Shankar Shambhu

Shankar Shambhu Qawwal were world famous sufi singers duo of their era. They both were real brothers, born and brought up in a small village Chandausi / Dariyapur, Dist. Aligarh, (Uttar Pradesh) India. The elder brother Shankar and younger brother Shambhu took their first music lesson from their father Late Shree Chunnilal Ustad at a very young age of 7 & 5. Late Shree Chunnilal Ustad was also a great folk & classical Singer and he used to run a theatre group (nautanki group) of 50 members in all over Uttar Pradesh. Later with father's permission, Shankar & Shambhu started learning Indian classical music from famous classical Guru Shri Mohanlal Ji of Jaipur Gharana. They took some guidance and some important tips of riyaaz and singing from Ustad Chand Khan Sahib of Delhi Gharana. After the completion of singing lessons they met the great poets Late Janab Shariq Irayani and Late Janab Qamar Sulemani and started taking lessons of Urdu, Arabic and Persian. After few months, on the advice of Shariq Irayani and Qamar Sulemani both brothers started singing Ghazal, Qawwali and Sufiana Kalaams and also started giving live performances. On the advice of Gaddi Nasheen of Hazrat Sufi Sahab Dargah Sharif (Kanpur) they went to give haziri (live performance) in Urs Sharif of Hazrat Khwaja Garib Nawaz of Ajmer Sharif but due to new comer they did not get the chance to perform in the Mehfil Khana. Then the elder brother Shankar took the initiative and started fasting for 3 long days and stayed without having even water in front of Dargah Sharif. On the 4th day when the management of Dargah Sharif came to know about this they gave them the permission to perform in Mehfil Khana on the last day in the end of Urs Sharif. When they Sang Salaam "MEHBOOBE KIBRIYA SE MERA SALAAM KEHNA" everyone present in the Mehfil Khana got mesmerized and amazed with their singing and started crying. Since that day they got the title of "Qawwal" and they become famous as "SHANKAR SHAMBHU QAWWAL" by blessings of Hazrat Khwaja Gharib Nawaz. After the performance of Mehfil Khana in Ajmer Sharif the legendary director of Indian film industry Late Mehboob Khan met them in Ajmer and invited them in Mumbai to perform in the inauguration of his Studio (Mehboob Studios Bandra). On the invitation of Mehboob Khan, they came to Mumbai and performed on the inauguration of his Studio (Mehboob Studios Bandra). After this performance, the whole music industry welcomed them with open arms. Later on, they got settled in Mumbai as famous Sufi and Playback Singer. As a playback singer they sang in many movies like "Alam Aara", "Teesri Kasam", "Barsaat Ki Raat", "Professor and Jadugar", "Shaan-e-Khuda", "Mere Daata Gharib Nawaz", "Teesra Patthar", "Begunah Qaidi", "Laila Majnu", "Badal", "Tumhara Kalloo", " Mandir Masjid" etc. They were the one and only Hindu Qawwal in India. They only preferred singing Sufiana Kalaams. Rather than Sufiana Kalaams they had also tremendous command and experience in singing in various genre like "Bhajans", "Mata Ki Bhentein", "Gurbani", "Sai Bhajans" etc. They had the power of singing with great fluency in 8 different languages. They were felicitated with many titles like "Khwaja Pasand", "Fanafil Moin", "Qaumi Ekta Ke Pratik" "Shahenshah-E-Qawwal" and many more. Not only in India they also gave their very successful Performances in abroad and got appreciated by people of all the religions and castes. On 10th March 1984, the elder brother Shankar got expired in a car accident in Prantij village, Dist. Sabar Kantha (Gujarat), India while coming back from a show in Dungarpur (Rajasthan) and the younger brother Shambhu got expired on 5th February 1989 after a heart attack in Delhi.