4th edition of Sur Utsav celebrates Amritsar’s music legends, their legacy

U N Entertainment Society in collaboration with the Virsa Vihar kicked off the 4th edition of ‘Sur Utsav’, a music festival that features artistes from the region. Curated and directed by Punjabi folk singer Harinder Sohal, the festival, which began on Sunday, featured performances by prominent personalities of classical music, literature, music, Sufi music, folk music and cinema.

The third day of the Sur Utsav was dedicated to Bollywood actor Raj Babbar. Babbar, whose maternal family is based in Amritsar and who shares a special connection with the holy city, had been part of the city’s theatre and cultural landscape in the early days of his career as an actor. The 1975 batch alumnus of prestigious National School of Drama (NSD), Raj Babbar started his film career with Punjabi film “Chan Pardesi”. The evening featured songs filmed on him from popular Punjabi as well as Hindi films performed by Jaspinder Singh, Dr Sangeeta Uppal, Bhupinder Singh and other singers.

A day was also dedicated to Padma Shri late Punjabi poet Surjit Patar, who passed away last year. Ghazals written by Patar, some of them not performed in the mainstream, including his popular works like “Ghazal ik leher de uchlan da naa he…”, were beautifully presented by renowned singer Ramesh Bhagat. During the discourse, Vishal Beas and satirical poet Raghbir Singh Sohal were honoured with the Sur Utsav Kala Ratna Award.

Harinder Sohal, the festival director and music composer, said the purpose of the eight-day festival is to connect young generation of Amritsaris with the city’s music legacy while bringing together patrons and music lovers together on one platform. “Amritsar has contributed several bug names to the Indian music industry, whether it was the mainstream film music or folk or classical. Our artistes, both of Punjab and Hindi, have had a global impact and some of the best known among them are Mohammad Rafi, Mahindra Kapoor, Bhupinder Singh, stalwarts like Mukhtar Begum, Zahida Parveen, new generation artistes like Amrinder Gill and folk legends Ustad Puran Chand and Ustad Pyare Lal Wadali, known as Wadali Brothers. We also had some literary greats in Shiv Kumar Batalvi, Amrita Pritam, Ahmed Rahi and the new generation’s Surjit Patar, who developed and took the Punjabi language’s depth and thought on a level that is unmatched. The festival is a dedicated and celebration of such great talents,” he said.