Dateline Mussoorie: Young, god-gifted singer, lyricist and composer Meena Arya from Basaghat village just on the outskirts of Mussoorie has put together the town’s first Maangal Group: a troupe of musicians and three women singers who will perform traditional song’s during auspicious ceremonies such as weddings, child birth, festivities on special invite in the hill-station.
Without any formal training, the young talented Meena has been into professional singing for the past 2-3 years. Talking to the media at the Mussoorie Press Club, Meena said, “The credit for my musical career goes to my husband. He has been my support since day one. My best friend Geeta Kothari recognised my talent and supported my dream, she introduced me to Jagatlal Dogra ji and since then, I have never looked back.” Today the lady’s voice has taken regional music to an all new high. Her songs in Garhwali and Jaunsari have been well-received by the young and old alike. Now she wants to take the lead and form a Maangal group to entertain as well as carry on the tradition of singing auspicious songs at festivities.
While the main aim of the all-women troupe is to bring our culture and tradition to every household in Mussoorie which has a large Garhwali and Jaunsari settlement, they also want to empower women and give a fresh lease of life to the forgotten Maangal songs giving the youth a chance to bring their talent to the forefront by training them in Maangal.
Convenor of the group, Pushpa Padiyar speaks for all when she says, “anything auspicious is incomplete if we do not begin our ceremonies with Mangaal. Mussoorie did not have a dedicated Maangal group, but with Meena here, we now hope to change that and ensure that the troupe will carry forward this tradition and their songs will echo in every nook and corner of our town.”
