Pankaj Udhas
- Birthday: 17. May 1951
- Birthplace: Jetpur, Gujarat, India
- Awards: 1985 – K L Saigal Award for being the Best Ghazal Singer of the Year., 1985 – K L Saigal Award for being the Best Ghazal Singer of the Year., 1993 – Giants International Award for extraordinary efforts to achieve the highest standards in the field of music thereby motivating the entire community to pursue excellence., 1994 – Radio Lotus Award for Outstanding Achievement and for the many songs featuring on the official hit parade of the radio. Presented by Radio Lotus, South Africa at the University of Durban., 1994 – Honorary Citizenship of Lubbock Texas, USA., 1996 – Indira Gandhi Priyadarshani Award for Outstanding Services, Achievement and Contribution to Music., 1998 – Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award presented by the American Academy of Artists at Atlantic City., 1998 – Indian Arts Awards Gala presented by the Mayor of the City of Jersey City., 1999 – Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, USA Award for extraordinary services to Indian music, especially promotion of ghazals in India and abroad. Presented at the Festival of Ghazals held in New York., 2001 – Vocational Recognition Award for Outstanding Performance as a Ghazal singer presented by Rotary Club of Mumbai Downtown., 2002 – Honored by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce.
Biography
Pankaj Udhas is a ghazal singer, hailing from Gujarat in India. He started his career with a release of a ghazal album titled Aahat in 1980 and subsequently recorded many hits like Mukarar in 1981, Tarrannum in 1982, Mehfil in 1983, Pankaj Udhas Live at Royal Albert Hall in 1984, Nayaab in 1985 and Aafreen in 1986. After his success as a ghazal singer, he was invited to appear and sing for a film by Mahesh Bhatt, Naam. Udhas rose to further fame for singing in the 1986 film Naam, in which his song "Chitthi Aayee Hai" became an instant hit. He did playback singing for many Hindi films after that. Albums and live concerts around the globe brought him fame as a singer. In 2006, Pankaj Udhas was awarded the coveted Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award.[1]
Pankaj Udhas was born in Jetpur in Gujarat to a Gujarati family and is the youngest of the three brothers.[2] He hails from Charakhdi, a small village near Rajkot in Gujarat. His parents are Keshubhai Udhas and Jituben Udhas. His eldest brother Manhar Udhas achieved some success as a Hindi playback singer in Bollywood films. His second elder brother Nirmal Udhas is also a well-known Ghazal Singer and was the first of the three brothers to start singing in the family. He had studied in Sir BPTI Bhavanagar. His family moved to Mumbai and Pankaj attended St. Xavier's College in Mumbai.