity across the Indian subcontinent. For his contributions to classical music, Amanat Ali was honoured with the highest national literary award of Pakistan – the Pride of Performance – by the President of Pakistan in 1969. Khan was especially noted for khayal, thumri, and ghazal styles of singing and has been described as "the maestro of the Patiala gharana." He stands with singing icons like Mehdi Hassan and Ahmed Rushdi, having left behind a legacy of hundreds of classical and semi-classical songs.
Sophie Choudry is a British singer and actress based in India. She has been active primarily in Hindi-language films and is also a former MTV India VJ and occasional model, and television presenter.
Kalyani Bondre is an academic and Indian classical vocalist.
Coke Studio Pakistan is a Pakistani television programme and a part of the international music franchise, Coke Studio, which features studio-recorded music performances by established and emerging artists. It is the longest-running annual television music show in Pakistan, airing annually since 2008. The programme's concept originated in Brazil and has subsequently expanded its reach worldwide.
Colonial Cousins is an Indian duo, formed by singer Hariharan and singer-composer Leslee Lewis, who also have successful solo careers. Their eponymous first album hit platinum in sales in India and consistently headed the Indian music charts in 1996. The duo have received numerous awards, notably the MTV Asia Viewers' Choice Award, 1996, and the US Billboard's Viewers' Award, 1996. On 19 November 1998, the Colonial Cousins released their second album, The Way We Do It. They released their third album Aatma on 1 January 2001. They have scored two Tamil films, Modhi Vilayadu (2009), Chikku Bukku (2010). Their fourth album Once More was released in 2012.
Zila Khan is an Indian Sufi music, Hindustani classical music singer and an actress.
Coke Studio is an Indian music series that's part of the international franchise, Coke Studio. It features live studio recordings by various artists, showcasing a diverse range of music. This includes classical genres from the Indian subcontinent like Hindustani, Carnatic, Indian folk, alongside hip hop, rock, and pop music.
"Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo" is a geet written by Pakistani poet Fayyaz Hashmi. It was composed by Sohail Rana, an eminent Pakistani composer. It was popularized by noted classical vocalist, Habib Wali Mohammad, who also sang it as a film playback singer for the hit Pakistani film Badal Aur Bijli (1973). The song was also sung by famous ghazal singer Farida Khanum in 1993 for Pakistan Television and repeatedly in her live public concerts. It is sung in Raag Yaman Kalyan.
Aditya J. Patwardhan is an Indian origin film director, producer and scriptwriter from Jaipur, India. He has representation with the Rough Diamond Productions of Julia Verdin. He is best known for his short film Red House by the Crossroads (2015) for which he won Best Short film Award at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival Awards. and the film was also the part of the 2015 Cannes Short Film Corner Cannes Film Festival 2015. His popular music video "Katra Katra" is currently playing on MTV India in the Indie Pop category on national television in India.
Mangala Bhatt is a Kathak dance exponent. She is the senior disciple of Kathak maestro Pt. Durga Lal Ji of Jaipur Gharana. She has performed at many festivals in India. She is also the founding director of Aakruti Kathak Kendra.
