Pragaash ( ks, प्रागाश्, ''prāgāsh'' — «moonshine») was an all-female

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...

rock band consisting of Noma Nazir Bhatt, Aneeqa Khalid and Farah Deeba. The band was formed in December 2012 and received controversy from

Islamic scholars In Islam, the ''ulama'' (; ar, علماء ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ''ulema''; feminine: ''alimah'' ingularand ''aalimath'' lural are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious ...

, who claimed that the band members allegedly broke the codes of Islam. The band members all received threats of

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

, rape, and other physical harm, as well as a

fatwa A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...

from

Grand Mufti The Grand Mufti (also called Chief Mufti, State Mufti and Supreme Mufti) is the head of regional muftis, Islamic jurisconsults, of a state. The office originated in the early modern era in the Ottoman empire and has been later adopted in a num ...

, which prompted them to quit the band.

History

The band made their first public appearance on 10 December 2012 when they participated in a Battle of Bands competition in

Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It lies in the Kashmir Valley on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus, and Dal and Anchar lakes. The city is known for its natu ...

, where they received the award for "Best Performance".

Death threats

Shortly after their win at the Battle of Bands, the group began to receive death and rape threats via their

cell phones A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whil ...

and Facebook profiles. The Grand Mufti publicly criticized the band, stating that they were exhibiting "indecent behaviour" and that "this kind of non-serious activity can become the first step towards our destruction". On 3 February 2013 he issued a

against the group, stating that music was "not good for society" and that all of the "bad things happening in the Indian society are because of music". Later that same month the police registered a

First Information Report __NOTOC__ A first information report (FIR) is a document prepared by police organisations in Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asian countries including Myanmar, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan when they receive information about the commissio ...

against the online attackers and

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

Omar Abdullah Omar Abdullah (; born 10 March 1970) is an Indian politician and former Chief Minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. He became the 11th and the youngest Chief Minister of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, after forming a governme ...

ordered a probe in the matter. In February 2013 three people were taken into custody and arrested for "promoting enmity between classes" and "criminal intimidation". The band has received a large amount of global online support. The group initially received expressions of support and offers of security for the band from

via Twitter, but he later deleted his tweets.

Band members

*Noma Nazir Bhatt, Vocals and guitar *Farah Deeba, Drums *Aneeqa Khalid, Bass guitar

Popular culture

1) A authorized docu-drama, PRAGAASH (the song of silence) has been made on this Pragaash band by Marijuana Films . in 2017 written and directed by Janmejay Singh which contains all the real interviews of Noma and Judges along with Adnan and famous music personalities of Jammu and Kashmir. 2)The band is cited in Marlon James's

Man Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

winning novel ''

A Brief History of Seven Killings ''A Brief History of Seven Killings'' is the third novel by Jamaican author Marlon James (novelist), Marlon James. It was published in 2014 by Riverhead Books. The novel spans several decades and explores the attempted assassination of Bob Marley ...

'' as "First Ray of Light".

References

External links