Pandit Bhajan Sopori (1948-2022) was a renowned Indian santur player who was the recipient of several national and international awards. He breathed his last on June 2, 2022, at Fortis Hospital, Gurgaon, Haryana. He has colon cancer.
Wiki/Biography
Bhajan Lal Sopori was born on Tuesday, June 22, 1948 in Sopore, Jammu and Kashmir, India. He died at the age of 73. His zodiac sign is Cancer. He holds an MA in Indian Classical Music (specializing in sitar), an MA in Indian Classical Music (specializing in santur), and an MA in English Literature. He then pursued a degree in Western Classical Music at the University of Washington in Washington, DC, USA.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′8″
Hair color: black
Eye color: hazel
family
Pandit Bhajan Sopori was born in a Kashmiri family.
Parents and siblings
His father Pandit Shamboo Nath Sopori was a Santur player.
Photo of Pandit Bhajan Sopori’s father
wife and children
His wife is Indian professor Aparna Sopori. The couple has two sons named Sorabh Sopori and Abhay Sopori, who is also a Santur player.
Pandit Bhajan Sopori with wife Aparna Sopori and son Abhay Sopori
Pandit Bhajan Sopori with his wife, son and grandson
other relatives
His grandfather Pandit Samsar Chand Sopori was a Santur player.
Santur Master Tour
Pandit Sopori is the eighth generation of the Santur family. As a child, he began training in santur playing under the guidance of his father and grandfather, who were famous santur players in India. He performed in a public concert for the first time at the age of 5. At the age of 10, he got the opportunity to perform with his father at the Prayag Sangeet Samiti of Allahabad University. His performances set benchmarks for concerts and helped establish Santur as a solo instrument on multiple national and international platforms. Before this, not much was known about Santur. When he grew up, he started working as a music composer and santur player on the All India Radio. From 1990 to 1993, he was transferred to AIR in Delhi, but then he decided to return to Jammu and Kashmir as music had almost disappeared from the state. In an interview, he said about this incident,
I was working with All India Radio in 1990 when I was transferred to Delhi. For three years no music was produced in the valley. When I decided to go back, not even a tabla player accompanied me. They are very scared (of terrorists). “
Pandit Bhajan Sopori old photos
After returning to Jammu and Kashmir, he began to pay attention to local folk music. He began composing folk music and helped spread awareness of its importance. He composed collections of prayers and Tarana-e-Watan (patriotic songs) with a choir of 8,000 school and college students. The song is sung as a common prayer in Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir. Later, Pandit Sopori composed ragas like Laleshwari, Patwanti and Nirmalkauns song. He has composed more than 6,000 songs in various languages including Hindi, Kashmiri, Dogri, Sindhi, Urdu and Bhojpuri. He composed Hindi patriotic songs like “Bharat Bharat Hum Iski Santaan”, “Hum Honge Kaamyaab”, “Vande Maataram” and “Naman Tujhko Mere Bharat”. Some of the Hindi songs he has recreated include “Sarfaroshi Ki Tamanna”, “Vijayee Vishwa Tiranga Pyaara”, “Kadam Kadam Badhaye Jaa” and “Bharat Ki Beti”. Apart from songs, he also composed music for ghazals of poets such as Ghalib, Daag, Momin, Bahadur Shah Zafar, Kabir Das and Meera Bai. In order to promote Indian classical music in India, he founded the Samapa Music Academy (Sopore Academy of Music and Performing Arts) in New Delhi in 2011.
Pandit Bhajan Sopori performs at concert
He also organizes music classes for prisoners in Jammu and Kashmir. Under his academy, he started the Samapavitastha Music Awards, where the winner will receive a cash prize of Rs 50,000. Pandit Bhajan composed the music for scenes from India’s Republic Day parade. In 2010, his Sangeet Natak Akademi Tableau won the first prize in the Republic Day Parade.
Awards and Honors
- Maharajah Travancore Swati Tirunal Puraskar 2019, Kerala
- Sangeet Ratna Srijan Shikhar Samman 2019, Delhi
- Honorary Doctorate (Honorary Degree) 2018 from Utkal Cultural University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha
- Atal Bihari Vajpayee National Award 2018, Delhi
- Sathkalarathna Puraskar 2018, Sathkalapeetam, Payyanur, Kerala
- Ustad Bel Khan Memorial Award 2018, Bangalore
- Distinguished Service Award 2018 by Delhi Government, MTNL, NDMC and Healthcare
- India Foundation), Tartola Stadium, Delhi
- Pandit Ramji Upadhyay Lifetime Achievement Award 2018, Delhi • PhD Arts & Culture Samman (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2018, Delhi
- Sangam National Awards 2018, Delhi
- Shanti Devi Gangani Award 2018 (Lifetime Achievement Award), Delhi
- Shudh Dhwani Samman 2018, Delhi
- Honoris Causa, Kolkata 2017
- Swati Tirunal Awards 2017, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
- Upendra Bhanja Samman 2017, Delhi
- Munnu Guru Sangeet Award 2017 (Lifetime Achievement Award), Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh
- Kashmir Music Club Shashrang Awards 2017, Kashmir, J&K
- Himalayan Cultural Center Award 2017, Delhi
- Ustad Hafeez Khan and Ustad Basheer Khan Awards 2017, Delhi
- Dhrupad Shri 2016, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
- J&K Government Lifetime Achievement Award 2016 J&K, Srinagar, J&K
- Baramulla District Government Honors Award 2016 J&K, Baramulla, Kashmir, J&K
- Baramulla District Government Honors Award 2016 J&K, Sopore, Kashmir, J&K
- Rotary Sur Samrat Sangeet Ratna Samman 2016, Delhi
- Maraz Abdi Sangam Awards 2016, Kashmir, J&K
- Sangeet Martand Samman (Honorary Title) 2015, Delhi
- Pride of India Lifetime Achievement Award 2015, Delhi
- 31st S Radhakrishnan Memorial National Teachers and Media Awards 2015, Delhi
- Atal Bihari Media Excellence Awards 2015, Delhi
- Atal Vaibhav Shikhar Samman 2015, Delhi
- DAV Distinguished Alumni Award 2015, Delhi
- Sangeet Vibhuti Samman (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2015, Jaipur, Rajasthan
- Honorable Mention, Global Literary Festival 2015, Delhi
- Sargam Mandir Swaran Jayanti Samman 2014, Delhi
- Sangeet Shiromani Award 2014, Delhi
- P Jhunjhunwala 24th National Excellence Awards 2014, Delhi
- Art Karat Award 2014, Delhi
- Indian Art Association Award 2013, Kingdom of Bahrain
- Pracheen Kala Kendra – Koser Award 2013, Chandigarh
- Delhi Ratna Award 2013, Delhi
- National Award from the Government of Madhya Pradesh (Ustad Latif Khan Samman) 2012, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
- 19th Blockbuster Sur Aradhana Sangeet Ratan Award 2012 (Lifetime Achievement Award), Delhi
- ECSS Award 2012 (Lifetime Achievement Award), Delhi
- Best Citizen of India Award 2011, Delhi
- Rajiv Gandhi Pratishta Samman 2011, Delhi
- S. Agarwal Award 2010, Kolkata
- Ustad Ashique Ali Khan Sangeet Bhushan Award 2010, Delhi
Pandit Bhajan Sopori wins Sangeet Bhushan Award
- RaagRanjani Sangeet Bhushan Samman (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2010, Delhi
- Ninaad Sangeet Kala Ratna Samman 2010, Agra, Uttar Pradesh
- N. Mathur Smiriti Kumbh Award 2010, Udaipur, Rajasthan
- Naad Chetanya Samman 2010, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
- RAWA (Renaissance Artists and Writers Association) Awards 2010, Delhi
- Baba Alauddin Khan Award 2009, Delhi
- Ustad Chand Khan Award (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2009, Delhi
- Srijan Award for Cultural and Social Development 2009, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
- Maa Shardey Samman (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2009, Ajmer, Rajasthan
- Ma Sharika Samman 2009, Faridabad, Haryana
- National Dogri Awards 2008, Jammu, J&K
- Sumadhur Hansdhwani Samman 2008, Delhi
- J&K Government Citizenship Award (J&K’s Highest Citizenship Award) 2007, Srinagar, J&K
- Raag Sagar 2007, Delhi
- Pandit Gama Maharaj Samman (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2007, Delhi
- Sangeet Vibhuti Award (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2006, Delhi
- Shree Bhatt Kirti Puraskar (Lifetime Achievement Award) 2004, Delhi
- Akashwani Special Honor Award 2004, All India Radio, Delhi
- Padma Shri 2004 (4th India’s highest civilian award), Delhi 14th Sharma Award 2004, Delhi
Pandit Bhajan receives Padma Shri
- Munnu Guru Sangeet Smriti Samman 2004, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh
- Kashmir Samiti and KOA Awards 2004, Jammu, J&K
- Beenkar Samman (Honours) 2003, Kolkata
- 2003 Kashmir Overseas Association International Award, Boston, USA
- Celebrate India Awards, Denver 2000, USA
- Delhi Ratna Samman 2000 Millennium Hotel, Delhi
- YMCA Ability Utsav Award 2000, Delhi
- Radio Kashmir Srinagar (All India Radio) Golden Jubilee Awards 1998, Kashmir, J&K
- National Shiromani Award 1996, Delhi
- 1993 Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (India’s highest performing arts award), Delhi
Pandit Bhajan Sopori receives Sangeet Natak Academic Award
- Delhi Telugu Academy Award 1993, Delhi
- Sharda Samman 1993, Delhi
- 1993 Outstanding Leadership Award, United States
- Kara Snesh Samman 1993, Delhi
- Punjabi Saha Awards 1992, Delhi
- Kala Yoga Award 1991 (Honorary Title), Mumbai
- Abhinav Kala Samman 1988, Bhopal
- Arab Republic of Egypt Flag Honor 1986, Egypt
- 1986 Ismailia International Folklore Festival Award, Arab Republic of Egypt
- Akashwani Annual Award for Composition by All India Radio, Delhi 1985
- Akashwani Annual Award for Composition by All India Radio, Delhi 1984
- Akashwani Award for Composition of the Year, All India Radio, Delhi 1983
- Akashwani Award for Composition of the Year, All India Radio, Delhi 1979
Pandit Bhajan Sopori wins National Akashwani Award
- First Prize in National Music Competition 1963 (Santur), awarded by Government J&K Academy of Arts, Culture and Languages Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar, J&K
Note: There are many more honors to his name.
die
He died on June 2, 2022, after a long illness caused by colon cancer. He was undergoing treatment at Fortis Hospital in Gurugram, Haryana, where he breathed his last. At the time of his death, his son said:
He was diagnosed with colon cancer last June. Three weeks ago, we took him to Fortis Hospital in Gurgaon for immunotherapy. This didn’t work for him and his health deteriorated. “
His last rites were performed at Lodi Road Crematorium, Delhi. Former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah shared his grief on Twitter, saying,
We are deeply sorry to hear about the unfortunate passing away of Mr. Padma Shri Pandit Bhajan Sopori. He was a great son of the soil and a giant in the world of Indian classical music who made santur his own. May his soul rest in peace. My condolences to @abhaysopori and his family. “
Facts/Trivia
- Pandit Bhajan Sopori belongs to Sufiyana Gharana.
- He is known as the “Saint of Santur” and the “King of Strings”.
- In addition to santur, he also plays instruments such as guitar, mouth organ and sarod.
- He is also a teacher, poet and author.
- His name has been included in various biographical volumes such as ‘Who’s Who in India’, ‘Who’s Who in Asia Pacific’, ‘Asia’s Outstanding Achievers’, ‘Person of the Year’ and ‘People of Kohnoor Asia’.
- His work is used as sound therapy for patients.
- In 2011, the Indian postal department produced a 5-rupee stamp specially for Pandit Bhajan Sopori.
- As of 2022, he is the youngest music composer working in the National Symphony Orchestra of India (Vadya Vrinda).
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education