MUMBAI: Metro Cinema at Dhobi Talao in Mumbai was filled with Sikhs on 26 July 2019, to celebrate the 100^th birth anniversary of Satguru Jagjit Singh. Sikhs of all ages could be seen in white, guys with a turban and women covering their heads with plain dupattas would have been the first sight to see for anyone who entered the venue. It was a very peaceful atmosphere with people sharing smiles and hugs and photographers beautifully capturing those loving moments.

This event was graced by the presence of Satguru Uday Singhji, Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Ustad. Zakir Hussain, Shri Chandrakant Dada Patil and Sunil Jeevraj Singhi. Their presence made the event much more memorable.

Documented by filmmaker Taranjeet Singh Namdhari, the documentary is titled as Sangeet-Saroop-Satguru. The documentary covered instances from Satguruji’s life, his connection with music and his efforts at passing this knowledge about music selflessly with the people around him. The documentary showed how Satguruji believed that music in itself is an association with god himself. He was a firm believer that the lyrics of songs should be spiritual and the music should be pure. The documentary consisted of confessions from his disciples, his acquaintances and his friends. Almost everybody agrees with the fact that no one else (at least in their knowledge) posses that amount of talent and passion when it comes to classical music. He gave the world ‘new taals’ that musicians earlier had not even thought of. Even today, musicians say that his music was not just about spirituality, but also held true when it comes to science and heritage. His students feel that had it not been for Satguruji, traditional instruments of playing music would have been extinct by now. Musicians who have reached places today because of him were shown giving the entire credit with immense love to Satguruji.

“Very few maestros have had such an impact on our generation in all spheres of life, on music, on spirituality or on life in general, educating everyone as to how they can lead an ideal life specially though the field of music. The blessings that Satguru ji gave us artists cannot be found in another parallel in this life or era of ours”, said Ustad Zakir Hussain.

It was amazing initiative to make the nation aware of the phenomenal music our ancestors have created and passed on to us. The celebration was a thoughtful step and a very new approach to admire our very own singers.