Shobha Gertu was awarded the Padma Bhushan in the field of art by the Government of India in 2002. It was from Maharashtra.

Shobha Gurtu, (Belgaum, India – September 27, 2004, Mumbai, died February 8, 1925) was a famous singer of Indian classical music. Known for his rich earthy voice, distinctive vocal style, and the mastery of various songs, he was considered “Queen of Thumri”, which was a light classical Indian style.

His mother, Manekabai Shirodkar, a professional dancer and traditionally trained singer, gave Gurtu his early education. He took the name of Shobha Gurtu after the marriage of Sitar player and scholar Narayan Nath Gurtu (who also came to influence his style), son Vishwanath Gurtu. Despite being trained as a classical thinker, that light was more interested in the classical style; In addition to Thumri, he performed excellent in Dadra, Ghazal and other forms.

Gertu filed widely and performed all over India. She was also a popular broadcaster and television entertainer, and she made music scores for many Marathi and Hindi-language films and sang on many movie soundtracks. Gurutu performed as a guest on the three albums recorded by his youngest son, Percussionist Trilok Gurtu. He received the 1949 Sangeet Natak Akademi (National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama) award for vocal music and Padma Bhushan – one of the highest civilian awards of the Government of India – in recognition of his contributions to many arts. Done

Shobha ji was married to Vishwanath Gurtoo of Belgaum, whose father was a senior officer of Pandit Narayanath Gurtu Belgaum Police. Along with that he himself was also a music scholar and sitar player. The smallest trilok gertu in the three sons of the Gertu couple is a famous talav shilpi.

Although his formal musical training began with ‘Ustad Bhurji Khan’, who was the youngest son of founder of Jaipur-Atrauli house in Kolhapur, Ustad Aliyadi Khan, whose mother had learned from that time, while still a little girl , And seeing her talent, Ustad Bhargaji Khan’s family immediately liked him, and he started spending a long time with them. His relationship with the Jaipur-Atrauli Grihaan was still strong, when he started learning from Ustad Alliance Khan’s nephew Ustad Nathan Khan; Although he actually came under the patronage of Ustad Ghanhaman Khan, who came to Mumbai with his family to teach his mother Thumri-Gadra and other semi-classical forms.

Shobha Gurtu has given specialties in semi-classical forms, such as Thumri, Dadra, Kajree, Hori etc., easily adding pure classical passages in their singing, thus creating a new look, and reviving the magic of the forms like Thumri , Of which they became a great exponent within the time. He was especially influenced by singer Begum Akhtar and Ustad Bad Ghulam Ali Khan.

He also gave music in Marathi and Hindi cinema. As a playback singer, she first worked in Phagun (1973), after Kamal Amrohi’s film, Pakseah (1972), where she sang, ‘Bardi ban was gone, some go manoao more ciyayan’. He earned Filmfare nominations as Best Female Playback Singer for the song “Sayin Roth Gae” from the hit film Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki (1978). [In Marathi cinema, he sang for films such as confrontation and red clay.

Shobha ji had a good grasp of pure classical music, but she gained fame in the country and abroad, with the sub-classical styles of Thumri, Kajree, Hori, Dadra, who played a special role in saving her existence. Later on, he called the ‘Thumri Queen’ for his lovely Thumri singing. They did not only sing the voice of their throats but also with their eyes. From one song to another, such as the characters of a poem, they changed the expressions, whether it is royalties or rejected by a lover or a nonsense or flirt. His singer, Begum Akhtar and Ustad Bada Ghulam Ali Khaaan Sahib were especially impressed. He had presented many of his programs with Kathak Nrityaacharya Pandit Birju Maharaj, in which specially his ‘acting’ organ was used.

Shobha Gurtu also sang in several Hindi and Marathi films. In 1972, Kamal Amrohi’s ‘Pakiziya’ got the opportunity for first playback singing. In it, he sang a Bhopalite ‘Bandhan Bandoo’. After this, in 1973, in the film ‘Phagun’, ‘More saiyaan bandardi became a go ga bano’ sang. Then in 1978, in the movie ‘I Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki’ directed by Asit Sen, Shobha ji sang a Thumri ‘Saiyan Ruth Gaya Mein Hoon Ki’, which became very popular.