Ustad Manzoor Ali Khan ( sd, استاد منظور علي خان) (1922 – 9 September 1980) was a Pakistani singer belonging to the

Gwalior gharana The Gwalior Gharana (Gwalior school of classical music) is one of the oldest Khyal Gharana in Indian classical music. The rise of the Gwalior Gharana started with the reign of the Mughal emperor Akbar (1542–1605). The favourite singers of t ...

singing style, one of the oldest singing traditions in

Hindustani classical music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sita ...

. Born in Shikarpur, Sindh, Pakistan, he was the first classical musician of the twentieth century who knew about the regional music of Sindh.

Early life

Manzoor's father had migrated from Gurdaspur, Punjab, British India and came to live at

Khairpur Khairpur( Sindhi and ur, ) is a city and the capital of the Khairpur District, in Pakistan's Sindh province. History The Talpur dynasty was established in 1783 by Mir Fateh Ali Khan, who declared himself the first ''Rais'', or ruler of Sindh, ...

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

because of the ruling

Talpur Talpur (, bal, تالپورء اۏبادگ) is a Saraiki-speaking Baloch sub-clan of the Hoth tribe settled in Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan in Pakistan. The tribe established the Talpur dynasty, which ruled between 1783 and 1843, while a bran ...

s, who were quite fond of his music. In a short period of time, the family shifted to Shikarpur. Manzoor was born in 1922 in Shikarpur, Sindh, Pakistan. He studied there up to secondary school level and later moved to Tando Adam Khan with his father in 1940.

Musical career

Manzoor Ali Khan took musical lessons from his father, Jamalo Khan and another musician Seendho Khan. His parents took him to musical events in Sindh and Punjab. He was a maestro in singing "Tappa", a kind of classical music, in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. He made various compositions.Book on Manzoor Ali Khan launched
Dawn (newspaper), Published 8 December 2010. Retrieved 13 August 2019 He composed and sang

Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai ( sd, شاھ عبداللطيف ڀٽائي, ur, ; 1689/1690 – 21 December 1752), commonly known by the honorifics ''Lakhino Latif'', ''Latif Ghot'', ''Bhittai'', and ''Bhit Jo Shah'', was a Sindhi Sufi mystic, an ...

's poetry in all forms. He performed at

Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation Radio Pakistan serves as the national public broadcaster for radio in Pakistan. Although some local stations predate Radio Pakistan's founding, it is the oldest existing broadcasting network in Pakistan. The network was established on 14 August ...

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

and then at Hyderabad since 1955, and

Pakistan Television Corporation Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore. Background Historical co ...

center in the same years. Many cassette companies have released the volumes of his programs.

Mother tongue

His mother tongue was

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

, however he used to speak and write in Sindhi. His children also received education in Sindhi language.

Awards

Manzoor Ali Khan received several awards. He was honored with the title of "Bahar-e-Moseeqi" by Makhdoom Talib ul Mola at the

Urs Urs (from ''‘Urs'') or ''Urus'' (literal meaning wedding), is the death anniversary of a Sufi saint, usually held at the saint's dargah (shrine or tomb). In most Sufi orders such as Naqshbandiyyah, Suhrawardiyya, Chishtiyya, Qadiriyya, etc. t ...

in 1960.

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...

awarded him "Tamgha-e-Husne Karkardagi" ( Pride of Performance) in 1978.

Death and legacy

He died from a heart attack on 9 September 1980.Classical singer Ustad Manzoor Ali Khan remembered
Dawn (newspaper), Published 9 November 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2019 In December 2010, Sindh Minister for Culture

Sassui Palijo Sassui Palijo ( Sindhi: سسئي پليجو) is a politician and a columnist from Thatta, Sindh, Pakistan. Palijo is currently affiliated to Pakistan Peoples Party, served as a Senator on women's reserved seat from Sindh from 2015 to 2021. She is ...

, paying tributes to Manzoor Ali Khan, called him the symbol and identity of Sindhi classical music. Former

Chief Minister of Sindh Chief Minister of Sindh (, ur, —), is the elected head of government of Sindh. Syed Murad Ali Shah is a PPP politician and the current Chief Minister of Sindh. The Chief Minister is the head of the provincial government alongside the Chief S ...

, Ghous Ali Shah was a fan of Manzoor Ali Khan for a long time. He recalled that he could not forget the excellent performance of Manzoor Ali Khan at the wedding ceremony of brother of noted story writer

Naseem Kharal Naseem Ahmed Kharal ( sd, نسيم کرل) (June 29, 1939 – July 14, 1978) was a Sindhi short story writer.Daily Dawn on July 15, 2003 He was born on June 29, 1939, in Kharalabad, Khairpur District of British India, what subsequently became Paki ...

. He also said that Manzoor Ali Khan could sing, with equal mastery, poetry of almost all

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

s of

including

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Manzoor Ali 1922 births 1980 deaths 20th-century Pakistani male singers Gwalior gharana Pakistani classical musicians Pakistani folk singers Pakistani music educators Recipients of Latif Award Pakistani classical singers Sindhi-language singers Singers from Sindh