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Begam Batool
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Culture & heritage · Rajasthan

The voice that crossed every threshold

In Begam Batool's community, a woman singing outside her home was unusual. She sang anyway, with a tabla under her own hands, and her voice has since filled halls from Paris to Melbourne.

Begam Batoolबेगम बतूल
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Begam Batool receives the Padma Shri from President Droupadi Murmu, 2025. Photo: via Femina

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Born
20 September 1956, Kerap village, Rajasthan
Sings
Maand and bhajans, playing the tabla herself
Plays
Harmonium, tabla, dholak, dhol, daf, djembe, darbouka
Honours
Nari Shakti Puraskar; Padma Shri 2025
50+years of music
2016first invitation to perform in France
2025Padma Shri

A Mirasi girl from Kerap

Begam Batool’s journey runs from Rajasthan’s Mirasi musical tradition to some of the world’s great cultural stages. Her Padma citation describes her as a singer of bhajans and folk Maand who plays the harmonium, tabla, dholak, dhol, daf, djembe and darbouka. What makes her stand out is that she sings while playing the tabla herself.

She was born on 20 September 1956 in Kerap village, Rajasthan, into the Mirasi community. According to the citation, it was not easy for women in her community to sing in public, and she grew up amid child marriage and social limits. Instead of giving up, she built a musical career of more than five decades, with the support of her husband and sons.

From Kerap to the world

An invitation to perform in France in 2016 opened the international chapter of her life. The citation mentions performances in France, Australia, Tunisia, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, Holland, Germany and Monaco, and the Ministry of Culture’s profile puts the total at more than 56 countries. She has been part of events and venues including Paris Town Hall, the Cannes festival setting, the cultural programme of the Paris Olympics 2024, the Cathedral of Saint-Louis in Tunisia and the Parliament of Victoria.

Teaching, and building bridges

She is more than a performer. She teaches traditional music to younger people and encourages women to step into public cultural life. Her work in a Bollywood-Klezmer fusion project, with musicians from different religious traditions, turns her art into a bridge between communities.

Her story is less about fame than about carrying a heritage forward and widening what is possible for the women who come after her.

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