- Sharan Rani was an Indian classical sarod player and music scholar. Her personal collection of 379 musical instruments dating from the 15th to the 19th century is now part of the “Sharan Rani Backliwal Gallery of Musical Instruments” at the National Museum, New Delhi.
Sharan Rani Backliwal Biography In English
Birth Details –
Place – Old Delhi
Date of Birth – 9 April 1929
Marital Status- Married
Nationality -Indian
Family –
Husband- Sultan Singh Backliwal
Daughter- Radhika Narayan
Education – MA
Teacher – Alauddin Khan, Ali Akbar Khan, Achhan Maharaj
Early Life And Training
- She was born as Sharan Rani Mathur in an orthodox Hindu family of well-known merchants and educationists in the walled city of Old Delhi.
- As a young girl, Sharan Rani learned to play the sarod from maestro musician Allauddin Khan and his son Ali Akbar Khan.
- Backliwal started his music career despite immense family opposition.
- During this period in Indian history, a career as a musician was seen as something for gharanas or the profession of dancing girls or baiji, which was not suitable for the daughter of a respectable, non-musician .
- She also learned Kathak form of classical Indian dance from Achchan Maharaj and Manipuri dance form from Nabha Kumar Sinha.
- In 1953, she did her MA from the University of Delhi, and studied at the Indraprastha Women’s College.
Personal Life
- In 1960, she married Sultan Singh Backliwal, who belonged to a prominent Digambar Jain business family in Delhi. In 1974, they had a daughter, Radhika Narayan. Some
Music Career
- Since the late 1930s, Sharan Rani presented her sarod recitals on the concert stage in India for more than seven decades.
- She was one of the first to record for UNESCO and to release music recordings with major record companies in the United States, Britain and France.
- Rani was one of the early artistes of All India Radio and Doordarshan. She was popularly known as ‘Sarod Rani’ (Queen of Sarod).
- Sharan Rani was the first female instrumentalist of India who gained international fame.
Music Authoring and Teaching
- Backliwal also wrote a history of the sarod, titled The Divine Sarod: Its Origin, Antiquity and Development, which was released in 1992 by KR Narayanan, the then Vice President of India.
- The second edition of The Divine Sarod was released in 2008 by IK Gujral, former Prime Minister of India. He also wrote many articles on music.
- Backliwal taught music through the guru-shishya parampara and never charged any fee from his students. Many students also lived free of charge in his house for many years as his residence-pupils.
Other Information –
Date of Death – 8 April 2008
Place- Delhi
Question Related to Sharan Rani Backliwal
What is Sharan Rani Backliwal’s birth place and date of birth?
Sharan Rani Backliwal was born on 9 April 1929 in Old Delhi.
What was the name of Sharan Rani Backliwal’s husband?
Sharan Rani Backliwal’s husband’s name was Sultan Singh Backliwal.
What was the name of Sharan Rani Backliwal’s teacher?
Sharan Rani Baikaliwal’s teacher’s name was Ali Bux ‘Vilayatu’ Alauddin Khan, Ali Akbar Khan, Achhan Maharaj.
What was the name of the daughter of Sharan Rani Baikaliwal?
Sharan Rani Baikaliwal’s daughter’s name was Radhika Narayan.
When and where did Sharan Rani Baikaliwal die?
Sharan Rani Backliwal died on 8 April 2008 in Delhi.
