Her Voice. Her Story.

Women pioneers of early recording
On view at the Prestige Centre for Performing Arts till 25 January

When gramophone recording technology arrived in India in 1902, it was women musicians who first embraced it, becoming stars of the early Indian music industry. Many came from devadasi and tawaif traditions, where music was taught rigorously, practised professionally, and passed down orally. Through recordings, their songs travelled beyond temples, courts and salons, reaching homes across the country and democratizing music listening.

The exhibition brings together pioneering recording artistes from across India such as Gauhar Jaan, Bangalore Nagarathnamma, Salem Godavari, Jaddan Bai, Coimbatore Thayi, Malka Jaan, Dhanakoti Ammal, Janki Bai and others, many of whom emerged from devadasi and tawaif traditions. On one hand their recordings preserve mastery of khayal, thumri, tappa, dadra, padams, javalis and more. On the other, their stories reveal how careers in music enabled women to influence royal courts, support social reform, participate in the freedom movement, and claim creative control in theatre and early cinema.

While this exhibition highlights specific pioneers, countless stories of immensely talented women remain lost to anonymity. We invite you to acknowledge these forgotten histories alongside the legends and listen closely, not only to the music, but to the questions it raises about technology, gender, memory and power.

This exhibition is a partnership between Indian Music Experience Museum (IME) & Prestige Centre for Performing Arts (PCPA).

Acknowledgements:

Indian Music Experience Museum (IME) team
Preema John – Director
Sahan Mohan – Head of Curation
Nandita Krishna – Manager – Curatorial Projects
Hina Siddiqui – Head of Marketing and Strategy
Sarvar Kahlon – Programs Manager
Sridhara S – Facilities Head

Prestige Centre for Performing Arts (PCPA) team
Dipti Rao – DGM – Auditorium Operations

Exhibition Design and Production
Aditi Dhamija & Team (Studio Ferment)

Artistic Portraits
Sateesh Rao

Music credits
Saregama, Archive Of Indian Music

Image Credits
Abbas Ali, Darogah. India : The Beauties of Lucknow series. 1874. Kolkata.

The media in this exhibition are used for educational, non-commercial purposes. Every effort has been made to identify and credit all copyright holders. We welcome any information that may help clarify rights or credits. Please write to us at research@indianmusicexperience.org.