Nagore Esmail Mohammed Hanifa (25 December 1925 – 8 April 2015) was a

Tamil Muslim Tamil Muslims are Tamils who practise Islam. The community is 5.7 million in India, primarily in the state of Tamil Nadu where 70% of the Muslim community identified themselves as Tamils. The Tamil-speaking Muslims are descendants of marria ...

lyricist, playback singer and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

. He was known as ''Isai Murasu'' for his deep stentorian voice. His signature song was "Iraivanidam Kaiyendungal". It was written by Kiliyanur, (near Mayiladuthurai) R. Abdul Salam. The lyrics are beyond any specific religion. It is liked by not only Muslims but Hindus and Christians, even today sung by many singers on stages. He is considered one of the greatest and most influential singers of South India and beyond.

Early life

Esmail Mohammed Hanifa, born on 25 December 1925 in Vellipattinam,

Ramanathapuram district Ramanathapuram District, also known as Ramnad District, is one of the 38 districts an administrative districts of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The old Ramanathapuram District consists of Present day Virudhunagar and Sivagangai district ...

, Tamil Nadu. His father Mohammed Ismail Rowther was from Nagore and his mother was from Ramanathapuram. his maternal great grandfather Muthu Rowther was a Armory Custodian and Guardian of Kingdom of Ramnad.

Politics and cinema

Hanifa, who spent his early childhood in his mother’s hometown of Ramanathapuram, later went to work for his paternal uncle Abu Bakr Rowther in Tiruvarur. It was during this period, in his early teenage years, that he struck up a friendship with

Muthuvel Karunanidhi Muthuvel Karunanidhi (3 June 1924 – 7 August 2018) was an Indian writer and politician who served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for almost two decades over five terms between 1969 and 2011. He was popularly referred to as Kalaignar (Art ...

, who was gaining a reputation for oratory even as a schoolboy Nagore Hanifa penned many devotional songs independently which are widely used in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

, during festivals and marriages. During the 1950s the songs which he sang for Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam boosted the fortunes of the party. He was also a film playback singer. Iraivanidam Kaiyenthungal is very well known song from him among all the Tamils. During the 1970s, he was the member of

Tamil Nadu Legislative Council Tamil Nadu Legislative Council was the upper house of the former bicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It began its existence as Madras Legislative Council, the first provincial legislature for Madras Presidency. It was in ...

, which is defunct now. He died on 8 April 2015, aged 89.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanifa, Nagore Tamil musicians 2015 deaths 1925 births Members of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Council 20th-century Indian musicians Tamil Muslims