A forthcoming seminar by Manjari Chaturvedi will explore social impact and anthropology of qawwali. She tells Karan Bhardwaj how spiritual music has blurred the lines between languages and religions
Many of us have been fascinated with qawwali, thanks to chartbusters in Bollywood movies, but we hardly get a chance to know more about the genre, that has more to do with spiritual elevation and less with entertainment. Understanding Qawwali, a first ever seminar on music by sufi kathak performer Manjari Chaturvedi, will explore the roots and various forms of this musical genre, that has appealed to classes as well as masses over centuries. “We want youngsters to have a deeper understanding of the music that they enjoy. We want to keep these traditions alive for future generations. Most of these traditions are oral, which have been passed on from one generation to the other, so this gives a platform to document qawwali,” says Chaturvedi.
Two years ago, she says, the seminar started with a focus on musical structure of qawwali. “last year, we spoke about how it fares in different religions, how beautifully it represents Hinduism and Islam. This year, we are understanding social impact and anthropology of qawwali. From autowallahs to privileged people, everybody loves and adores qawwali. It reaches out to each individual in the same way. It’s a social equaliser in terms of music,” she says. According to her, qawwali has not been academically explored. There’s hardly any documentation so such platforms are as necessary as the music itself. In the day-long event, Gopi Chand Narang will discuss about poetic references in qawwali.
Rakhshanda Jalil will discuss socio-cultural and historical narrative in poetry and social issues used in qawwali. “When you hear qawwali in any language, religion or region, you feel that it originated from that place only. Take Ni Main Jana Jogi De Naal, Nami Danam Ke Akhir Chun Dam-e-Deedar, Allahu, Aeri Sakhi More Piya Ghar Aaye... they all are diverse yet so unique. Unlike qawwali, classical music has language limitations. But qawwali fits into any language, be it Urdu, Punjabi or Hindi. It’s a part of festivities in different regions. It has no religion associated with it. Holi and Basant are as much a part of it as Hamd and Naat,” says Chaturvedi.
Other highlights of the symposium will include Zorawar Shukla’s documentary Sulh-e-Kul which will bring alive Ajmer Sharif’s qawwals. “We have also asked prominent photographers from both Pakistan and India to document life and work of qawwals. These photographers travel with artistes and capture their lifestyle. This year, some images will be presented in a Powerpoint presentation since it is a project in progress,” she says.
Vicky Roy from Salam Balak Trust is capturing Nizamuddin Dargah where Pakistani artistes have performed. Prashant Panjiar will bring rare performances from Hooghly region, where qawwali is almost dead. Somya Khandelwal will showcase life of qawwals from old Delhi. “The life of qawwals is difficult because they are not financially sound. Ek jeep mein bhar kar jaate hai jaha jana hota hain. Somya will be capturing all aspects of their life, from house, travel to concerts. Dinesh Khanna is covering two cities, Ajmer and Varanasi. Both are religious cities and they have interesting legacy,” she says.
Besides these programmes, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra will be discussing Bollywood’s obsession with qawwali. “Qawwali has been used and popularised by Bollywood to some extent. It lures people. People may not have heard original qawwali but Bollywood versions of Kun Faya Kun or other tracks are hugely popular,” she says. On whether Bollywood distorts the originality of qawwali, Chaturvedi maintains that it is like a “double-etched sword”. “Sometimes film-makers take liberty in experimenting with qawwali under the guise of ‘mass choice’. I’m against that notion. People have liked Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Bollywood may popularise qawwali more effectively than most of us put together but film-makers must realise that qawwali’s main purpose is spiritual elevation. There’s a thin line between spiritual performance and entertainment,” says the artiste who was featured in Vishal Bhardwaj’s directed music video Tere Ishq Mein. “I enjoyed doing that video. I told him that I will wear my own costumes and won’t dance to tunes of Bollywood choreographers. Years later, Vishal told me that I saved his two major expenditures in working on my terms and conditions,” says Chaturvedi, who has done over 300 concerts in over 20 countries.