Umbayee
Ibrahim (1950 – 1 August 2018), popularly known as Umbayee was an Indian folk musician and composer, associated with the Ghazal genre. Umbayee was born in Mattancherry, Kerala, Umbayee is known for his unique style of singing. He died on 1 August 2018 in Aluva.
Umbayee
Vicharam · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Name
- Umbayee
- Birth Name
- P.
- Occupation
- Singer, composer
- Born
- 1950
- Birthplace
- Mattancherry, Travancore–Cochin present-day Ernakulam, Kerala, India
- Place of death
- Aluva, Kerala, India
- Died
- 1 August 2018
- Spouse
- Haseeba (m. 1977)
- Nationality
- India · Dominion of India
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Documentary summary
Ibrahim (1950 – 1 August 2018), popularly known as Umbayee was an Indian folk musician and composer, associated with the Ghazal genre. Umbayee was born in Mattancherry, Kerala, Umbayee is known for his unique style of singing. He died on 1 August 2018 in Aluva.
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Note VALÉORINE
Umbayee (1950–2018) was a composer and a national of the Dominion of India and India. Born in Mattancherry, the composer died in Aluva.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
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wikidata · Q15823645 · wikipedia · Umbayee
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Umbayee • Birth Name — P. A. Ibrahim • Instrument — Pump organ, Keyboard, Tabla • Genre — Malayalam ghazal • Occupation — Singer, composer • Born — 1950 • Birthplace — Mattancherry, Travancore–Cochin present-day Ernakulam, Kerala, India • Place of death — Aluva, Kerala, India • Died — 1 August 2018 • Spouse — Haseeba (m. 1977)
Early years
Early years
Umbayee was born in 1950 in Mattanchery near Kochi. His real name was P. Abu Ibrahim. As a child Umbayee did not have a supportive environment towards music. His father was vehemently opposed to his son being inclined to music. Ultimately Umbayee failed in his exams thereby ending his school life. Seeing his son distracted by music, father packed Ibrahim off to Bombay (now Mumbai) where his (Umbayee's) uncle was a seaman and made him a trainee electrician. Being sent to Bombay was a decision which changed his life. He met Ustad Munawar Ali Khan who accepted Ibrahim as his disciple. Ibrahim studied music with Ustad for about 7 years without any interruption.
Personal life
Personal life
Umbayee married Haseeba on 08 May 1977. They had three children, Shailaja, Sabitha and Sameer.
Death
Death
Umbayee died on 01 August 2018 at a private hospital in Aluva. He was being treated for multiple health problems for the past seven months. He was in the final stage of lung cancer.
Albums
Albums
• Akale Mounam Pol • Gazalmaala • Hrudayaraagam • Ithuvare Sakhee Ninne Kaathirunnu • Madhuramee Gaanam • Mehboob • Nandi Pranaya Sakhi Nandi • Orikkal Nee Paranju • Oru Mukham Maathram • Paaduka Saigal Paadoo • Phir Vahee Shyaam • Pranaamam Mehboob Ororma
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Mattancherry.
Birth place
Aluva.
Death place
Musical influences
Umbayee said "Mattancherry was a melting pot of music. There was music all around. You only had to find it." Similar to the youth at the time, Ibrahim's inspiration had been Mehboob, who was a natural and enigmatic singer. During those times most of the legendary Hindustani musicians visited Mattancherry. Ibrahim used to be doing odd jobs in Abdul Khader Vakil's house where those musicians stayed. He listened to their discussions and music. According to Umbayee "That was the beginning". Once he got a chance to listen to Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Alla Rakha ‘live’ at Mattancherry. After which Ibrahim understood what he was capable of other than playing Tabla. He realised "There was so much to learn. What I was doing was childish". • Illustration — Umbayee in the Ghazal Night hosted in connection with Sharjah International Book Fair on 22 November 2011
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.When politicians played muse. The Hindu. 16 September 2010.
- 2."...GHAZALS and GRIT", The Hindu, 22 September 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2013
- 3.Ghazal singer Umbayee passes away. Mathrubhumi. 2018-08-01.
- 4.Popular Malayalam ghazal singer Umbayee no more. OnManorama. 2021-08-01.
- 5.Sebastian, Shevlin. Fearing for our kids' future, Umbayee gave up on liquor: Habeesa. The New Indian Express. 2018-08-02.
- 6.Malayalam singer and composer Umbayee dies at 68. India Today. 2021-08-02.
- 7.Ghazal singer Umbayee passes away. The Indian Express. 2021-08-01.
References
Citations
References
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Secondary witness
People, houses and institutions
Knowledge graph
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Citizenship
1- IndiaPlace
Established from a fact already recorded on a verified source.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 20 August 2026.
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