This year for Father’s Day, I received a very nice joint gift. My daughter, Navreet Kaur Dhillon, is a physician in the Bay Area, and also a very talented artist. My son, Navdeep Singh Dhillon, is a Creative Writing/English Literature lecturer in New York City.
Both my son and daughter collaborated via phone and internet from East and West Coast to create a CD cover for “Heer,” an album I didn’t even know I was making! I had recorded one track giving my own interpretation to Waris Shah’s epic poem, and uploaded it to FaceBook after several people requested me. It was (and still is) available for free download in a blog post I wrote, “Heer Forever Stands Tall (ਗੁੱਝੀ ਰਹੇ ਨਾ ਹੀਰ ਹਜ਼ਾਰ ਵਿਚੋਂ )” in addition to Audio Downloads (above in the navigation bar). Many have since asked me to sing some more tracks, which I had said I would do in my own time. Now, it looks like I better get moving!
Below is my daughter’s original drawing:
Original Artwork for CD Cover of "Heer" by Navreet Kaur Dhillon
And below is my son’s contribution. Have a listen to this CD, which currently only has one track, but there will more soon! Let me know what you think!
While you wait for “Heer” to be completed, check out my e-books, available in Punjabi (both Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi scripts) and English. You can also download/listen to completed digital albums/CDs at www.pashaurasinghdhillon.com/audiodownloads
As many of you know, Dr, Mamta Joshi, a well known Sufi singer from Punjab, is singing one of my most prized poems, “Umber di Shehzadi: To the Princess of the Skies” that I wrote 41 years ago. She specially invited me to attend her concert in Surrey, and with such a special invitation, I couldn’t refuse. Besides, I was excited to hear her interpretation of my poem. Even despite some hiccups, it was a fantastic show and an equally great honor to attend Dr. Mamta Joshi’s maiden concert Mehfil-e-Sufi in this very important part of the concert world Surrey on October 10, 2010.
My wife, Inderbir and I flew to Seattle from San Francisco on Saturday and stayed overnight with relatives. We drove from Seattle to Surrey across the border in Canada, the next day on Sunday with my cousin sister, brother in law and my nephew Navtej, an Aircraft Engineer behind the wheel using Highway 5. We were there right on time and the Bell Art Center Auditorium with a capacity of 1200 was nearly packed.
It was dark inside and the stage was so beautifully designed and decorated with Sufiana ornaments. The subtle lighting arrangement on the stage made it glow like a jewel in the crown of surrounding darkness. Equally subtly, the musicians touched the strings and the tabla, the violin and other instruments mingled to make a very melodious sound. Suddenly Chetan Mohan, the MC announced Dr. Mamta Joshi’s arrival as she bowed to her admirers who were sitting waiting for her to show up and got seated, settling down in front of the multi-microphones.
Perhaps very few of the audience members, except myself, knew that the comfortably seated looking orchestra was hurriedly assembled as she could only bring less than half of the musician team with her from India and had very little time to rehearse with all of them as one team. So I was kind of nervous to think how she will pull them all together in such a complicated classical music composition. But it was fascinating to watch her in great shape against all the odds of her distress and discomfort she encountered due to visa problems for her husband Chetan Mohan, toddler son and the musicians. Since they had arrived at the eleventh hour, there was not much time to relax and get in shape.
So the show began with the Sufi prayer and then gradually progressed in a very melodious way to cover everything the audience had asked for nonstop for nearly four hours. The Singing Doctor proved her metal and leadership qualities; the newly met musician’s team from two different countries proved their professionalism by playing and singing it in one tune in such a short time. Everyone seemed to have loved it which one could judge from the applause. Talking about the applause, interestingly it was much prolonged after she sang “Umber di Shehzadi: To the Princess of the Skies” or it seems so to me because I was there. The young doctor was very kind to have us seated in the VVIP first row and stopped her show to say some very kind words about me, how she found me on the internet and then asked me to identify myself before she sang “Umber di Shehzadi: To the Princess of the Skies” with the most beautiful ta’ans.
Also in the audience, the most famous couple of Surrey, Gurmant Grewal and Nina Grewal MP, graciously stopped by us and congratulated us for attending and be a part of the Mamta show across the border. It was a very thoughtful gesture. Nina Grewal made me feel even prouder when she specifically mentioned to me that her parents are also Dhillons and that she felt very proud that I had written“Umber di Shehzadi: To the Princess of the Skies.”
We had to return to Seattle across the border overnight and therefore had to leave immediately after the show. Consequently we could not meet her to say good bye. The next morning, they had assumed I would still be in Surrey, and were both disappointed to hear that we wouldn’t be able to meet, even though I told them I completely understood how stressful the day of performance can be. And add to that the extra stress of not having all of your musicians and visa problems! I can only imagine how she pulled it off and made it look so effortless to her audience! Besides, I am looking forward to meeting her on the next tour which will be in the United States next summer when she will be incorporating my poem, “Dheeaan,” included below:
Pashaura Singh Dhillon is a poet and singer based in the Central Valley of California. He writes and sings in Punjabi about a variety of social issues ranging from human rights to the environment, and Sikh philosophy. He is the author of a collection of poetry, Diva Bale Sumundaron Paar (The Lamp Still Burns Across the Sea) and is currently a radio host in Fresno for Punjab News and Views. In addition to live performances, his poems have been featured on television programs, online media sites, and published in leading newspapers and magazines both in the United States and abroad. He is also a radio host with KBIF 900 AM where he is on air every Sunday from 3-4pm.
This year for Father’s Day, I received a very nice joint gift. My daughter, Navreet Kaur Dhillon, is a physician in the Bay Area, and also a very talented artist. My son, Navdeep Singh Dhillon, is a Creative Writing/English Literature lecturer in New York City.
Pashaura Singh Dhillon is a poet and singer based in the Central Valley of California. He writes and sings in Punjabi about a variety of social issues ranging from human rights to the environment, and Sikh philosophy. He is the author of a collection of poetry, Diva Bale Sumundaron Paar (The Lamp Still Burns Across the Sea) and is currently a radio host in Fresno for Punjab News and Views. In addition to live performances, his poems have been featured on television programs, online media sites, and published in leading newspapers and magazines both in the United States and abroad. He is also a radio host with KBIF 900 AM where he is on air every Sunday from 3-4pm.