Host : Raj Maan (Desh Punjab TV Winnipeg) Edited by : Baljinder Singh Atwal Surinder Kaur (25 November 1929 – 14 June 2006) was an Indian singer. While she mainly sang Punjabi folk songs, where she is credited for pioneering and popularising the genre, Kaur also recorded songs as a playback singer for Hindi films between 1948 and 1952. For her contributions to Punjabi music, she earned the sobriquet Nightingale of Punjab, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1984, and the Padma Shri in 2006. In a career spanning nearly six decades, her repertoire included Punjabi Sufi Kafis of Bulleh Shah and verses by contemporary poets like Nand Lal Noorpuri, Amrita Pritam, Mohan Singh and Shiv Kumar Batalvi giving memorable songs like, "Maavan 'te dheean", "Jutti kasuri", "Madhaniyan", "Ehna akhiyan 'ch pavan kiven kajra', 'Ghaman di raat' and "Bajre da sitta". In time her wedding songs, most notably "Lathe di chadar", "Suhe ve cheere waleya" and "Kaala doria", have become an indelible part of the Punjabi culture. Early life Surinder Kaur was born on 25 November 1929 to a Punjabi Sikh family in Lahore, the capital of the Punjab in British India.[2] She was the sister of Parkash Kaur and Narinder Kaur and the mother of Dolly Guleria, both noted Punjabi singers. She had three daughters, of which Dolly is the eldest.[6] She was influenced by Renu Rajan, a prominent figure in Punjabi folk music. Career Surinder Kaur made her professional debut with a live performance on Lahore Radio in August 1943,[2] and the following year on 31 August 1943, she and her elder sister, Parkash Kaur cut their first duet, "Maavan 'te dheean ral baithian", for the His Master's Voice label, emerging as superstars across the Indian subcontinent. Following the Partition of India in 1947, Kaur and her parents relocated to Ghaziabad, Delhi. In 1948, she married Professor Joginder Singh Sodhi, a lecturer in Punjabi literature at Delhi University.[6] Recognising her talent, Kaur's husband became very supportive of her, and soon she started a career as a playback singer in Hindi film industry in Bombay, introduced by music director, Ghulam Haider. Under him, she sang three songs in the 1948 film Shaheed, Shagan (1951), and Singaar, including Badnam Na Ho Jaye Mohabbat Ka Fasaana, Aanaa Hai To Aajao and Taqdeer ki aandhi...hum kahaan aur thum kahaan. However, her interest was in stage performances and reviving Punjabi folk songs, and she eventually moved back to Delhi in 1952. Her husband continued to guide her singing career. "He was the one who made me a star," she later recalled. "He chose all the lyrics I sang and we both collaborated on compositions." Together Kaur and Sodhi arranged for her to sing such Punjabi folk classics as Chan Kithe Guzari Aai Raat, Lathe Di Chadar, Shonkan Mele Di, and Gori Diyan Jhanjran and Sarke-Sarke Jandiye Mutiare. These songs were written by various well-known Punjabi poets but were made popular by the singer Surinder Kaur. The couple also served as the public face of the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA), an arm of the Indian Communist party in Punjab, spreading messages of peace and love to the most remote villages of East Punjab. She also traveled to many parts of the world performing Punjabi folk songs, gaining rapid popularity. Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/despardestvpage Website | https://www.despardestv.ca Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/despardestv Email | [email protected] Phone | India: +91 9814081457 | Canada: +1 604 599 6962 #despardestv #punjab #punjabi