Rani, the youngest of two children was named Shahanara Taj at birth. However, from very early on her mother always called her 'Rani'. The nickname not only stuck but automatically became her stage name.
Both of Rani's parents were born in The Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir and belong to the Jat caste. During the building of The Mangla Dam many locals were dislocated from their homes. Some left to seek work abroad. One of those was Rani's maternal grandfather who left for Birmingham, U.K to look for work in the sixties. After establishing himself he sent for his wife and children. Rani's mother was four years old when she joined her father in The U.K along with her own mother and siblings.Rani's father joined her mother in the U.K after they married in 1990.
Although, Rani played the dhol since the age of nine, her first instrument was the viola, which she picked up when she was only six whilst at primary school in the U.K. Towards the end of her primary school career she attended a Vaisakhi Mela, where she saw the Dhol Blasters playing dhol. She immediately fell in love with the Dhol and asked her mum to buy her one so she could learn to play it.
Subsequently, she spent the first couple of years being taught by G.Mall of the Dhol Blasters and was later also taught by Harjit Singh of the Azaad Dhol Group http://www.azaaddholgroup.com. G.Mall had been a dholak player with the group Apna Sangeet and Harjit Singh had been a tabla player with the Azaad Group . Both groups were pioneers in their own right and were part of the first generation of bhangra music to hit the Midlands, U.K. As part of the Dhol Blasters Rani also learned to dance bhangra.
In order to gain further experience and provide a service Rani started to play at all kinds of public events, such as festivals, parties and weddings.
In the summer of 2010 just after she had finished playing at a wedding, some of the lads from the family suggested they put on some tracks in the car and she mix dhol to them. One of the tracks they put on was Rihanna 'Rude Boy'. Rani stood in a street in Stoke on Trent in the U.K, dressed in full Punjabi dress and candidly mixed to this and Tinie Tempah's 'Pass Out'. This spontaneous mix was recorded and put on Youtube by a friend. People all across the world began watching this video and were shocked as well as pleasantly surprised not only to see a female playing a traditionally male instrument but effortlessly.
raditionally, a male domain Rani Taj has challenged the idea that certain instruments can be played by men only.
Even though only a teenager, Rani continues to be a role model to young people across the world and pursues her passion for the Dhol. She has also spent tireless hours playing dhol for charitable causes such as flood relief in Pakistan after floods left many devastated in 2010 and the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in 2011.To Date, she has played Dhol in Dublin, Hong Kong, Norway and all over Britian. Rani Taj is preparing to perform in Washington DC and New York between 14th-31st October 2011.
We have seen her videos in people’s facebook and orkut profiles and we have seen it on youtube and pretty much everywhere. We have posted our own comments in her appreciation and we have read a lot of other people talking about her. But.. we have also seen plenty of Dhol Players.. havent we… and some of us have already seen girls playing Dhol. At girls College there are plenty of them who compete at National level. So what makes Rani this hip with everyone… Well there are a number of things, first being her style. She has blonde colored hair and she wears Punjabi Salwar Kamiz and all the traditional accessories that make her look like a transcendental and post modern music player. She has the looks that you cant ignore… and then there is her persona. In one word she is “cool” and the way she carries herself with utmost confidence makes her an elite. And finally the video that made her famous
A great job dear really beyond words.you are an ideal to the youth.
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