Reshma ( ur, ; c.1947 – 3 November 2013), was a Pakistani

folk singer Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

. Awarded with

Sitara-e-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially meritorious contribution to the ...

(Star of Distinction), the third highest honour and civilian award in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

among other honours, she is remembered for folk songs and her powerful singing voice. Born in

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

, India in a nomadic

Banjara The Banjara (also known as ,Vanzara,Lambadi,Gour Rajput,Labana) are a historically nomadic trading caste who may have origins in the Mewar region of what is now Rajasthan. Etymology The Banjaras usually refer to themselves as ''Gor'' and out ...

household in 1947, her family relocated to

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 c ...

after the Partition of India. Discovered by a local producer at the age of twelve while singing at the shrine of

Lal Shahbaz Qalandar Hazrat Sayyid Usman Marwandi, (1177 - 19 February 1274) popularly known as Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (), was a Sufi saint and poet of present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan. Lal Shahbaz Qalandar was born in Marwand, Sistan to a family from Baghdad ...

Sehwan Sehwan ( sd, سيوهڻ شريف, ur, ; also commonly referred to as Sehwan Sharif or ''Noble Sehwan'') is a historic city located in Jamshoro District of Sindh province in Pakistan and on the west bank of the Indus north-west of Hyderabad. The ...

, Sindh, Reshma went on to record various folk songs for such labels as the Pakistan Radio. Her first project with the company " Laal Meri" was an instant hit and she was catapulted to fame with several television appearances in the 1960s. Reshma went on to record songs for both the Pakistani and

Indian film industry The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Ko ...

. Some of her most memorable songs include "Laal Meri", "Hai O Rabba Nahion Lagda Dil Mera", "Ankhiyan Nu Rehen De" and "Lambi Judai" among others. She died on 3 November 2013 in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

, Pakistan, after suffering from throat cancer for several years.

Early life

Reshma was born in the village of Loha, Ratangarh tehsil of Churu district, near

Bikaner Bikaner () is a city in the northwest of the state of Rajasthan, India. It is located northwest of the state capital, Jaipur. Bikaner city is the administrative headquarters of Bikaner District and Bikaner division. Formerly the capital of ...

around 1947.Srivastara, Sanjeev (2000)
Festive celebrations in Rajasthan

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

, 25 September 2000. Retrieved 14 July 2019 Her father, Haji Muhammad Mushtaq, was a camel and horse trader from Malashi.Siddiqui, Rana (2004)
The singer, the song (Reshma's profile)
, ''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

'' (newspaper), Published 16 February 2004, Retrieved 14 July 2019 She belonged to a tribe which had converted to Islam. Her tribe migrated to

shortly after the Partition of India, when she was just one month old.Legendary Pakistani singer Reshma passes away after long battle with throat cancer
dnaindia.com website, 3 November 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2019 She did not receive any formal education and spent much of her childhood singing at the 'mazars' (shrines) of the mystic saints of Sindh,

. She was a vegetarian by choice and her favorite foods were 'saag' (cooked mustard greens), 'makai roti' (corn bread), and 'missi roti'.

Career

Reshma was spotted, at the age of 12, singing at the

Shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar The Shrine of Lal Shabaz Qalandar ( ur, ; sd, لال شهباز قلندر جي مزار) is a shrine and mausoleum dedicated to the 13th century Muslim and Sufi saint, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar. The shrine is located in Sehwan Sharif, in the Pakist ...

by then Pakistani television and radio producer, Saleem Gilani. Gilani arranged for her to make a recording of "Laal Meri Pat Rakhio" on

Radio Pakistan 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 Augus ...

in 1968. She became an instant hit and since that day, Reshma has been one of the most popular folk singers of Pakistan, and garnered international renown. Reshma had been appearing on television since 1968, recording songs for both the Pakistani and

, and performing in live concerts at home and abroad. Some of her famous songs are "Dama Dam Mast Kalandar", "Hai O' Rabba nahion lagda dil mera", "Sun charkhe di mithi mithi khook mahiya meinu yaad aunda", "Wey main chori chori teray naal laayyan akhhian" ( song lyrics by renowned Punjabi poet Manzoor Hussain Jhalla ), " Kithay Nain Na Jori", "Lambi Judai" and "Ankhiyan nu rehen de ankhyan de kol kol". The above song was used by

Raj Kapoor Raj Kapoor (pronunciation: �aːd͡ʒ kəpuːɾ born Shrishti Nath Kapoor; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of th ...

in his film ''

Bobby Bobby or Bobbie may refer to: People * Bobby (given name), a list of names * Bobby (actress), from Bangladesh * Bobby (rapper) (born 1995), from South Korea * Bobby (screenwriter) (born 1983), Indian screenwriter * Bobby, old slang for a constabl ...

'', "Ankhyon ko rehne de ankhyon ke aas pass", sung by

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her con ...

. Her fame had crossed the border, thanks to pirated tapes. She was able to perform live in India much later, during the 1980s when India and Pakistan allowed exchange of artists. Subhash Ghai used her voice in the film ''

Hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...

'', which featured one of her most famous songs, "Lambi Judai".Chopra, Dinesh (2004)
Lambi judai? Reshma asks who's Tendulkar
''

Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest se ...

'', 14 April 2004. Retrieved 14 July 2019 During her career she was invited to meet Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.Puniyani, Ram (2003) ''Communal Politics: Facts versus Myths'', Sage, , p. 101 In 2004, she recorded "Ashkan Di Gali Vich Mukaam De Gaya", which was used in the

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

film ''

Woh Tera Naam Tha ''Woh Tera Naam Tha'' is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language film starring Arjan Bajwa, Kanchi Kaul and Amrish Puri. The music was composed by Roop Kumar Rathod. The cinematographer was by Manmohan Singh (director), Manmohan Singh. Synopsis Orphaned ...

'', and was also a hit record in India.Reshma sings for Bollywood
''

'', 20 January 2004. Retrieved 14 July 2019 In January 2006, she was one of the passengers on the inaugural Lahore-Amritsar bus, the first such service linking both parts of the

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 a ...

since 1947. The bus had 26 passengers in total of whom 15 were Pakistani officials, and Reshma had booked seven seats for herself and her family. Reshma planned to give many performances in India on this tour. Her last residence was in the area of

Ichhra Ichhra ( Punjabi, ur, ) is a commercial and residential area in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It is predominantly a residential and commercial area. Being a very old locality, some very old buildings can be seen in Ichhra. It is noted for its Ic ...

, Pakistan. Her younger sister Kaneez Reshma is also a professional singer.

Health issues and death

Reshma was diagnosed with throat cancer in the 1980s. In later years, her health deteriorated, leading President

Pervez Musharraf General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of t ...

to come to her aid, giving her one million Rupees to help pay off a bank loan, as well as putting her on a secured assistance of 10,000 rupees per month. He also helped her secure a plot of land for herself, but that did not go through due to the change in government. Her health deteriorated to such an extent that she was hospitalised in

in 'Doctors Hospital' on 6 April 2013. The

Punjab, Pakistan Punjab (; , ) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in central-eastern region of the country, Punjab is the second-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the largest province by population. It shares land borders with the ...

caretaker government elected to pay all her medical expenses. Tell her that she has lost weight and she promptly replies, "''To kyā? Maiṅ is se slim, smart bhī to ho gaī.''" (So what ? I have grown slim and smart because of this), but then explains, "Doctors have advised me to curtail oily and spicy food." She readily used to admit, "I have no training in classical music, I do not know even the 'r' of any raga. So when I sing and miss any technical aspect, please forgive me," is what this humble soul used to say to the audience. "For me, there is no difference between India and Pakistan, they are like my two eyes." Reshma fell into a coma in October 2013 and died on 3 November 2013 in a

hospital.Legendary folk singer Reshma dies
, ''

Dawn Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's hori ...

'' (newspaper), 3 November 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2019

Awards and tributes

Sitara-i-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially meritorious contribution to the ...

(Star of Excellence) awarded by the President of Pakistan in 2008, for her services to the nation. *

Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance ( ur, ), officially known as Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sports, an ...

Award in 1982 by the

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 four provinces, two autonomous territorie ...

* In 2000 at '' PTV Award'' Reshma received Best Singer award A journalist from

, Pakistan, Murtaza Solangi who also used to work for

, had arranged for Reshma's performances at different radio stations in the 1970s, said," How could I forget Reshma? In my youthful years, her voice always enriched me and she connected

Cholistan The Cholistan Desert ( ur, ; Punjabi: ), also locally known as Rohi (), is a desert in the southern part of Punjab, Pakistan that forms part of the Greater Thar Desert, which extends to Sindh province and the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is on ...

and Sindh. She was a flower of the desert, symbol of love, music and peace".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reshma 1947 births 20th-century Pakistani women singers 2013 deaths Deaths from throat cancer Pakistani radio personalities People from Churu district Pakistani folk singers Radio personalities from Lahore Pakistani women singers Punjabi-language singers PTV Award winners Punjabi singers Deaths from cancer in Pakistan Performers of Sufi music Pakistani people of Rajasthani descent Recipients of the Pride of Performance Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz 21st-century Pakistani women singers