Shubha Mudgal

Shubha Mudgal
Shubh Mudgal Performing at Bharat Bhavan Bhopal
Background information
Birth name	Shubha Gupta
Born	1959 (age 57–58) Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India
Genres	Pop, folk, Indian classical, playback singing
Occupation(s)	Singer
Years active	1986 – present
Website	www.shubhamudgal.com

Shubha Mudgal (born 1959) is a well-known Indian singer of Hindustani classical music. Her repertoire includes the genres of Khayal, Thumri and Dadra, as also popular Indian pop music. She has received several awards and accolades for her artistic accomplishments, including the Padma Shri, awarded in 2000. Apart from music, Mudgal is known for supporting left-wing causes and associating herself with radical, progressive organizations like Shabnam Hashmi's ANHAD and SAHMAT.

Shubha was born in Allahabad into an academic family, the daughter of Prof. Skand Gupta and his wife, Prof. Jaya Gupta. Both of her parents were professors of English Literature at Allahabad University, and both of them had a deep interest in Classical Hindustani Music and the Kathak form of classical dance. Shubha's paternal grandfather, Prof. P. C. Gupta, had also been a Professor at Allahabad University.

Shubha grew up in Allahabad and after finishing school, attended St. Mary's Convent Inter College. As children, she and her sister were sent by their artistic-minded parents to a dance class to learn Kathak. However, her interest in dance was never great and the fact that she attended a non-descript dance-class in the neighbourhood did not conduce to high levels of accomplishment. She once replied to a dance examiner's routine query of "Aap kis gharaane ki Kathak naachti hain? (what is the style/school of Kathak to which you belong?)" with the retort, "Hum apne gharaane ki Kathak naachte hain (I dance my own style of Kathak)". She later switched to Hindustani Classical Music as her vocation of choice while maintaining the same individualistic attitude. Her first traditional teacher (guru) was Pandit Ramashreya Jha in Allahabad.