Auckland-based music maestro and trainer Shuk Dev Madhur was conferred with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Mehfil E Ghazal event in Auckland on March 11, 2023.
About 300 people attended the event organised by the Urdu Hindi Cultural Association of New Zealand (UHCANZ). Among the audience were ministers of the crown Michael Wood and Deborah Russell, parliamentarian Melissa Lee, Second Secretary at the Indian High Commission Durga Dass, former parliamentarian Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi and President of the Auckland Indian Association Dhansukh Lal.
Shuk Dev Madhur is a recipient of India’s prestigious National Award to Teachers. The 80-year-old is credited with bringing the Hindustani style of music to New Zealand, and his family operates Sargam School of Indian Music in Auckland.
After being awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award last week, an emotional Madhur told The Indian Weekender, “I don’t have words to express how happy and humble I feel to have received this award. Any award that recognises your hard work is always inspirational. I want to thank the Urdu Hindi Cultural Association of NZ for bestowing this honour. I am grateful that such a prestigious organisation has recognised my work, and it would encourage me to continue my work towards promoting Indian music among the younger generation. I want to continue teaching music till my last breath."
The musical night at Fickling Convention Centre in Three Kings saw attendees enjoying soulful performances by singers Ankita Ghatani, Vidya Teke, Nisar Mirza, Khalid Mohammad, Jaspreet Kandhari, Kiranjit Singh and Devi Sobhana.
Another highlight was the release of UHCANZ's trilingual literary magazine Dhanak by Durga Dass, accompanied by Bhartiya Samaj Charitable Trust Chairperson Jeet Suchdev, author Rohit Kumar Happy, UHCANZ President Roopa Suchdev and UHCANZ General Secretary Syed Mujeeb.
UHCANZ Vice President Ghouse Majeed said, “I feel immensely grateful for such an enormous turnout at our event. We aim to maintain and promote our two major languages Hindi and Urdu among Kiwi Indians. I sincerely thank all those who contributed and participated in making it a grand success. Witnessing our guests enjoying enchanting ghazal performances and savouring delicious food was a delight. It was a great response from community groups.”
One of the attendees and Justice of the Peace Inderjeet Bajwa said, "It was an amazing night organised by the Urdu Hindi Cultural Association of New Zealand. I thank everyone for making me a part of this event and a part of the association.”
Chairperson of the Puketapapa Local Board, Ella Kumar said, “I enjoyed celebrating UCANZ’S annual event celebrating arts and culture. Congratulations to Roopa Suchdev, Mujeeb Syed and the committee.”
UHCANZ was established in 2009 to promote and preserve the culture and language of Urdu and Hindi in New Zealand. The initial aim was to provide a platform for people who spoke the languages to come together and celebrate their cultural heritage.
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