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Music
unites people, overcoming religious, cultural and racial barriers.
In these strife-torn times,
writer-composer-singer Parvati Khan is doing her bit to heal
the world through her music, and promoting unity and peace
globally...
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Parvati Khan,
who is among the pioneer pop singers in India, and who claims to
be among the first to introduce reggae, folk fusion music,
rock n’roll, calypso, and pop-rock in our country, has been
making music for 12 years now. She has to her credit albums like
Masti, Dil Diwana Ho Gaya and Chori Chori.
But some time
back she made big news when she had the honour of being the opening
performer at the UN-Day 2000 concert celebrations, on September
25, 2000. It was a dream-come-true for the dusky singer as she paid
a tribute to India through a Hindi song Bharat ke naam, which appealed
for national unity. Parvati followed this song with her global peace
composition Down with the guns, and won applause from the dignitaries
seated in the United Nationas General Assembly Hall. The concert
also had world-class classical performers like the Korean Chamber
Ensemble, American pianist Lucy Ishkanian and solo violinist of
the Moscow State Philharmonic Maxim Fedotov to name a few. "It
was a privilege performing with stalwarts like these. United Nations
Seceretary General, Kofi Annan, had special words of encouragment
for me, and he asked me to keep up the good work of promoting world
peace through music," says Parvati excitedly. But the singer-composer
points out that she had to work her way to get the opportunity to
perform at the UN.
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With
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan
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Married to cinematographer
Nadeem Khan and daughter-in-law of renowned novelist-writer-scholar
Dr. Rahi Masoom Reza, Parvati says she was always conscious of the
acute and serious communal problems in Kashmir, which could flare
up in any part of the country at the slightest provocation. "I
strongly felt that music could do its bit in promoting peace and
love among human beings," the composer-singer says, "That
was the time I composed my first song with an aim to instill in
Indians a feeling of brotherhood and patriotism."
She first presented
the song Bharat ke naam to the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Written by the late poet Noor Dewasi, the song opens all her performances.
"Rajiv Gandhi appreciated my deep concern for our country and
wished that more artists would be motivated," says Parvati.
The tragic
death of Rajiv Gandhi shocked the singer-composer, and she came
up with an emotional tribute to the late Prime Minister, which was
presented to a crowd of 10,000 at the Talkatora Stadium, in Delhi.
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With
late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi
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Taking a break
from music to tour the world, Parvati discovered how human blood
was being spilled cheaply, for trivial reassons like religious differences.
"I was reflecting on the killings in a New York cafe, and the
words for a song came to me like a divine inspiration. That’s
how Down with the guns was born," says Parvati, and continues,
"I wished I could sing my composition before a heads-of-the-state
meeting. I pictured such a meeting, in full attendance, and the
words of the song flowed naturally....If you gotta heart, if you
gotta soul, Wake up your emotions, don’t stare me so cold...
I stand here before you, I hope that I’d find, That I’m
not alone in my pledge to mankind.... I came back to India and immediately
recorded this composition, and began singing this song at all my
performances in India and internationally."
Her sole mission
was to perform this song in front of the heads of the states and
at the UN, and she wrote to the External Affairs Ministry to help
her out. When things didn’t work out, she began writing to
United Nations General Secretary, Kofi Annan.
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With
Hillary Clinton
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Meanwhile, Parvati
met Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and requested him to contribute
his poem towards promoting unity. "The poem Unki yaad karen
was composed and sung by me, and was the first of Vajpayee’s
poems to be composed and performed on a national level," Parvati
states proudly, "It features on my album Good India. I also
performing it at the closing ceremony of India’s 50th Independence
Day celebrations, on August 15, 1998."
Parvati considers
herself fortunate to have been a guest of the Prime Minister at
the official lunch hosted to honour President Clinton, on March
21, 2000, which kind of set the ball rolling. "It was here
that I was introduced to President Clinton," she reveals, "At
that time he was trying his best to initiate peace talks with other
leaders of the world, and I felt he would want music to promote
peace. Later, I wrote to President Clinton in the hope that I would
make some headway, and President’s official response to me
was enormously gratifying!"
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With
President Clinton and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
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The letter from
Clinton proved to be a morale booster and Parvati decided it was
time to make her song a global appeal. "I wrote to President
Clinton asking him to support my cause by giving my song a hearing
at the White House. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I held
in my hands the official response from President Clinton himself,"
she says, "His letter stated that he remembered me, and he
praised my efforts towards the cause. He asked to hear the song
and wished me well." Around the same time, Parvati was asked
to perform Down with the guns at the UN.
Presently,
Parvati is ready with an album titled Good India. "I wrote
the lyrics and recorded this album as an ode to India, and to spread
the message of unity," says the singer-composer, "It has
all the top classical artists of India, with all the playback singers,
ghazal singers, and pop singers. I am grateful to them for performing
to my music."
At the same
time, Parvati continues relentlessly with her mission of promoting
gobal peace. She tells us that the lifetime royalties on the release
of Down with the guns will be given to UN Relief Fund and to the
cause of Aids Awareness.
—S.K.
salmakhatib@hotmail.com
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