A musical narrative explored different colours of Amir Khusrau. K Dua spoke to Ankit Chadha, the writer and storyteller of Khusrau ke Rang, on his inspiration, research and the need to reintroduce the Sufi poet
A soulful evening where the wanderers, the seekers of what each of us saunters for in life, solace and a connect through music. Some call it Sufism. The substance of Sufism is the truth by means of love and devotion. Sufism is the selfless experiencing and actualisation of the truth or a way towards God. One such Sufi saint was Amir Khusrau.
He used poems as a means to preach Sufism, poems which communicated the depth of Sufi spirituality, mystical love and the unity of the being. Khusrau once penned down: Apni see kar leeni ray mosay naina milaikay,Khusrau nijaam kay bal bal jayyiye,mohay suhaagan keeni ray mosay naina milaikay,chhap tilak sab cheeni ray mosay naina milaikay ( I give my life to you, Oh my cloth-dyer, You’ve dyed me in yourself, by just a glance. I give my whole life to you Oh, Nizam, You’ve made me your bride, by just a glance).
Amir Khusrau wrote most of his work in Persian and Urdu, but he wasn’t only a craftsman of words, he was an outstanding musician too. Khusrau ke rang was a musical tribute to Amir Khusrau by four artists from different parts of the country. Their love for music, poetry and storytelling was what bound them together. The four of them came together with to enlighten the audience about the relationship shared between Amir Khusrau (the 13th century Sufi poet from India) and his spiritual master Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya. A relationship was so special that Nizamuddin Auliya, once said, “If the code of Islamic law allowed me, I’d have him (Khusrau) buried with me in the same grave.” Their aspired union had fulfilled itself, and in their death, the mystical journey of the master and his disciple towards God had come to its peak.
Ankit Chadha shared about the idea behind Khusrau ke rang and said, “It is about exploring different facets of Amir Khusrau - the defiant flaneur, a devout disciple, the clever courtier of Delhi Sultanate, the poet of the masses, and most importantly the lover of Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya.”
He continued further, “While Khusrau is a literary genius, it is his association with the Sufi saint Hazrat Nizamuddin that made him bigger than who he was. So, we trace this journey, right from the story of their first meeting, anecdotes related to Hazrat’s sayings that influenced the poet, their longing for each other and the events that marked the disciple’s love for his guide.”
The cultural icon, Khusrau represented the fusion of two rich cultures - of Iran, and of Hind. He showcased this fusion in his poetry, which has been celebrated in music as well. Chadha pointed out, “In this narrative, you listen to how his music brought together the Arabic alaap, Farsi recitation and Hindustani ragas. From qawwali and ghazal to the flavour of the Hindavi folk, each song is contextualised by a story of special bond shared between a disciple and his pir.” This musical translation is an amalgamation of varied languages: Hindi, Urdu, Farsi, Arabic, Braj, Hindavi, and English. It symbolizes several shades of Khusrau and the languages he has worked with.
Chadha shared about his inspiration behind this musical narrative and how it all came into place. He said that Khusrau is his all-time muse. After, Aga Khan Trust supported his research for a dastangoi (a 16th-century Urdu oral storytelling art form) on Amir Khusrau, Falguni Desai of the Kabir Fest is the one who seeded the idea of this musical into his brain. Khusrau has left an enormous body of work, which is a treasure at so many levels. “The narrative is based on years of continuing research of academic works of history, numerous collections of written legends, and original work of documenting the oral tradition and improvisation,” added Chadha.
He elucidated, “I believe writing qasidas (Arabic poem) for the Sultans became his net practice for writing ghazals for his beloved. The passion with which he celebrated love is something which we can be witnessed in the relationship between Khusrau and Nizamuddin.”
Chadha concluded, “My pursuit of learning Farsi was also inspired by the desire to access more of his writings.”