Obtaining three hours of Raj Begam songs took more than four years of trying. In the process I even gave a bottle of Johnny Walker whisky to Radio Kashmir, Srinagar officials, but in vain. Finally, my good luck prevailed, as I stumbled on two relatives, who had high level connections with Radio Kashmir, Srinagar. Why it is so difficult to obtain Raj Begam’s recordings is because they were never commercialized. I am delighted to have these recordings of the person whom I consider the greatest Kashmiri singer that I have heard.

Raj Begam’s voice is timelessly haunting, a cry of sadness, clothed in the worldly melody. She echoes the loneliness of the universe and the sadness of the human experience. Her singing is so integrated and harmonious that one feels that she does not need the accompaniment of music to embellish it.

Maharaj Kaul
Suffern, New York
7.8.05