SSAI International Women’s Day Concert: AKHTARI – the Musical

Chandra Chakraborty (singer-actor), Kiran Thakrar (keyboard), Hamit Walia (tabla), Indrani Dutta (Kathak dance), Satarupa Ghosh (actor)

SSAI celebrates International Women’s Day 2020 based on the theme ‘EachforEqual’ – showcasing women’s achievements grounded in struggles against deep-rooted bias in society and culture. In association with Kalakar UK, a spectacular live musical based on the tragic life of the Ghazal Queen Begum Akhtar (1914-1974) demonstrates her indomitable spirit to fight the gender inequalities in the music industry and in private life.  The Begum’s inspiring tale of music and morality is depicted as Akhtari -- the Musical which is scripted, directed and performed by Vidushi Chandra Chakraborty, one of the finest Indian Classical vocalists in the West. The musical theatre comprises of singing, live music, Kathak dance and acting by internationally acclaimed artists.

Akhtari Bai Faizabadi received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for vocal music and was awarded Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan (posthumously) by the government of India. Known popularly as ‘Mallika-e-Ghazal’ (Queen of Ghazals), she contributed immensely in ghazal, dadra and thumri genres but her immortal songs are a silent reminder of the period when women’s performance in the public domain was strictly regulated, and more readily accepted in private gatherings. Akhtar held her head high and demanded equal respect from the male-dominated music fraternity. She got support for vocal recordings in the 1930s, public appreciation, and was featured in pre-independent films. She continued to perform in public after marriage while succumbing to abuse that shadowed her life in some form or the other affecting her physical and mental health until the end.

Vidushi Chandra Chakraborty as Begum Akhtar in the musical has been working on a long project towards recreating the lives of classical musicians. She has previously performed as the Thumri Queen Girija Devi, Saraswati the daughter of Tansen by presenting the transcendental qualities in classical renditions and through experimental ragas in both North Indian and South Indian styles. At the age of 12, she was awarded the two most prestigious awards Sangeet Prabhakar and Sangeet Visharad in music, leading to regular performances at the All India Radio and Television. She was trained under the guidance of music legends Pandit A. Kanan and Bidushi Smt. Malabika Kanan and later by Smt. Girija Devi. Chandra has been instrumental in spreading Indian classical music through teachings in schools across the globe, most notably in South Africa that was appreciated by Nelson Mandela. She has been a Lecturer of Music in History and Society at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg and has been associated with several notable stage productions in London's East End.

Introduction: Dr Sanjukta Ghosh (SOAS South Asia Institute) on International Women's Day 2020 and Begum Akhtar.

Supporting roles: Dr Sid Kargupta, Dr Imtiaz Ahmed, Dr Chandryee Basu, Joy Bhowmik, Anuja Pradhan, Ruma Pal, Sushri Saha and Samarjit Das Ray.

Registration and Tickets: https://tinyurl.com/ssai-musical

Organiser: Dr Sanjukta Ghosh (SOAS South Asia Institute) in association with Kalakar UK.

Contact email: sg83@soas.ac.uk, ssai@soas.ac.uk

Contact Tel: +44 (0)20 7898 4390