HANS RAJ HANS
August 2008

* Hans Raj Hans is back this year in North America.

* India’s top folk, pop and Sufi music singer will enthrall you with fantastic renditions of Sufi music.

* A wonderful entertainer, Hans Raj Hans is a consummate singer of Sufi music.

* Sufiana 2006 and Sufiana Sammah 2007 were outstanding successes.

* With sold out shows in many cities, Hans Raj Hans captured audiences with his divine singing.

* His rich voice and extensive range hypnotized Sufi music lovers.

Hans Raj Hans – The Background

His is a name synonymous with Punjabi folklore and Sufi songs. Donning a beard and long curly hair, he is the epitome of the rural Punjab village youth. Guru Ustad Puran Shahkoti Sahib, his guru who trained him bestowed the last name “Hans” on him. He is the Punjabi folk singer with a style of his own. He has performed all over the world, in places like South Africa, Canada, Europe, Middle East and many more regions.

Success has not changed Hans Raj Hans. He is still a down-to-earth Sufi singer who has carved a niche for himself amongst the great singing icons of India.

He is one of the few people who have managed to bring original folk music from the fields of Punjab to the professional world of Indian music industry.

Born in Shafipur, a small village near Jalandhar (Punjab), Hans hails from a humble Sikh farm worker family. He drew inspiration from street musicians and from the holy shrines which had a spiritual legacy.

The real influence came when Ustad Puran Shah Koti saw the young boy singing in his native village and took him under his tutelage. With the guidance of Ustad Puran, Hans developed into a versatile singer. A pupil of the traditional Punjabi Sufiana music, Hans excels in Sufiana Gayki and folk based Bhangra melodies.

After graduating high school, Hans joined D.A.V College in Jalandhar, Punjab – but not for long. Since the day he mustered the courage to walk out of college and plunge headlong into a career in music and performing arts, Hans has enthralled his fans all over the world. Other than singing, Hans has also appeared as a protagonist in a Punjabi movie Mehendi Shagna Di and made a guest appearance in the film Baisakhi.

His blockbuster album “Jhanjaria” has lyrics by the well known lyricist Ibraheem Ashq and music by the duo Ali-Ghani. The music directors actually went to Punjab and stayed with Hans Raj Hans to get a real feel of life out there and drew inspirations from the studies and works of Sufi music.

Hans Raj Hans says, “In this album, I have tried to give a feel of the earth in terms of music, lyrics and vocals. People would expect me to come up with something like Morni after Chorni, but I followed my heart and have experimented with various dialects of music in this album.”

On a personal note, Hans Raj Hans loves to sing before a live audience. He is fond of playing the Harmonium, Keyboard, Surmandal and Eik Tara. He is a simple man and likes to devote most of his time to music and singing. He likes to read poetry and is fond of listening to classical music.

Awards & Achievements

The former Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihai Vajpayee honored Hans Raj Hans for his contribution in popularizing Punjabi music.

Hans Raj Hans was honored with the best male singer award for “Dil Chori Sadda Ho Gaya.”

I. K. Gujral awarded Hans Raj Hans with the title of "Raj Gayak" by Government of Punjab. A great honor since he is the only singer to be honored with this coveted title by the Government of Punjab.

He has also been honored with a fellowship for Folk Music and Sufiana Gaiki by the Washington University.

He is the only Sufi singer from Punjab who has been conferred upon the unique “Fellowship for Life” by Punjab University, Patiala. Dr. Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, the Vice Chancellor of Punjab University bestowed the rare honor upon Hans Raj Hans.

Hans Raj Hans – The Music

The list of his hit songs is endless. He has worked with many renowned music composers; one of his favorites is the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

The late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was so impressed by his vocal range that he invited Hans Raj Hans to sing a song composed by him for the movie Kachhe Dhage. The duet “Iskhe Dee Galli Vichon Koi Koi Langhda” gained immense popularity on the Bollywood and Indi-Pop scene.

Hans Raj Hans has produced 15 albums based on Sufiana Qalam (Qafi/Qawali style) - some favorites are “Jogiyan de kanna wich, and Kook papihe waali.”

In 1997, Hans became the first Punjabi singer to be officially invited to perform in Pakistan at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.

Hans is not only interested in performing music but also in preserving it. One his farm, he is constructing a studio-cum-archives library for the music of Punjab.

The artist has also worked on cutting edge experimental tracks with celebrated DJ Bally Sagoo.

Hans Raj Hans is the first and only Punjabi singer to figure prominently in TV Serial “Surabhi.” He was also the only Indian to be appointed a judge at the Asia Song Contest in UK for 3 years continuously.

Famous Albums & Titles

- Jogiyan de kanna wich
- Ek dang hor mar ja
- Ek kuri maino ranjheon faqir kar gayi
- Balle ni balle rahe rahe
- Ashquan di kahdi zindagi
- Tera mera pyar
- Patta patta singha da vairi
- Aar tutdi naa paar tutdi
- Darad kahin darvesh
- Ishq di barsaat
- Mohabbat
- Laal garara
- Kook papihe waali
- Jhanjar
- Chorni
- Jhanjaria
- Nikke nikke do khalse
- Amrit dhaara
- Bhagta lutti ja
- Vadda mera govind
- Sab ton sohni
- Hai soniye
- Daati da jalwa
- Tera ishq
- Guru ravi das noon dhiyao

2000 Jhanjaria
1999 Chorni
1998 Kook Papihey Wali
1997 Lal Gharara
1994 Mohabbat
1994 Thah Karke
1933 Ishq di barsat
1992 Dard kehan Darvesh
1992 Aar tutdi na paar tutdi
1991 Patta patta singhan da vairee
1990 Tera mera pyaar
1990 Ashqan di khadi zindagi
1990 Waris Punjab de
1989 Balle ni rahe rahe
1988 Ek kuri maino ranjheon faqir kar gayi
1987 Ek dang hor mar ja
1983 Jogiyan de kanna wich

Philosophy of Sufism

What is Sufism?
Sufism is not a philosophy, nor a religion, nor a system of thought. Its is a way of life, or a training of the mind.

Dictionary meaning: Sufi/Sufi/Noun; is a member of a mystic group who try to become united with God through prayer and meditation and by living a very simple, strict life.

The substance and definition of Sufism:
The substance of Sufism is the truth and definition of Sufism is the selfless experiencing and actualization of the truth.

Sufism is founded on the broad recognition that there is only one God, the God of all people and all true religions.

Sufism is a way of life in which a deeper identity is discovered and lived. This deeper identity, beyond the already known personality, is in harmony with all that exists. This deeper identity, or essential self, has abilities of awareness, action, creativity and love that are far beyond the abilities of the superficial personality. Eventually it is understood that these abilities belong to a greater life and being which we individualize in our own unique way while never being separate from it.

Sufism teaches one to purify one self, improve morals, and build up one’s inner and outer life in order to attain perpetual bliss. The subject matter is the purification of the soul and its end or aim is the attainment of eternal felicity and blessedness.

The best way of approaching Sufism is to make room for God in our life. But this task is very complicated: it may be understood if we make an effort to understand ourselves better and our fellow men.

God is inside our hearts - that is the message of Sufism.

The practice of Sufism is the intention to go towards Truth by means of love and devotion. If Sufism recognizes one central truth, it is the unity of being and that we are not separate from the Divine. We are One, One people, One universe, One being. If there is a single truth, worthy of the name it is that we are all integral to the Truth, not separate. The realization of this truth has its effects on our senses of who we are, on our relationships with others and to all aspects of life. Sufism is about realizing the current of love that runs throughout all life, the unity behind forms.

A Sufi is one who is a lover of Truth, who by means of love and devotion moves towards the Truth, towards perfection which all are truly seeking. As necessitated by love's jealousy, the Sufi is taken away from all except the Truth-Reality. For this reason, in Sufism it is said that “Those who are inclined towards the hereafter cannot pay attention to the material world.”

The Sufi is not held in bondage by any quality of his own because he sees everything he is and belongs to the source. It is rightly said, “The Sufi sees nothing except God in the two worlds. One who dies for the love of the material world dies a hypocrite. One who dies for the love of the hereafter, dies an ascetic. But the one who dies for the love of the truth dies a Sufi.”