Mid-day Metro: Mumbai

February 23, 2006

‘I sing for the peace and harmony of all
communities’. My only purpose is to establish peace and communal harmony in India through my music”
Seema Anil Sehgal
Resident of Seven Bungalows

By: Mayank Soni

IN today’s times, where we need films like Swades and Rang De Basanti to instill in us a feeling of patriotism, Seema Anil Sehgal is one citizen who has been living this credo — through singing.

A resident of Seven Bungalows, Sehgal has recently been conferred the Hakim Khan Sur Award (2005 -06) for her ‘lasting contribution in the field of national integration’, through her singing and music compositions.

The award instituted by the Maharana Mewar Foundation, Udaipur, will be presented to her at the City Palace, Udaipur, on Mar 5, followed by a live concert where she will perform.

Says 45-year-old Sehgal, “My only purpose is to establish peace and communal harmony in India by making meaningful music and singing soulful poetry.”

Sehgal believes that India has faced too many communal tensions and “music is one of the ways through which bridges can be built across communities, states and nations,” she adds.

Born in Jammu and Kashmir, Sehgal was always inclined towards singing and graduated from the Bharatiya Kala Kendra, Delhi in 1983, with a degree in Sangeet Visharad.

Sehgal began writing poetry in Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi and Dogri languages. In 1996, she came to Mumbai with her husband and started singing at small shows and concerts.

In 1998, she released the music album Sarhad, and dedicated the album to peace between India and Paksitan. Her happiest moment was when the then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee presented the album to his Pakistani counterpart in the Lahore Summit, 1999.

Since Jan 2002, Sehgal has been singing in concerts with a special theme titled, Lahoo Ka Rang Ek Hai. Says Sehgal, “I sing in different parts of the country and promote national integration. The lyrics in my songs forces people to think about the
various tensions that communities in India go through and what can be done to bring back peace.”

http://ww1.mid-day.com/metro/lokhandwala/2006/february/131561.htm

DAINIK JAGRAN, NEW DELHI

सीमा अनिल सहगल को

हाकिम खान सुर पुरस्कार

जागरण संवाददाता, जम्मू

जम्मू-कश्मीर की सुविख्यात गायिका सीमा अनिल सहगल को संगीत के माध्यम से राष्ट्रीय अखंडता के क्षेत्र में उल्लेखनीय योगदान के लिए इस वर्ष प्रतिष्ठित हाकिम खान सुर पुरस्कार से नवाजा गया है।

मेवाड़ फाउंडेशन, उदयपुर की ओर से दिए जाने वाले पुरस्कार में 25,001 रुपये नकद, चांदी का प्रशस्ति पत्र व दुशाला शामिल है।

इस प्रतिष्ठित पुरस्कार से सम्मानित की जाने वाली प्रमुख हस्तियों में स्वर कोकिला लता मंगेशकर, कवि हरिवंश राय बच्चन, अभिनेता सुनील दत्त, बौद्ध धर्मगुरु दलाई लामा शामिल हैं।

फाउंडेशन के अध्यक्ष व प्रबंधक न्यासी अरविंद सिंह मेवाड़ 5 मार्च को उदयपुर के माणिक चौक, सिटी पैलेस में एक विशेष समारोह में उन्हें यह पुरस्कार प्रदान करेंगे।

भारत की शांति गायिका के रूप में प्रसिद्ध सीमा विश्व की इकलौती गायिका हैं जिनका एक संगीत एलबम राष्ट्रीय सौगात के रूप में प्रदान किया गया था।

पूर्व प्रधानमंत्री वाजपेयी ने 1999 में लाहौर दौरे के दौरान पाक के तत्कालीन प्रधानमंत्री नवाज शरीफ को सीमा अनिल सहगल की एक संगीत एलबम सरहद राष्ट्रीय सौगात के रूप में प्रदान की थी।

http://epaper.jagran.com/main.aspx?edate=2/17/2006&editioncode=38&pageno=1#

http://epaper.jagran.com/main.aspx?edate=2/17/2006&editioncode=38&pageno=10#

THE HINDU: CHENNAI

Date:16/02/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/02/16/stories/2006021604341300.htm

National

Award for

Seema Anil Sehgal

Luv Puri

Jammu: The singer-composer from Jammu and Kashmir, Seema Anil Sehgal, has been chosen for the Hakim Khan Sur award for 2005-2006 for her "lasting contribution to national integration" through music.

The award, instituted by the Maharana Mewar Foundation, Udaipur, in 1986, carries a cash prize of Rs. 25,001, a silver citation and a ceremonial shawl. Chairman and managing trustee Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar will present the award at Udaipur on March. The function will be followed by a concert by Seema.

Hailed as the "peace singer of India," Seema is the only singer in the world, whose voice has been presented as a national gift. The former Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee, presented Sarhad, a music album by her, as a national gift to his Pakistani counterpart during the historic Lahore summit in February 1999.

She was later felicitated at Harvard University in the United States.

© Copyright 2000 - 2006 The Hindu

HARVARD UNIVERSITY, BOSTON, USA

National award for

Seema Anil Sehgal,

'Peace singer of India'

by Beena Sarwar

Nieman Fellow

Nieman Foundation for Journalism: Harvard University

Mumbai-based renowned singer-composer from Jammu & Kashmir, Seema Anil Sehgal, has been conferred India's prestigious Hakim Khan Sur Award for the year 2005-2006, for her 'lasting contribution in the field of national integration' through her music.

Lata Mangeshkar, Harivansh Rai Bachchan, Sunil Dutt, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and activists Asghar Ali Engineer and Teesta Setalvad adorn the roll of honour for this prestigious national award.

Popularly hailed as the 'peace singer of India', and the 'Bul-bul-e-Kashmir', Seema may be the only singer in the world whose voice has been presented as a national gift.

Prime Minister Vajpayee presented "Sarhad", a music album sung and composed by Seema, as a national gift, to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his erstwhile Pakistani counterpart during the historic Lahore Summit, in February 1999.

She was later felicitated at the prestigious Harvard University, Boston, USA, the only singer from India to receive such honour.

Seema has effectively employed her music with meaningful poetry to establish peace and communal harmony in India and abroad. She has sung and composed music to the works of many poets, including Bulley Shah, Allama Iqbal and Faiz Ahmed Faiz, presented at concerts in India and elsewhere.

Since January 2002, she has been singing her especially devised Peace Concerts, titled 'Lahoo Ka Rang Ek Hai', in different parts of India to promote national integration by bringing different communities of India closer; especially Hindus and Muslims. In December 2003, she sang at the largely attended Karachi convention of the Pakistan India People's Forum for Peace and Democracy, at a time when relations between the two nuclear-armed nations were still tense.

Hakim Khan Sur, in whose name this national award has been instituted, was a Pathan from the North West frontier, who came to Mewar from Hyderabad, his city of domicile.

He became a general in Rana Pratap's army and fought in the epic battle of Haldi Ghati (1576 AD) against the invading army of Emperor Akbar. This was the first recorded instance in which the Mewar army was led by an outsider. Hakim Khan Sur was the first to lay down his life in battle.

Even in death no one could part him from his sword, and so he was buried with full honours - sword in hand. His sacrifice is symbolic of the supremacy of ideology over religious and communal considerations.

The award instituted by the Maharana Mewar Foundation, Udaipur, in 1986, carries a cash prize of Rs 25,001/-, a silver citation and a ceremonial shawl.

The Chairman and Managing Trustee of the Foundation, Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar will present the award at a special function to be held at the Manek Chowk, The City Palace, Udaipur, on Sunday, 5 March 2006, followed by a live concert by Seema.