Manik Varma

Manik Varma (16 May 1926 – 10 November 1996) was an Indian classical singer from the Kirana and Agra gharanas (singing styles). Career Besides the pure classical khyal, she also sang semi-classical and light music like thumri, Marathi Natya Sangeet, Bhavgeet and Bhakti geet (devotional music). She was a disciple of Hirabai Barodekar and Sureshbabu Mane, daughter and son of Abdul Karim Khan, the founder of the Kirana gharana.She also took her rigorous training in Thumri Gayaki from Pandit Bholanath Bhatt of ‘Bhatt Parampara’ in Prayag, Allahabad. She took further training from Azmat Hussain Khan "Dilrang" and Jagannathbua Purohit "Gunidas" of Agra gharana. In April 1955, her songs became part of the Geet Ramayan, a presentation of songs on the Hindu god Rama, a weekly year-long programme by All India Radio (AIR), Pune, along with artists like Lata Mangeshkar, Yogini Joglekar, Usha Atre, Babanrao Navdikar, Lalitabai Phadke and Sudhir Phadke.