Diwaliben Punjabhai Bhil, known as Diwaliben Punjabhai Ladhia, was an Indian folk singer and playback singer from Gujarat.
15 Facts About Diwaliben Bhil
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Diwaliben Bhil's talent was discovered late; she then sang on radio and in Gujarati films and was awarded the Padma Shri in 1990.
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Diwaliben Bhil was born on 2 June 1943 in Dalkhania village to Punjabhai and Monghiben in a tribal family.
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Diwaliben Bhil was a primary-school dropout, but had taught herself folk singing.
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Diwaliben Bhil moved to Junagadh at the age of nine, when her father found a job on the Junagadh State Railway.
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Diwaliben Bhil was married in Rajkot at the age of nine, but her marriage was declared null and void after only two days due to disagreements; she never married again.
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Diwaliben Bhil moved to Junagadh and lived with her brother in the Ghanghiram area.
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Diwaliben Bhil worked in a primary school of Gomta village near Gondal.
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Diwaliben Bhil died on 19 May 2016 of natural causes, after a long period of illness.
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Diwaliben Bhil sang large numbers of folk songs, garbas, bhajans and Gujarati film songs, and recorded and released cassettes of them.
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Diwaliben Bhil received recognition for her folk song "Aiwa Aiwa" from the album Mann ke Manjeere.
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Diwaliben Bhil had worked with several musicians and singers such as Hemu Gadhvi, Lakhabhai Gadhvi, Ismail Valera, Veljibhai Gajjar, Karsan Sagathiya, Praful Dave, Bhikhudan Gadhvi, Usha Mangeshkar, Damyanti Bardai, Murli Meghani and Anandkumar.
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Diwaliben Bhil was felicitated by the Gujarati Society in London during her visit.
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Diwaliben Bhil was awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award from the Government of India, in 1990.
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Diwaliben Bhil was the recipient of 2011 Kavi Kag Award.