Maharaj Ghulam Hussain Kathak


Maharaj Ghulam Hussain Kathak was a classical dancer and teacher.

Early life

Ghulam Hussain was born in Calcutta. He was a Hindu who later converted - his early name of Maina]. Ghulam Hussain came to Pakistan in the 1960s. After staying in Karachi he moved to Lahore in 1971. He never performed in Pakistan. He was a disciple of Acchan Maharaj, the father of Birju Maharaj in India, who was a very well known performer. In a musical conference in Banaras in 1938, he was betstowed with the title "Maharaj Kathak" by his gurus, in the presence of singers and dancers.

Migration to Pakistan

Maharaj Ghulam Hussain Kathak migrated to Karachi after the partition and lived there before moving to Lahore in his later years. He has been a major exponent in the arts and teaching of classical kathak dance in Pakistan, for over four decades. Maharaj also appeared in 1995 Pakistani musical film Sargam directed by Syed Noor starring the singer Adnan Sami and his ex-wife Zeba Bakhtiar. This was followed by another appearance of Maharaj in a Pakistan Television play series.

Legacy

Maharaj Ghulam Hussain Kathak was the guru of Pakistani classical dancer Nahid Siddiqui, Nighat Chaodhry. Fasih Ur Rehman, a discipline of Ghulam Hussain, has been carrying on his legacy.