By Vikram Sampath - My Name is Gauhar Jaan! The Life and Times of a Musician - with C (2010-01-16) [Paperback]

by Vikram Sampath

The earliest recordings of Indian music are characterised by the high-pitched announcement, 'My name is Gauhar Jaan.' This declaration epitomised a milestone in the history of Indian classical music, one that would forever change its content, structure and style.The musical scene in India at the turn of the 20th century witnessed tumultuous changes. The traditional custodians of the art form, the devadasis in the south and the nautch girls in the north, who had nurtured the art for centuries, became victims of the morality laws of the British government and the prudery of an 'enlightened' Indian elitist class. Gauhar Jaan (1873-1930), however, an eminent Hindustani vocalist, symbolises the resurgence of women musicians of her era.Born Eileen Angelina Yeoward, an Armenian Christian who later converted to Islam, Gauhar Jaan was a naturally gifted musician with an outstanding repertoire. One of the earliest women artists to seize the opportunities that rose with the advent of recording technologies, hers was the first Indian voice to ever be recorded in 1902. She went on to cut close to 600 records, the most successful female musician of her time.This book traces her story, a story peppered with the stuff myth and legend, as well as the times during which she lived. It also describes the evolution of the Indian recording industry and its impact on the country's music, theatre and social life.

Genres: Music, History, Biography, Nonfiction

Unknown Binding

First published April 1, 2010

About the author

Born and raised in Bangalore, Vikram Sampath completed his schooling in Bangalore at the Sri Aurobindo Memorial School and Bishop Cotton Boys' School. He thereafter obtained a Bachelors in Engineering in Electronics and a Masters in Mathematics from one of India's most reputed schools, BITS-Pilani. He then went on to obtain an MBA in Finance from S P Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai. Vikram has worked in many leading multinational firms like GE Money and Citibank and currently is a Team Leader with a information technology company in Bangalore.

His first book, Splendours of Royal Mysore: The Untold Story of the Wodeyars has been widely acclaimed across India, and has been termed as one of the most definitive accounts on the Mysore royal family in recent times. His second book "My Name is Gauhar Jaan!" - The Life and Times of a Musician is the biography of Gauhar Jaan, India's first classical musician to record on the gramophone. The book has been hailed by several luminaries in India and abroad, and has also won the prestigious ARSC (Association of Recorded Sound Collections) International Award for Excellence in Historical Research - the first Indian book to have ever won this honour. Vikram's third book Voice of the Veena: S Balachander - A Biography narrates the story of eminent Veena maestro late Padmabhushan Dr. S Balachander.

Vikram has been a Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study (Wissenschaftskolleg) in Berlin, Germany (for 2010-11) where he studied the early gramophone recordings of Indian music. He has also established the Archive of Indian Music (AIM) as a private Trust that seeks to digitize and preserve old gramophone recordings of India.

Vikram publishes regularly in leading Indian dailies and magazines on a wide array of topics. In addition, Vikram is also a serious student of Carnatic Classical vocal music and has been training under various eminent practitioners of the art form. Subjects related to history, music, art and culture are close to his heart.

Reviews

[Sandhya · Rating 4 out of 5]

To begin with, you're not sure what to expect from a book about a songstress of a bygone era one has never even heard of. Also, the backdrop about North Indian classical music and the birth of the gramophone make it appear that it could perhaps be of more interest to music aficionados. To a layman, it could seem quite technical and dull. How wrong I was, because Vikram Sampath's new book is not just a fabulously engaging story about a singer who became the first gramophone superstar of the country, it also gives an exhaustive and thoroughly fascinating account of the times in which she lived.

Gauhar's antecedents were not the most usual. She was born (1873) to an Armenian father and an Indian mother. A misunderstanding leads to their divorce, after which her mother marries a Muslim man and assumes the name of Badi Malka Jaan and becomes a singer and poetess of repute herself. Gauhar's grandmother had married a British man. Since the book travels through these different time periods, one gets an account of early British life in India and their equation with the natives. I was fascinated to know about the 'biwi khana' . This was a time when not many English women made the long and torturous journey to India. This obviously was a problem for the British settlers because it affected their domestic lives severly. So they married native Indian women or took them in as mistresses and their union existed as long as the officers stayed back in India. The woman lived in the lady-house (biwi-khana) that was in the same compound, separate from the main bungalow. This worked out well for both the native women and the officers. However, once the steam ships became more frequent, European women started coming to India in larger numbers in search of eligible husbands. These ships were called 'Fishing fleet'. Those girls who couldn't find a match would go back to England and ships carrying them were termed as 'Returning empties'

read the rest here http://sandyi.blogspot.com/2010/06/my...

[Shuk Pakhi · Rating 4 out of 5]

বাস্তবেও কারো কারো জীবন এমন হয়!!

[Gouri Dange · Rating 4 out of 5]

That the story of a singer and diva of yesteryears can be told so touchingly, and along with this narrative, a writer can also provide adocumentaion of her times, the advent of the gramophone record, the singers of her era, the changing socio-political scene...all of this, and a scintillating CD of the first-ever recorded voice is included in this important and readable book.

[Saranga · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a woman and what a life! India's first succesful Gramophone artist - Gauhar Jan and most Indians know nothing about it. Forget that, few even recognise that name. Due Credit to the author who tried to piece together the adventurous life of this diva and her valuable contributions to Hindustani classical music. Apart from Gauhar Jaan, the book also throws much needed light on the Hindustani classical music, its growth during the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, the complex hierarchy and the unique contributions of Tawaif community. It also explains how the community was marginalised after the revolt of 1857 and lacked support from the leaders of Indian freedom struggle. I found it amusing that Gandhiji asked Gauhar Jan to participate in an event to collect donation for the freedom movement but later on rejected the Tawaif community's offer to participate in the freedom movement! Such marginalisation sadly caused many of these women to lose patronage, forcing them into prostitution. Many of them died in penury. The book throws light on the changing social mores, the emerging middle class, how technology changed the way people listened to music and the impact of colonal rule on India's culture.

These women were not only proficient singers and dancers, but some were even great poets. Gauhar Jan's mother Badi Malka Jan's poetry is nothing short of exquisite. Special thanks to the author for including her shayari in the book. It adds a real charm to the book. Also, unlike the 'respectable' women of those times, tawaifs could purchase property, take training to hone their skills and become real masters of their art. I wish they were treated with more respect that they were deserving of!

PS: The kindle version of this book needs to be proofread. Quite a lot of spelling errors.

[Yashovardhan Sinha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-researched book on the life of someone who has almost faded from the pages of history despite once striding the world of Hindustani music as its empress.

In the early decades of the last century, Gauhar was the leading tawaif not only of Calcutta but of the whole country. (Tawaifs are not to be mistaken as prostitutes; they were singers and dancers who would have a few amorous affairs if a suitor moved them enough with their sincerity). She was invited to grace the courts of princes like Rampur, Mysore, Darbhanga and Gwalior. The leading zamindars and aristocracy of the country feted her. She was educated, knew several Indian as well as foreign languages, composed thumris that are sung by leading singers even today, and lived in enviable grandeur.

To Gauhar belongs the honour of being the first Indian singer to have her song recorded and sold as a gramophone record and after her first record was a runaway hit, she became the anchor musician of the Gramophone company.

Yet, as so often happens, she spent her last years almost on the charity of the Maharaja of Mysore and died alone in a hospital in Mysore.

Kudos to Vikram Sampat for his valiant attempt to resurrect this forgotten heroine of Hindustani music.

[Somnath Sengupta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Born in 1873, Gauhar Jaan was an accomplished kathak dancer and a famous classical singer of her time. She was also a courtesan, belonging to the “tawaif” section of performers and was the court singer of a number of princely states of India. Her greatest claim to fame, though, came in 1902, when her towering popularity earned her the chance to become the first Indian artist to record a song for Gramophone Company. Written by Vikram Sampath (who has also written about Mysore and S Balachander), I picked up the version which is translated in Bengali.

Gauhar Jaan’s life is highly colourful and is almost like a film script. Her grandmother was a “bibi” or mistress to a British officer which led to her mother, born Victoria Hemmings, getting married to a British engineer. Victoria had a briefly happy married life before getting divorced. Along with her daughter Angelina, Victoria was literally left on the streets but was saved by a Muslim businessman who led to them converting to Islam – Victoria became Malka Jaan and Angelina, Gauhar Jaan.

Malka became a celebrated courtesan of Benares and even published a popular book of shayaris. And Gauhar soon followed her steps. It was after moving to Kolkata and becoming a part of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah’s court that Gauhar became a star. Soon, she was performing around the country and her versatility (in one famous program she performed in Bengali, Bhojpuri, Punjabi as well as English) earned her a unique position in musical fraternity. It was this popularity that led to her recording for Gramophone Company in 1902. She was probably the first chart buster in India and went on to record over 600 discs. She even performed in George V’s coronation in 1911.

For all her fame, Gauhar never found peace in her personal life. Treated as a social outcast for most of her life, Gauhar fell in love with a number of men but these affairs invariably ended in tragedy and sometimes, court cases. She was involved in two very famous cases in that era, one which eventually saw her prove to court that she was indeed the daughter of her own mother! She was highly paid and led a lavish lifestyle but rarely bothered to manage her finances. A betrayal from her husband in later life saw her lose most of her earthly possessions.

What makes Sampath’s book even more enjoyable is the fact that he manages to provide a small windows into a number of contemporary events while discussing Gauhar Jaan’s life. You get a great view of the Babu culture and the Nawabs as well as the hierarchy of courtesans. Sampath also goes deep into the development of classical music in 19th century, a section which can get boring if you’re not a connoisseur. There is a very interesting chapter on the advent of Gramophones and how aged Indian artists would react to this new device. There are some great anecdotes including one which involves Gauhar and Begum Akhtar when the latter was just a child.

I would have liked to read more about Gauhar’s personality but lack of original records is an obvious impediment for that. There isn’t much wrong with this book and Sampath’s research work is pitch-perfect.

[Somapa Mitra]

Okay. So I finished this book "My Name is Gauhar Jaan" by Vikram Sampath. This is indeed a "Book for the soul" along with the right dose of history as well as enchancing my knowledge about the evolution of music from the late 1800's to the early 1900's paving its way through the its beautiful potrayal of life and times of the most famous music personality of that era Miss Gauhar Jaan.
As very few people know, Gauhar Jaan was a celebrated courtesan cum musical maestro in her own right and was the first "Gramophone" star of India. She carved her way to success at a time when courtesans were looked down upon no matter how much talented they where due to the highly patriarchal mindset of that era (Though not much has changed since then).The book traces her journey to being born to Anglo - Indian parents and her conversion to Islam to learning, nuturing and topping the musical scene of her time along with her deep personal tragedies to her horrific and lonely death. This book also gave a detailed knowledge about the evolution of thumri, bhajan, tappa and other music forms from their evolution to their effective utilisation by the famous musicians of that era. It is just not a autobiography but a musical enclyclopedia. The author made a thorough research and has put in tremendous amount of sweat and blood in writing this book not deviating from the main essence of the book.
I think every music lover or book lover or both should read this book and relive the daunting spirit of a woman who had the courage live life on her own terms and playing a very important role for putting Indian music at the international front but never got the true acknowledgement and happiness she deserved.

Happy Reading folks!!!

[Tanjina Tamanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

সত্যিকার অর্থে এই বইটি পড়বার আগে আমি গওহরজানের নামই শুধু জানতাম তাঁর গান শুনিনি কখনো এবং তিনি যে ভারতের প্রথম গ্রামোফোন শিল্পী ছিলেন একথাও জানতাম না। কিছু শিল্পী আছেন যারা নিজেরাই একেকটি যুগের সূচনা করেন ইনি ছিলেন তেমন হয়তো।প্রথমেই লেখক বিক্রম সম্পতের প্রতি কৃতজ্ঞতা অনুভব করছিলাম যে তিনি এককালীন দাপুটে শিল্পী যে কিনা এখন বলতে গেলে অশ্রুত তাঁকে নতুন করে তুলে ধরেছেন এই যুগের সামনে।গওহরজানের জীবনী পড়ে একটি সত্য খুব তীব্রভাবে উপলব্ধি করলাম সেটা হল প্রতিভা,মেধা,সাধনা,একাগ্রতা এগুলোর সাথে সাথে ভাগ্যকেও সংগত করতে হয়।ভাগ্য মীরজাফরী করলে এত কিছু থেকেও যেন এক করুন যবনিকা পতন নেমে আসে।ঠিক যেমনটি হয়েছে গওহরজানের ক্ষেত্রে।রূপ,গুণ,কণ্ঠ,সুর,ব্যক্তিত্ব,জ্ঞান,আভিজাত্য কিনা ছিল তার।কিন্তু নির্মম ছিল তাঁর ভাগ্য।এই ভাগ্যই তাঁকে ঠেলে দেয় জীবনযুদ্ধে পরাজয়ের দিকে।এ বড় করুন পরিণতি।মানুষের জীবন যদি সঙ্গীত হয় তবে তা যেন সুর ,তাল,লয় সব কিছুতে ভাগ করা।কোন একটি যদি ছুটে যায় জীবনটা বেসুরা হয়ে পড়ে। ভাগ্যের স���প্রসন্নতার অনিশ্চয়তার কারণেই আসলেই এ জীবন বড্ড অনিশ্চিত।আজ যে সফল সে কাল যে বিস্মৃত হয়ে যাবে না একথা কেউ বলতে পারেনা।
আশা করছি লেখক এ ���রনের অনেক হারিয়ে যাওয়া ব্যক্তিত্বদের নতুন করে খুঁজে বের করে আমাদের উপহার দেবেন।This was unputdownable .

[Ritu Nagpal · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Name is Gauhar Jaan – Little Known Gem
“My Name is Gauhar Jaan” is a story of a Diva lost in time. This is some great work by author Vikram Sampath, about an Indian classical singer Gauhar Jaan, who will always be remembered for her soulful singing. After reading this book, I am quite convinced that the persona of Gauhar Jaan, who was blessed with beauty and great musical talent can surpass any of the much famed characters, be it Bollywood or Hollywood. What a personality she was!! Firstly Gauhar Jaan a famous Indian classical singer during British era, was herself a combination of charm, mystery, depth, elegance, melody and beauty with lot of oomph factor. To top this, author has done some fabulous research about Gauhar Jaan and described some fabulous real life episodes. I wonder why still it has not attracted many film makers or may be by now it has!! Who knows…

Read the full review http://www.love4books.com/little-know...

[Vijai · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book left me depressed for a week after I had finished it. Its just sad. This lady had cards stacked against her even before she was born. A life long struggle of being 'maintained' by various assholes, insulted, hurt, court cases, a mother who was just another piece of shit, trade competitors fucking with her, double crossed again and again and again and again. Only to die alone with not so much as even a tomb to mark your resting place.

Here is one of her renditions of a Bengali song -https://youtu.be/in2IrF0x2e4.

At the end of the song is a woman with a child like enthusiasm saying - "My name is Gauhar Jan. Hear my song".

Maybe that is all she wanted. For the world to know that she had a talent to show and a story to tell. Her talent she successfully displayed in her lifetime but I think through Vikram Sampath she fulfilled her other desire too.

A brilliant book. Worth your time. Please buy first hand.

[Ilika Ranjan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea I could like a book like Gauhar Jaan.Have never read a book like that. The addictive Urdu lines, and the struggle of a passionate female classical singer, strikes a chord. Loved the journey of this talented pioneering singer and her end caused so much pain in my heart.
A genuine literary book.

The introductory lines

"Luft hai kuan si kahani mein
Aap beeti kahoon ke jag beeti?"

completely captured my attention for the book.

[Ankur Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gauhar Jaan was not a artist/musician - She was an era. A long forgotten one now, courtesy to the Victorian philosophy and times. We need more Vikram Sampath in India to bring out these forgotten gems out in the world and to put Indian rich heritage out in the open.

[Jagadiswar Mohapatra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classy and thought Provoking. VIkram Sampath is truly a master story teller.

[bookenza -- THE BOOK FEVER · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had not heard of Vikram Sampath until a few weeks ago when I heard him at a session on Savarkar at the Delhi Times Lit Fest. Found him extremely erudite as he spoke about India during the freedom struggle and our revolutionaries. A quick search yielded that he has a doctorate in history and music (is a Carnatic music exponent), is an engineer from BITS Pilani and an MBA from SPJIM, and that he won the Sahitya Academy’s first Yuva Puraskar in English Literature for his book, My Name is Gauhar Jaan. The book’s synopsis said that Gauhar Jaan was an exponent of Hindustani classical music, a tawaif (nautch girl) and was India’s first recorded singer. Piqued enough, I placed an order for the copy even before leaving the Lit fest!

And kept wondering about Gauhar Jaan until the book arrived in a couple of days. She was indeed India’s first recorded artist. When the gramophone came to India in 1902, the first artist that the officials of the Gramaphone and Typewriter Ltd (GTL) approached was the hugely popular and sought-after musical doyen, Gauhar Jaan of Calcutta. In her mid-twenties at that time, Gauhar had no inhibitions about getting into the hitherto unknown world of music recording. She improvised her renditions to fit into the three-minute limitation of the discs, sang out loudly into a horn that took away the nuances of her music, and yet was unperturbed by the adaptions that came with the recording requirements. She was paving the way for the democratisation of India’s music, one song at a time.

Hailing from an Anglo-Indian lineage, Gauhar Jaan inherited both music and the nautch world from her mother, Malka Jaan. In born talent and years of music pursuit had made Gauhar Jaan India’s leading Thumri exponents. She ruled the music scene of India from 1873 for more than four decades, taking her taalim from a bevy of gurus, and singing in courts and durbars of kings and nawabs across India.

The book traces Gauhar’s roots from her grandparents Hardy Hemmings, a British officer, and Rukmani, his Indian mistress. Victoria, born to the Hemmings, married an Armenian, Robert William Yeoward. Their daughter, Eileen Angelina Yeoward, became Gauhar in a few years, when her parents divorced and her mother converted to Islam and took the name Malka Jaan. There onwards follows Gauhar’s trajectory, her musical inheritance from her popular mother, her initiation into the world of tawaifs (nautch girls) to climbing the pinnacle of success and popularity, the many personal trials and her passing away in Mysore under extremely modest circumstances.

Extremely well-researched and detailed, My Name is Gauhar Jaan, comes across as a labour of love of the author Vikram Sampath. Himself a trained musician, Sampath has unearthed just about everything about Gauhar Jaan. Alongside, he wrote in detail about the evolution of Hindustani classical music in India, its rich gharanas, its gifted maestros, its many benevolent patrons, about its freeing up from the world of durbars and private soirees to reaching the world of the common man; about the invention of the gramophone by Edison and about its coming to India as a business venture; about the socio-cultural changes taking place in our country during the turn of the 20th century.

The narrative of the book is well-drawn out. However, the language is not all that rich. You disregard that though. The gargantuan effort gone into drawing up the life and times of a musician from the times when not much records were kept, especially of women musicians, bowls you over. Being a trained musician himself, Sampath must have felt a strong connect. Which is why the book is so meticulous, and so respectful towards that strata of women so looked down upon.

Read it if you understand and love music. At the end of it all, you will be grateful to Sampath for chosing a subject like Gauhar Jaan, for reintroducing her. For resurrecting her.

PS: The book comes with a CD of Gauhar Jaan's songs. You can actually listen to a whole lot of those very first recordings in India. I marvelled at her, and the author's sincerity of purpose. Truly, a labour of love this book is......

[Anirudh Naveen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sahitya-Akademi winning novel need not require any substantial introduction. The prestigious award speaks for itself. However, Vikram Sampath's wonderful treatise perhaps transcends any award or title. It just needs to be savoured by every reader who gets the privilege of flipping through the pages of this book.

Vikram Sampath has this wonderful habit of writing biographies and caricatures of historical personalities that are obscure yet left a deep imprint in the annals of history. His opting for Gauhar Jaan, India's first voice on gramophone, was unique yet amazing, and this conclusion could only be reached once I completed the reading process.
I hadn't any idea of Gauhar Jaan and her legacy before reading this book. I picked it up solely because of my admiration for Vikram Sampath as a writer, particularly after reading his fantastic biography of Veer Savarkar.

Gauhar Jaan's life was studded with so many events, and Sampath has very neatly presented all of them. Each chapter culminates with a verse that effectively summarises its contents. Gauhar Jaan's tempestuous life had multiple failed liaisons, both in the realm of love and patronage; and each one of these is illustrated eloquenty.
The biggest positive from the book is the simplicity of language. Although the overarching theme remains the tawaif's life and times, a lot of details of Indian classical music and its nuances are also shared. However, Sampath's expositions are very readable, sure to lure any reader, notwithstanding their knowledge on these themes. In fact, he has done a great service to Indian culture by providing a chronological sequence of events leading up to the 'thumri' as is understood today.
Readers would definitely get acquainted with Gauhar Jaan's magnetic personality and aura she commanded in her heyday. Her identity as a woman and a tawaif often led to her vilification, and this expectedly wreaked havoc in her personal life. The emotional trauma, particularly in the last phase of her life, has also been chronicled very deftly.

The staggering amount of research this book entailed can be grasped by a cursory glance through the appendices. This is a monumental effort at unearthing a 20th century diva, whose name has unfortunately does not find much of a mention in modern discourse. A must-read certainly for anyone with an interest in Indian classical music and the evolution of the recording industry.

[Nitin Akarsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Odysseus -- “If they ever tell my story let them say that I walked with giants. Men rise and fall like the winter wheat, but these names will never die. Let them say I lived in the time of Hector, tamer of horses. Let them say I lived in the time of Achilles.”
ये ट्रॉय सिनेमा की पंक्तियाँ हैं और मुझे लगता है शायद कभी लोग ऐसा भी कहते होंगे की हम उस वक़्त के हैं जब भारत में नबाब हुआ करते थे और बड़ी बड़ी हवेलियों के आगे बग्गियां रुका करती थी और उस बग्गी से एक तवायफ उतरती थी जिसने अपनी आवाज और अदा से सारे हिन्दुस्तान को अपना दीवाना बना दिया था , हाँ हम वो हैं जिन्होंने गौहर जान को अपने सामने गाते हुए सुना है l
अगर आपने पाकीजा या उमरावजान सिनेमा देखा है और उन्हें पसंद किया है , अगर आपने शिवानी जी की किताबों में तवायफों के बारे में पढ़ा है या बिमल मित्र की साहेब बीबी गुलाम किताब पढ़ी है और कलकत्ता के नबाबों और तवायफों की कहानियों ने आपको आकर्षित किया है और आप अगर जानना चाहते हैं हिन्दुस्तान के संगीत में तवायफों के योगदान के बारे में तो आपको विक्रम सम्पत की किताब "मेरा नाम है गौहर जान" पढ़नी चाहिए l ये एक काल यात्रा की तरह है जब आप किताब पढ़ते हुए अपनी आँखें बंद करते हैं तो कलकत्ता की सड़क पे घोड़े के दौड़ने की आवाज आती है और दीखता है किसी हवेली के बाहर किसी के गाने की आवाज सुनने के लिए लोगों की भीड़ जमा है l कानों में एक संगीत गूंजने लगता है और आखिर में आती है एक आवाज़ मेरा नाम है गौहर जान l विक्रम सम्पत की इस किताब को लिखने के लिए जि���नी भी तारीफ करें कम है l

[The Vibrant Space · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolute banger of a book. I'd say it's a must-read for anyone who's ever learned music or dance, regardless of which kind. Also a must-read for any woman, according to me. Not only does it tell the story of a class of people long forgotten by our history textbooks, it also tells it beautifully. The words felt transparent. A few paragraphs into the book and you weren't here. You were in Benaras or Calcutta or Bombay, travelling with a dynamic mother-daughter duo. I think this book cured my big-brain-book-phobia.
I did feel like the misogyny that accompanied a tawaif's life could've been explored a little more, though. In the book, most of the things in Gauhar Jaan's life that were a direct result of misogyny felt more like a series of "she should've seen it coming but she didn't" events and the possible reasons why Gauhar behaved the way she did in these situations were rarely explored.
I felt like all of her love affairs, especially, were just attributed to "oh she saw someone and fell in love and rationality left the chat," when I'm pretty sure it wasn't that simple. Also, the topic of tawaifs being simultaneously worshipped and kept away, put on a pedestal but never respected, was mentioned in passing, but I think if this had been delved into a little more, then my understanding of the circumstances surrounding Gauhar Jaan's life and times would've deepened quite a bit.

[Rajiv Chopra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is endlessly fascinating. It is a tribute to a remarkable lady, a tawaif, called Gauhar Jaan. She is one of the best known singers of her age, and was – in many ways – responsible for the popularization of the gramophone.

Her grandmother was called Rukmani, a common-law wife of a British person. Her mother was named Victoria Hemming, and she married an Armenian Jew called Yeoward. Gauhar Jaan herself was named Angelina. After the parents divorced, her mother started a relationship with a Muslim gent called Khurshid, and later mother and daughter converted to Islam, to be called Malka Jaan and Gauhar Jaan respectively.

A musical journey for both mother and daughter followed, and Gauhar rose to amazing heights, before her downfall. She died virtually penniless.

Vikram Sampath has written an amazing book about a remarkable woman and her mother and grandmother. Along the way, he introduced me to the tawaif tradition, and helped to clear my own misconceptions about them. He also introduced me to the traditions of Indian music.

It is a remarkable book, and a tribute to a woman who should be remembered, and who should have been treated more fairly.

It’s an extremely well written book. I hope that this books gets a very wide audience.

[Sudipt Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

"My Name is Gauhar Jaan" by Vikram Sampath is a well-written and informative book about Gauhar Jaan, an influential figure of 20th century who has almost been forgotten. Jaan story gives us a glimpse into the lives of those who live, by choice or by fate, at the fringes of the society that accepts and puts a premium on a closely defined "family". Much feted by her admirers, Jaan faced and dished rejections to her partners with impunity but died a lonely old woman. Book uncovers and highlights many of the lesser know facts about her life.

Author's primer on Hindustani classical music is a great addition to this extensively researched book.

[Abhïshék Ghosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vikram Sampath beings alive history, mostly because of how lucid and human it is. The life of this doyen of Hindustani classical music set against the backdrop of major historical events such as the struggle for India's independence and the evangelical movements against the entire concept of "tawaifs" of which Gauahar is a pioneering member. I found the book well researched and entertaining for its deep and dramatic portrayal of a woman who defied definitions of her time and was the first Indian to record their voice on the gramophone. The appeal of this book goes far beyond aficiandos of Hindustani classical music and hence I would highly recommend it to a much wider audience!

[Purva Abhyankar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is laminated like jewels on Gauhar and the story itself is like melodious renditions which fade slowly as the diva sets down her soul.

[Sudarsan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read.

[Shivani Rajwade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well researched and well articulated.

[Pankaj · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed listening to the CDs provided with the book.
Gauhar Jan remains a legend in Indian Classical music.
Vikram prose is restrictive and the only reason for my 3-star rating.

[Maganraj Bafna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gauhar Jaan’s story(1873-1930)has been pieced together by Vikram Sampath after painstaking research, and has a lot of details.

The book begins with her childhood and her learning years, her loves and disappointments, and her journey to becoming a star in the world of Hindustani music.
She was a much-sought-after musician, was very well dressed and stylish, and went around Kolkata in a horse-drawn carriage.The success of her gramophone records made her a celebrity in India, and she was also known in Europe. Hers was a story of great glory, and yet extreme sadness because she was not successful in love, much as she yearned for a happy relationship.Towards the end of her life, she lost all that she earned, and finally reached the court of Mysore Maharaja, where she was appointed Palace Musician. Unfortunately, she died there within 18 months of going there.

The book traces the story of her life with all its attendant myths, legends and folklore, some of which are recorded, some apocryphal; as well as the times during which she lived and made exquisite music. It is interesting to note that only the names of tawaifs figure among the women tax-payers of the times, proving that they were the only female property owners of those days. Thus, at time when most women in India were illiterate, the tawaifs were accomplished in the fine arts and were skilled poets, authors, musicians and dancers themselves.

The statement she makes at the end of each song, 'My Name is Gauhar Jaan'
is justifiably the title of the book and is almost like an assertion that says, “Don’t forget me!”