Bihari Lal Yadav (1857–1926), also referred to as Guru Bihari, was a

Bhojpuri Bhojpuri (;Bhojpuri entry, Oxford Dictionaries
, Oxford U ...

writer, poet and singer. He is also known as the founder of the modern

Biraha Biraha (sometimes known as Birha) is an ethnic Bhojpuri folk genre of Ahir communities in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Jharkhand in India. Its place in folk songs is as important as that of ''Dwipadi'' in Sanskrit, ''Gatha'' in Prakrit and ''Barwai ...

folk genre, this older genre is called ''Khari Birha''. He is also credited to invent a musical instrument, which was a version of

Khartal Khartal is an ancient instrument mainly used in devotional / folk songs. It has derived its name from Sanskrit words ‘kara’ meaning hand and ‘tala’ meaning clapping. This wooden clapper is a Ghana Vadya which has discs or plates that pro ...

and introducing it in Bihaha. He wrote Biraha and popularized it in the cities like

Benaras Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic tra ...

and also taught it to his disciples.

Life

Bihari was born in a Bhojpuriya

Ahir Ahir or Aheer are a community of traditionally non-elite pastoralists in India, most members of which identify as being of the Indian Yadav community because they consider the two terms to be synonymous. The Ahirs are variously described as a ...

family in a village named Patna near Aunrihar town in

Ghazipur district Ghazipur district is a district of Uttar Pradesh state in northern India. The city of Ghazipur is the district headquarters. The district is part of Varanasi Division. The region of Ghazipur is famous mainly for the production of its unique r ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

in 1857. He was the only son of his parents. His parent died in very early age and he had to move to Benaras at the age of fourteen in search of job. He permanently resided in Ahiryana near Nichi Bagh. He started performing Biraha in the temples of Benaras. From their he got fame as a poet and singer and then he got four disciples ''Ramman Yadav'', ''Ganes Yadav'', ''Pattu Yadav'' and ''Sarju Rajbhar''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yadav, Bihari Lal 1857 births 1926 deaths Indian poets Indian singers Indian writers