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Sunday, October 8, 2017

[mukto-mona] দলিত চামার : Ginni Mahi: The new voice of ‘Chamar pop’, Dalit assertion via Punjabi music



 "....বলিলেন, তুমি কি ব্রাহ্মণ? 
                করিয়া হাসিয়া বলিল, না, না, গোয়ালা ! 
                দয়াল একটুখানি সরিয়া বসিয়া বলিলেন, তোমাকে দেখে তো চামার 
                ব'লে মনে হয়েছিল। যা হোক, নমস্কার। 
                সে ব্যক্তি রাগ করিল না। 
                বলিল, নমস্কার। আপনার অনুমান মিথ্যা নয়, আমাকে চামার 
                বলাও চলে, মুসলমান খ্রীষ্টান বলাও চলে। 
                আমি জাত মানিনেআমি পরমহংস। "    [শরৎচন্দ্র চট্টোপাধ্যায়     চন্দ্রনাথ  ]         

Story image for 'Danger Chamar' from The Hans India

Danger Chamar breaks shackles of caste system

The Hans India-Jul 26, 2016
Through her music video 'Danger Chamar', which she released last ... say that she is a 'chamar', a low caste that used to be looked down upon ...


     
                                               

Lower caste Indian singer embraces centuries-old slur. Caste pride ...

Washington Post-Sep 29, 2016
Now the younger generation in the community is embracing the word: "chamar." A peppy hit song called "Danger Chamar" by Ginni Mahi, ...
                                                  

Ginni Mahi: The new voice of 'Chamar pop', Dalit assertion via Punjabi music

She is the voice behind 'Danger Chamar', and has a story to tell about it. Amid slogans on the street and in Parliament, hers is a viral voice online of assertion by 'lower' castes through Punjabi music. 

'Chamar pop' and 'Ambedkar folk' have a new star in 17-year-old Ginni Mahi.

Aarish Chhabra
Aarish Chhabra 
Hindustan Times




Singer Ginni Mahi at her residence in Jalandhar. (Aarish Chhabra/HT Photo)

She is the voice behind 'Danger Chamar', and has a story to tell about it. Amid slogans on the street and in Parliament, hers is a viral 

voice online of assertion by 'lower' castes through Punjabi music. 'Chamar pop' and 'Ambedkar folk' have a new star in 17-year-old Ginni Mahi.

"There was this girl who asked me my caste," recalls Ginni, now in first year of college, from school. "I am from among the SCs," Ginni told her. 

"Which one?" the girl asked. "Chamar," Ginni replied.

"Oh! I should be careful. Chamars are danger, they say," the girl laughed, innocently casual in her casteism.

"That's perhaps where the song 'Danger Chamar' comes from," says Ginni, "She's to thank for it. She's still my friend." 

'Danger Chamar' in 2015 and a sequel in February this year have nearly 80,000 views on YouTube.

New Punjabi Songs 2016 || DANGER 2 || GINNI MAHI || Punjabi Songs 2016 :

https://youtu.be/Gc4wh3YczJw

A large part of her fan following also comes from religious songs in reverence to Ravidass and 'Baba Sahib' Bhim Rao Ambedkar, which she sings with folk tunes. 

'Fan Baba Sahib Di' released five months ago had 54,447 views till 8pm on Friday.

Who is she, really?

Ginni was born to Rakesh and Paramjeet Kaur Mahi in Jalandhar, the heartland of Dalit-dominated Doaba region of Punjab, the state with the highest proportion of SCs at 32%. 

In Doaba, this goes up to 45% in some segments.

She showed her singing chops around the age of 7, when her father took her to a friend who got her some training. She found chances in multi-artist albums soon, and her first 

solo album, 'Guraan di Diwani' came out early last year.

The second album, 'Gurpurab hai Kanshi Wale Da', was released in February this year, on the birth anniversary of Guru Ravidass, the 15th century saint who is one of the contributors 

in Guru Granth Sahib and is revered as a Dalit icon.

She is a favourite for cultural and religious congregations of Dalits, particularly Ravidassia community — the Dalit breakaway religion from Sikhism — since 2011.

There have been Ravidass singers before. What makes her stand out is the near-religious stature in her folk-pop to Ambedkar. "I do not want to say I sing caste songs," she insists. 

"What did Baba Sahib preach? Bhed-bhaav nahi hona chaida (That there should be no discrimination). Basic humanism!" But she gets acerbic reactions too online. "For every bad 

comment, there is a counter from other users," she says.

Road behind and ahead

Her father credits the surge in Dalit music to community self-empowerment in the "past decade or so". "Many have gone abroad. And there is more social exposure too," says 

Rakesh, whose father plied a rickshaw and who is himself into the business of air-ticketing.

Ginni understands her audience is limited. "I want to become a Bollywood playback singer," she says. Next up is a song with "spirituality, not specific to any caste" and a "Sufi touch". 

"It should be out on YouTube in a couple of months," she gushes.

"My talent and Ravidass maharaj will ensure that. In reality shows, I will not go as a contestant, but someday as a judge." (HT Photo)

For now, she is following Ambedkar's motto of 'educate, make aware and mobilise'. "I'll study up to PhD and even beyond." How does she plan to break into Bollywood? Reality shows? "My talent and Ravidass maharaj will ensure that. In reality shows, I will not go as a contestant, but someday as a judge."

Will she stop singing 'Chamar' songs? "Devotional music is my soul. But I won't be known just for that."

Roop Lal Dhir, who belongs to the founding generation of 'Chamar pop' from half a decade ago, explains: "When I used to sing the usual 'Jatt' fare, in 1995 I used to get Rs 22,000 a show. Now, I get around Rs 15,000." He says the "Mission of Jai Bhim" is more important. He is an active worker of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and his wife, Nirmal Kaur, is their native village's sarpanch in Nawanshahr.

Ginni gets about Rs 30,000, says her father. That is hardly equal to what even moderately popular 'Jatt' singers get. "But never has Ginni sung from a political stage," Rakesh says.

Pardeep Sharma, manager with Amar Audio, the production house behind Ginni, says songs with the word 'Chamar' have hit a plateau. "There are only 5-6 singers at a time since it began." Ravidassia devotional music is still the primary genre of 'Dalit music'.

Will 'Chamar pop' ever stand next to 'Jatt'? Ginni says the idea is not to compete, "We want to be proud of who we are."

Then why does she not use her real surname 'Mahi' in official documents where she's Gurkanwal 'Bharti'. The father replies, "'Bharti' means 'Indian'. That's what we want us all to be. Not of a caste alone."

For them, it is as much about owning certain words as it is about shedding some.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/amid-noise-she-s-the-17-yr-old-new-voice-of-chamar-pop-ambedkar-folk/story-3w1BkrU4zwv37XGzZU7cOJ.html

আরো দেখুন:

Jaat gelo-Lalong song (জাত গেল, জাত গেল বলে- লালন কন্যা বিউটি)

Mar 1, 2017 - A 25-year-old Jaysukh Madhad, a Dalit Sarpanch in a village in Amreli district of Gujarat, was hacked to death by people of other castes on ...

Villagers fall victim to India's caste war | World news | The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com › World › India
Jun 13, 2005 - Brahmins and Dalits, at the top and the bottom of Hindu society, ... The police, the local administration and the local MP will not lift a finger to help, they add. ... In the ensuing violence a Yadav was shot dead, the Dalit homes ...





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Posted by: "Jamal G. Khan" <M.JamalGhaus@gmail.com>


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Re: [mukto-mona] ভারতকে �’s Hindus number 1.7 crore, up by 1 p.c. in a year: report



I surely do not denounce the rise of Hindu fanaticism without looking at the source. I blame the stupidity of the Indian secular forces. As I wrote, "Secular should also clearly mean no appeasing of Islamic fanaticism and no respect for (or adoption of) the Islamic laws of the jungle. While maintaining internal secularism, India should also punish both Pakistan and Bangladesh anyway possible when religious minorities from these countries migrate to India due to atrocities with impunity on them in their home countries." I find it to be huge shame that the secular leaders of West Bengal, in spite of many of them having their ancestry in East Bengal, do not seem to care about what has been going on in East Bengal since 1947.

SuBain

===================================
On Sunday, October 8, 2017 5:36 PM, "Dristy Pat dristypat5@gmail.com [mukto-mona]" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> wrote:


 
This is just a political rhetoric, at least for now.
India will remain secular, only because majority of Indians are secular, unlike population in other neighboring countries, which are mostly communal, and, secular people are rare breeds.
The reason being, Hinduism is accommodative to various faiths and beliefs, including atheism, but, Islam, on the contrary, is the black-hole of Abrahamic religious philosophies, which always tries to swallow all other faiths around it. The resulting outcome is - brewing resentments against Islam. Such resentments just cumulating, and what you have heard from this Indian politician is one of the outbursts of such brewing resentments around the world.
Just denouncing it without looking at the source will not solve it.

2017-10-08 14:54 GMT-04:00 Sukhamaya Bain subain1@yahoo.com [mukto-mona] <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>:
 
[Attachment(s) from Sukhamaya Bain subain1@yahoo.com [mukto-mona] included below]
The facts that Pakistan has driven out practically all non-Muslims and that Bangladesh is doing that over a longer period of time do not justify 'freeing India of Muslims'. India should be secular, with all kinds of respect for the Muslim citizenry. Secular should also clearly mean no appeasing of Islamic fanaticism and no respect for (or adoption of) the Islamic laws of the jungle. While maintaining internal secularism, India should also punish both Pakistan and Bangladesh anyway possible when religious minorities from these countries migrate to India due to atrocities with impunity on them in their home countries. I would not support injustice in one place because of injustice in other places.

Sukhamaya Bain
============================== ======
On Sunday, October 8, 2017 12:34 PM, "Dristy Pat dristypat5@gmail.com [mukto-mona]" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

 
You are looking at the wrong number. You are showing absolute numbers, which is growing, as expected, but the rate of growth of Hindu population in Bangladesh is decreasing year over year. That's what is alarming.
If my memory serves well, religious minority population was ~28% in 1972, which became ~10% in 2001. This type of reduction tells the real story of vanishing religious minority population in Bangladesh. Look at Pakistan, they have had ~20% religious minority in 1947, which came down to >1% now. That can't be positive message for any country. It should be worrisome to any civilized nation; isn't it?

2017-10-07 20:16 GMT-04:00 Jamal G. Khan <m.jamalghaus@gmail.com>:
Mr. Dev Saha,

As a matter of fact there is a numerical growth of Hindu population in Bangladesh.
According to the 2001 census there were 11,379,000 Hindus in Bangladesh. 
However, some estimates show that there were about 12 million Hindus in Bangladesh.
According to the 2011 census, Hindus make up 9.5 percent of a total population of 152.5 
million which is approximately 14.49 Million.
According to Indian newspaper "The Hindu" article:


"The number of Hindus in Muslim-majority has grown up by one percent to 1.70 crore
in one year constituting 10.7 percent of the population by the end of 2015. "

Your statement:
"This lady is only talking while both Pakistanis and Bangladeshis 
have practically driven out their minorities from their sacred Muslim lands as 
other Muslim countries have done already." is misleading and and at the least,
it doesn't apply for Bangladesh. There is a vivid communal undertone.
Bangladesh is not an "one hundred percent non-communal society".
But, I have never seen any political leader or political party in Bangladesh advocating 
"হিন্দু-মুক্ত বাংলাদেশ." 
 The rise of Hindutva politics in India is a real danger to political Secularism in India
vis-à-vis Bangladesh.

Jamal Ghaus

PS:  
 কবি সমর সেন:
         ভবলীলা সাঙ্গ হলে সবাই সমান 
         বিহারের হিন্দু আর নোয়াখালীর মুসলমান
         নোয়াখালীর হিন্দু আর বিহারের মুসলমান।  

Watch: 

Partition of India was greatest blunder in history of mankind: 




INTERNATIONAL

Bangladesh's Hindus number 1.7 crore, up by 1 p.c. in a year: report




On Saturday, October 7, 2017, 4:54:00 PM EDT, Dev Saha devsaha5@yahoo.com [mukto-mona] <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

This lady is only talking while both Pakistanis and Bangladeshis have practically driven out their minorities 
from their sacred Muslim lands as other Muslim countries have done already. This is not a politically correct 
position but many western and non-Muslim countries are feeling the same way as Muslims showing no 
loyalty to the country they are born but to a Muslim global cause. 



On Friday, October 6, 2017, 9:48:18 AM EDT, Sukhamaya Bain subain1@yahoo.com [mukto-mona] <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

Shame on this woman! Anyone who and whose parents were born in India is an Indian citizen by birth. No one has the right to expel him/her from the country. However, I think the secular forces of India need to be truly secular and reject all kinds of religious nonsense, injustice and hatred among all religious groups, including both Hindus and Muslims. The stupidity of the so-called secular leaders of India has been the reason for the rise of Hindu fanaticism in India. It is a disgrace.

Sukhamaya Bain

============================== =


On Friday, October 6, 2017 8:21 AM, "'Jamal G. Khan' M.JamalGhaus@gmail.com [mukto-mona]" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> wrote:


 

মুসলিম উৎখাতের ডাক হিন্দুত্ববাদী নেত্রীর (ভিডিও)


ভারতকে মুসলিম মুক্ত করার ডাক দিলেন সাধ্বী প্রাচি

  • ভারতকে মুসলিম মুক্ত করার ডাক দিলেন সাধ্বী প্রাচি
ভারতের বিশ্ব হিন্দু পরিষদ নেত্রী সাধ্বী প্রাচি বলেছেন, 'আমরা ভারতকে কংগ্রেস মুক্ত করেছি, এবার মুসলিম মুক্ত ভারত তৈরি করতে হবে। আর এজন্য আমরা কাজ করছি।'
তিনি আজ(মঙ্গলবার) রুরকিতে ফের বিতর্কিত এ মন্তব্য করেন ।
সাধ্বী প্রাচি ভারতীয় চিত্র তারকা শাহরুখ খান এবং আমীর খানের সমালোচনা করে বলেন, দুটি ফ্লিম ফ্লপ হতেই শাহরুখের হিন্দুদের কথা মনে পড়েছে। এরকমই আমীর খানের আসন্ন ফিল্মের সঙ্গে হওয়া উচিত। এরা ভারতের খেয়ে পাকিস্তানের গীত গায়।
উত্তর প্রদেশে আসন্ন বিধানসভা নির্বাচন সম্পর্কে সাধ্বী প্রাচি বলেন, 'বিজেপি যদি যোগী আদিত্যনাথকে মুখ্যমন্ত্রী পদপ্রার্থী হিসেবে সামনে রাখে তাহলে বিজেপি ৩০০ আসন পাবে এবং উত্তর প্রদেশ অনাচার, অত্যাচার মুক্ত হবে। এর ফলে মুসলিম মুক্ত উত্তর প্রদেশ হবে এবং 'উত্তম প্রদেশ' তৈরি হবে।'
গত বছর ফেব্রুয়ারিতে উত্তরপ্রদেশের বদায়ূঁতে এক সভায় সাধ্বী প্রাচী মুসলিমদের টার্গেট করে বিতর্কিত মন্তব্যে বলেন, 'লাভ জিহাদের নামে আমাদের মেয়েদের ফাঁসানো হচ্ছে। তার পর এরাই ৩৫-৪০ জনের জন্ম দিচ্ছে।' তার প্রশ্ন, পরিবার পরিকল্পনার দায় কেন শুধু হিন্দুদের উপরই বর্তাবে?
ভারতীয় ঐতিহ্য বাঁচিয়ে রাখতে প্রত্যেক হিন্দু মহিলার অন্তত চার সন্তানের জন্ম দেওয়া উচিত বলেও মন্তব্য করেন তিনি। এ নিয়ে বিতর্ক বাধলে জবাবে সাধ্বী প্রাচি বলেন, 'আমি তো চার সন্তান জন্ম দেয়ার কথা বলেছিলাম, ৪০টি কুকুরছানা জন্ম দেয়ার কথা তো বলিনি।'
সাধ্বী প্রাচির আগে 'ধর্ম জাগরণ মঞ্চ' নামে উগ্র হিন্দুত্ববাদী এক সংগঠনের পক্ষ থেকে ২০১৪ সালের ডিসেম্বরে দাবি করা হয় ২০২১ সালের মধ্যে ভারতকে মুসলিম এবং খ্রিস্টান মুক্ত করা হবে। সংগঠনটির পশ্চিম উত্তর প্রদেশের প্রধান রাজ্যেশ্বর সিং বলেন, 'মুসলিম এবং খ্রিস্টানদের ভারতে থাকার অধিকার নেই। ইসলাম বিদেশি ধর্ম। যদি ওরা মুসলমান হয়ে ভারতে থাকতে চায়, ওদের থাকতে দেয়া হবে না। তা সে বাংলাদেশি হোক বা অন্য কেউ হোক। এই দেশ মুসলমানদের সম্পত্তি নয়।'
তিনি আরো বলেন, 'ভারত মুসলিমদের জন্য নয়। তার পরামর্শ- 'পাকিস্তান আছে, বাংলাদেশ আছে, আপনারা সেখানে গিয়ে থাকুন।' এবার বিশ্ব হিন্দু পরিষদ নেত্রী সাধ্বী প্রাচি ভারতকে মুসলিম মুক্ত করার ডাক দিলেন এবং সেই লক্ষ্যে কাজ চলছে বলেও জানিয়েছেন।#
পার্সটুডে/এমএএইচ/জিএআর/৭





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Posted by: Sukhamaya Bain <subain1@yahoo.com>


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Mukto Mona plans for a Grand Darwin Day Celebration: 
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