Amar Singh Shaunki (15 August 1916 – 14 August 1981), also spelled as Amar Singh Shonki, was a Dhadi singer of

Punjab, India Punjab (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the States and union territories of India, Indian states of Himachal ...

Early life

Shaunki was born as Amar Singh on 15 August 1916, in a

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

family to father

Sardar Sardar, also spelled as Sardaar/Sirdar ( fa, سردار, , 'commander', literally 'headmaster'), is a title of royalty and nobility that was originally used to denote princes, noblemen, chiefs, kings and other aristocrats. It has also been u ...

Moola Singh, in the village of Bhajjlan (now

Hoshiarpur district Hoshiarpur district is a district of Punjab, India, Punjab state in northern India. Hoshiarpur, one of the oldest districts of Punjab, is located in the North-east part of the Punjab state and shares common boundaries with Gurdaspur district in ...

) in

British Punjab Punjab was a province of British India. Most of the Punjab region was annexed by the East India Company in 2 April 1849, and declared a province of British Rule, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British co ...

(British India). He hailed from a farmer family and never went to school but learned Punjabi (Gurmukhi) from the other educated persons. He got married and had three sons, Sawraj Singh, Jaspal Singh and Pargat Singh.

Career

He was very much interested in folk music from his childhood and learned it from Sant Baba Maan Singh of

Sialkot Sialkot ( ur, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Sialkot District and the 13th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined with Jammu (the winter capital of Indian administered Jammu and Ka ...

. At first he sang under last name ''Mast'' but as started singing with

Dhadd Dhadd ( pa, ਢੱਡ), also spelled as Dhad or Dhadh is an hourglass-shaped traditional musical instrument native to Punjab that is mainly used by the Dhadi singers. It is also used by other folk singers of the region. Design and playing Th ...

and

Sarangi The sārangī is a bowed, short-necked string instrument played in traditional music from South Asia – Punjabi folk music, Rajasthani folk music, and Boro folk music (there known as the ''serja'') – in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. It is ...

and made a team with Sarwan Singh and Mohan Singh Binda, he fixed ''Shaunki'' as his last name. The main themes of his songs evokes the culture and folk of

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

. He sang about every color of Punjabi folk. The main themes of his songs were the evergreen folk stories of Punjab like

Heer Ranjha ''Heer Ranjha'' (or ''Heer and Ranjha'') ( pnb, , ਹੀਰ ਰਾਂਝਾ ) is one of several popular tragic romances of Punjab, other important ones being "Sohni Mahiwal", "Mirza Sahiban" and " Sassi Punnhun". There are several poetic na ...

Mirza Sahiban ''Mirza Sahiban'' ( pa, ਮਿਰਜ਼ਾ ਸਾਹਿਬਾਂ, , ') is one of the four popular tragic romances of the Punjab. The other three are ''Heer Ranjha'', ''Sohni Mahiwal'' and ''Sassi Punnun''. There are five other popular folklor ...

Sassui Punnhun Sassi Punnuh or Sassui Punhun ( sd, سَسُئيِ پُنهوُن) is a love story from Punjabi, Sindhi, and Balochi folklore. The story is about a faithful lover who will endure any difficulty while seeking her beloved husband who was separat ...

, Rani Sundran and

Pooran Bhagat Puran Bhagat (later became Sri Chauranginatha) was a Punjabi Nath Saint and prince of Sialkot. As per unauthenticated history, he had been exiled and lived the last days of his life in a village located in the suburbs of Sialkot city. His temple ...

, heroes of

Sikh history Guru Nanak founded the Sikh faith in the Punjab region of the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, and present-day Pakistan, in the end of fifteenth century. He was first of the ten Sikh Gurus. The tenth, Guru Gobind Singh, formalised its pr ...

likes

Hari Singh Nalwa Hari Singh Nalwa (1791–1837) was Commander-in-chief of the Sikh Khalsa Fauj, the army of the Sikh Empire. He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Peshawar and Jamrud. Hari Singh Nalwa was respons ...

, the

masters and other freedom fighters. He wrote songs on various topics including the four tragic love stories of

Saka Sirhind Chhotte Sahibzade (Punjabi: ਛੋਟੇ ਸਾਹਿਬਜ਼ਾਦੇ ; younger sons of Guru Gobind Singh Ji) attained martyrdom on 26 December 1704 at a very young age of 7 & 5 only. This is known as Saka Sirhind (Punjabi: ਸਾਕਾ ਸਰ� ...

and Sikh heroes. Many Punjabi singers today, including

Manmohan Waris Manmohan Waris (born 3 August 1967) is an Indian Punjabi folk/pop singer. He is the elder brother of record producer Sangtar and singer Kamal Heer. Waris is considered one of the most gifted singers of Punjabi folk music. Career Manmohan Waris ...

and

Kamal Heer Kamal Heer (born Kamaljeet Singh Heer) is an Indian born Canadian musician. He is the younger brother of Manmohan Waris and Sangtar, two other esteemed musicians. His live performances showcase his virtuosity with taan and his command of the art ...

sings songs written by him.

Discography

A well known music company,

HMV Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom. The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...

, recorded many of his records. There are about 138 phonograph records to his credit.

Remembering

People of his village Bhajjlan organized a fair, ''Dhadi Amar Singh Shaunki Sabhyacharak Mela'', every year in his memory. Punjabi singers from all around the world participate in the fair and pay tribute.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaunki, Amar Singh Dhadis Punjabi-language singers Punjabi-language lyricists 1916 births 1981 deaths 20th-century Indian male singers 20th-century Indian singers

Early life

Career

Discography

Remembering

See also

References