Sukri Bommagowda
{{Short description|Indian folk singer (1937–2025)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Sukri Bommagowda
| image = Sukri Bommagowda (3x4 cropped).jpg
| birth_date = {{Birth year|1937}}
| birth_place = Badigeri, Bombay Presidency, British India
| death_date = {{Death date and given age|2025|2|13|88|df=y}}
| death_place = Manipal, Karnataka, India
| nationality = Indian
| occupation = Singer
| known_for = Halakki Vokkaliga
| notable_works =
| awards = Padma Shri
| honours =
| children = 3
}}
Sukri Bommagowda (1937 – 13 February 2025) was an Indian folk singer belonging to the Halakki Vokkaliga tribe in Ankola, Karnataka.{{Cite news |date=8 May 2022 |title=Sukri Bommagowda continues to be stable |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Mangalore/sukri-bommagowda-continues-to-be-stable/article65394539.ece |access-date=14 June 2024 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}} She received several awards, including the Padma Shri, one of India's highest civilian honours, for her contributions to the arts, and her work in preserving traditional tribal music.{{Cite web |date=3 May 2023 |title=PM Modi meets inspiring Padma recipients Tulsi Gowda, Sukri Bommagowda from Karnataka - CNBC TV18 |url=https://www.cnbctv18.com/politics/pm-modi-meets-inspiring-padma-recipients-tulsi-gowda-sukri-bommagowda-from-karnataka-16561391.htm |access-date=14 June 2024 |website=CNBCTV18 |language=en}}
Background
Bommagowda was born into the Halakki Vokkaliga tribe, in Badigeri, in Uttara Kannada, and was married at the age of 16. She and her husband had two children, and adopted another child.{{Cite web|date=25 January 2017|title=Unsung hero of Karnataka, Sukri Bommagowda wins Padma Shri award|url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/unsung-hero-karnataka-sukri-bommagowda-wins-padma-shri-award-56288|access-date=6 October 2020|website=The News Minute|language=en}}
Bommagowda died on 13 February 2025 at a hospital in Manipal, Karnataka, where she had been undergoing treatment. She was 88.[https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2025/Feb/13/padma-awardee-sukri-bommagowda-passes-away-at-88 Padma awardee Sukri Bommagowda Passes away at 88]
Career
Bommagowda was taught to sing as a child by her mother and worked to preserve the traditional music and songs of the Halakki Vokkaliga tribe. Following the death of her husband, she began performing traditional music of the Halakki Vokkaliga tribe in Karnataka.{{Cite news|date=25 January 2017|title=Padma award winners from Karnataka are an eclectic mix|language=en-IN|work=The Hindu|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/Padma-award-winners-from-Karnataka-are-an-eclectic-mix/article17094103.ece|access-date=6 October 2020|issn=0971-751X}} She taught traditional music and songs to members of her tribe. She has been described as the "nightingale of Halakki".{{Cite news|last1=Hebbar|first1=Nistula|last2=Singh|first2=Vijaita|date=25 January 2017|title=Padma Vibhushan for Pawar, M.M. Joshi, Yesudas; Kohli to get Padma Shri|language=en-IN|work=The Hindu|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/Padma-Vibhushan-for-Pawar-M.M.-Joshi-Yesudas-Kohli-to-get-Padma-Shri/article17092173.ece|access-date=6 October 2020|issn=0971-751X}}{{Cite web|date=24 January 2017|title=PV Sindhu, Sakshi Malik to be in Padma Bhushan list|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/pv-sindhu-sakshi-malik-to-be-in-padma-list-4488524/|access-date=6 October 2020|website=The Indian Express|language=en}} Bommagowda was publicly recognised for her work in preserving a large corpus of tribal songs as part of an oral tradition.{{Cite web|last=TNN|date=26 January 2017|title=Padma: Padma for these pearls of Karnataka|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/padma-for-these-pearls-of-karnataka/articleshow/56789575.cms|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=6 October 2020|website=The Times of India|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=Rao|first=Sunitha R.|date=31 October 2014|title=Live singing is the secret of Sukri's success|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/Live-singing-is-the-secret-of-Sukris-success/articleshow/44987680.cms|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=6 October 2020|website=The Times of India|language=en}} All India Radio, India's national broadcast radio, and the Karnataka Janapada Academy worked with Bommagowda to record, translate, and preserve these songs.
In 1988 her work was recognised by the Karnataka State government, and she was later the recipient of multiple state awards and honours for her contributions to arts and music, including the Nadoja Award, and the Janapada Shri Award. In 2017, her work gained national recognition when she was awarded the Padma Shri, one of India's highest civilian honours, for her contributions to music.
In addition to her work in music, Bommagowda became a member of the gram panchayat, a local government body, in Badigeri, Karnataka. Although illiterate herself, she campaigned for literacy, especially among girls, and also campaigned for a ban against alcohol in her area, following the death of her adopted son from alcohol poisoning.
Awards
| class="wikitable"
|+ !Year !Award !Reference |
| 1988
|Award from the Karnataka government (for "preserving the culture of indigenous tribes") |
| 1999
|Janapada Shri Award (for contributions to the field of arts, granted by the Karnataka Government) |
| 2006
|Nadoja Award (granted by the Kannada University) |
| 2009 |
| 2017 |
In popular culture
References
{{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bommagowda, Sukri}}
Category:Musicians from Karnataka
Category:People from Uttara Kannada
Category:20th-century Indian musicians
Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts
Category:21st-century Indian musicians
Category:20th-century Indian women musicians