Mohideen Baig

Kala Suri Alhaj Kareem Mohideen Baig (, ; 5 December 1919 – 4 November 1991), popularly known as Mohidin Beg, was a Sri Lankan musician. One of the most influential singers in Sinhala music, Baig is known particularly for his Buddhist devotional music. He was a Muslim who moved to Sri Lanka from Salem in Tamil Nadu, but of Hyderabadi Muslim origin.

Personal life Born on 5 December 1919 in Salem South India as the third of the family, Baig belonged to an Indian tribe called Pathan. Baig's paternal lineage is descended from a pro-Islamic lineage with a centuries-old history. His father Kareem Baig served as a police officer in Salem. Bijan B was his mother. He was educated at a school in Salem and received his primary education in music from several music teachers in Salem particularly talented in singing Urdu and Qawali songs.

Baig was married in 1947 to his own cousin, Sakina Baig. They had 8 children, which include 5 sons – Usman, Haider, Mubarak, Ishaq and Ilyas; and 3 girls – Rabia, Salima and Moina.

He also visited Mecca in 1987 under the patronage of Pakistani President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq. It is said that the president invited him to return to his permanent residence in Pakistan. Baig got his name "Alhaj" after his journey to Mecca. On 3 November 1991, Baig was admitted to a private hospital in Colombo for cataract removal surgery. On the next day, Baig died from an unexpected infection during the surgery.

In 1960, to celebrate the 2500th Buddha Jayanthi, AngulimaalHindi movie, financed by the Thai government was released. This movie was dubbed in Sinhala dialogues and Mohideen Baig sang the popular song Buddham Saranam previously sung by Indian singer Manna Dey. Baig went to India to record this song of13.5 minutes.

On 20 February 2020, a commemorative stamp was issued in memory of Baig at the Postal Headquarters under the patronage of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.