Indian Guyanese, other Indo Caribbeans and other lovers of Indian music in the diaspora, remember the great ghazal maestro Pankaj Udhas who passed away last week February 26 at age 72. He had a golden voice and was a master at the harmonium, a fantastic singer. He had several memorable hits that will be treasured by lovers of Indian music. He was honored by the Government of India with a Padmashri for his contributions to music.
Pankaj’s most famous ghazal was “Chitthi Aayi Hai”, a popular hit among the Indian diaspora and in India itself. He had several other hits. I reported on his NY concerts for several community publications as a volunteer journalist.
Pankaj ji brought Ghazal music to Guyanese and the Caribbean Indian people in the region as well as in the diaspora. He was adored by Guyanese, Trinidadians, Surinamese, and others who had great memories of his performances at concerts in NY, Toronto and elsewhere. In fact, he was a favorite singer among Guyanese and Indo-Caribbean people. Guyanese and Trini tabla players accompanied him on concert tours in other cities several times. Several Guyanese businesses, including the late Ramesh Kalicharran’s group of companies, sponsored his performances in New York. And they also sponsored his recordings. He performed countless times for Indo-Guyanese and other Caribbean audience in New York, Toronto, and London including at several New York mandirs. He also performed in Guyana, Trinidad, and Suriname. He was in New York not too long ago singing to large Indo-Caribbean audiences. His songs are hits in Mandirs and on radio; he will be missed.
His passing came as a shock to not just the music industry in Bollywood but also fans around the globe. Sad faces were observed among Guyanese and other Indo-Caribbean people as they reminisced about his concerts. They watched the transportation of his body to the crematorium site as well the cremation itself. Condolences poured in from Bollywood celebrities as well as Indo-Caribbean singers and musicians. He was their role model on Ghazal singing. Guyanese remember him as a fantastic musician and singer. In addition, they spoke of how he was a quiet, soft spoken gentleman who was deeply concerned about copyrights of the recordings of musicians and singers. He appealed to Guyanese and other Indo Caribbeans not to patronize duplicate recordings and to purchase original tracks of all artistes as a means to supporting them.
His coffin was draped with the Indian flag, and he was given a gun salute before his cremation.
Bollywood and sports personalities, including legendary Sunil Gavaskar, attended his cremation rites. Hindus, Muslims, Christians, dressed in white, came to the funeral.
