Jaisalmer, nicknamed The Golden city, is a city in the north-western Indian state of Rajasthan, located 575 kilometres (357 mi) west of the state capital Jaipur. It serves as the administrative headquarters of Jaisalmer district. It is the historic capital of the kingdom of Jaisalmer, founded in 1156 by Rawal Jaisal of the Bhati clan of Rajputs. Jaisalmer stands on a ridge of yellowish sandstone and is crowned by the ancient Jaisalmer Fort. This fort contains a royal palace and several ornate Jain temples. Many of the houses and temples of both the fort and of the town below are built of finely sculptured yellow sandstone. The town lies in the heart of the Thar Desert and has a population, including the residents of the fort, of about 78,000. Jaisalmer ranked 9th on Booking.com's Top 10 The Most Welcoming cities in the world. It is the only Indian city on the list.
This type of music originates from the Rajasthan, one of the states of India and home to several important centers of Indian musical development, including Udaipur, Jodhpur and Jaipur. The region's music shares similarities both with nearby areas of India and the other side of the border, in the Pakistani province of Sindh.
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.
Ila Arun is an Indian actress, TV personality and Rajasthani folk-pop singer known for her works in Hindi cinema, and Indian pop. She has appeared in many prominent Bollywood films such as Lamhe, Jodhaa Akbar, Shaadi Ke Side Effects and Begum Jaan.
Kaushiki Chakraborty is an Indian classical vocalist of the Patiala gharana. Her repertoire covers pure classical, Khyals, Dadras, Thumris, Bhajans and several other forms of Indian music. She is the recipient 2005 BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music in the Asia-Pacific category. She is the daughter of noted hindustani classical vocalist, Ajoy Chakraborty. Kaushiki is also a trained Carnatic classical vocalist.
Akhtar Chanal Zahri (b.1954) is a Pakistani Baloch folk singer. He is famous for his singing in Coke Studio Pakistan.
Natalie Di Luccio is an Italian-Canadian classical-crossover singer from Toronto, Ontario. She is often referred to as "Bollywood's Soprano" because of her unique renditions of Indian classics.
Swaroop Khan is an Indian playback folk singer from Rajasthan He is known for his popular songs "Tharki Chokro" in PK and Ghoomar in Padmaavat. He had contested in the Indian Idol Season 5.
Rajnigandha Shekhawat is a popular singer from Rajasthan, India. She is known for singing Rajasthani folk, Bollywood, English and Rajasthani Marwari mashups, and vintage classics.
Sakar Khan (1938–2013) was an Indian musician, considered by many as the greatest exponent of the Kamayacha, a Rajasthani version of the Persian musical instrument of the same name, popular among the Manganiar community of the Indian desert state. The Government of India honoured Khan in 2012, with the fourth highest civilian award of Padma Shri.
Anthony Daasan is an Indian folk singer, who is currently working in the Tamil film industry. He is known for contributing a powerful voice to fusions of Tamil-folk, country, jazz, electronica and rock styles. Before this phase of playback singing, he worked as a travelling festival folk singer artist, collaborating with players of Nadaswaram, Thavil and Thappu, dancers and acrobats among others. He has performed with influential movie industry veterans such as Usha Uthup.
Ashok Manda Bishnoi, better known by his stage name Rapperiya Baalam, is a rapper, songwriter, music composer, and producer based in Jaipur, Rajasthan. He rose to fame in 2014 with his song "Mharo Rajasthan", a folk–hip hop fusion song featuring Swaroop Khan.
Alamgir Khan is an Indian playback singer who sings Bollywood, Hindi and Punjabi songs as well as Sufi and Ghazals.He is credited for ad jingle 'Mauka Mauka' conceived for ICC Cricket World Cup by Star Sports.
"Nimbooda" is a traditional folk tune from Rajasthan. It was first popularized by Gazi Khan Barna of the Manganiar community in Rajasthan.
Barmer Boys is an Indian musical group produced by Amarrass Records. They belong to the Manganiyar Sufi Muslims community from Rajasthan
Pinky Maidasani is an Indian rapper and playback singer. She has been described as the first female folk rapper of India, blending Rajasthani folk music with modern rap. She has performed in more than 5000 live shows; her songs have been featured in recent Bollywood movies. She sings in 13 languages. She has sung songs in the Bollywood film Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana. She sang a Punjabi rap song "Kikli Kalerdi" accompanied with Yo Yo Honey Singh. In 2015, her film Sharafat Gayi Tel Lene hit the theatres. She combined the rap with desi music.
Bhanwari Devi is a folk singer from Rajasthan, India. She belongs to the Bhopa community, and has gained wide recognition for her performances of traditional and folk music from Rajasthan.
Dapu Khan from Ganwarit Jat caste was a Rajasthani Folk singer known for entertaining tourists from India and abroad in the fort of Jaisalmer over 30 years. He died at the age of 62 on March 13, 2021, after reportedly suffering a heart attack. Dapu is one of the very few exponents of the Kamaicha, which is often termed as one of the oldest bowed instruments in the world.
Kutle Khan is an Indian singer, music composer, and songwriter from Rajasthan. He has been a playback singer for numerous films and TV Series such as Aambala, Action, Afwaah, Dahaad, Love Shaadi Drama. Kadish Ulga Por. Khan was featured on Coke Studio @ MTV Season 3. He received the Best Folk Single Award at Global Indian Music Academy Awards (GiMA) 2015 for his composition "Moomal".
