Evening of spirituality and mysticism

[gallery size="medium" td_select_gallery_slide="slide" td_gallery_title_input="Evening of spirituality and mysticism" ids="116296,116295,116291,116293,116292,116294"] By Abdul Rahman M. Baig JEDDAH – Spirituality reached its peak as Naushad Shahzad Sabri and his troupe’s recital touched the soul of each member of the audience present at Indian Consulate here on Friday to celebrate India’s 68th Republic Day. The event was hosted by the Consulate General of India in association with the Indian Council of Cultural Relations. The medium of recital was qawwali, a genre which is based on spirituality that is not restricted to one religion and Naushad Sabri and his team touched the right chord as within minutes of their first qawwali they established a connect with the audience. It may be termed as a historical night since it was first time ever that a Qawwali session was organized in Jeddah at this level and all credit for creating this history goes to the initiative of Indian Consul General Md. Noor Rahman Sheikh and consul Press and Information Dr. Irshad Ahmad. Naushad Sabri, who is Ustad Ghulam Qader’s grandson, hails from Saharanpur and has been enthralling the audience with his mesmerizing mystical rendition for the past 28 years. His troupe includes Shahzad Hussain, Mohd Umar Daraz, Danish Hussain and Arshad Hussain. Speaking on the occasion, Sheikh welcomed the audience as well as the artistes on behalf of the Indian Consulate. “In just 24 hours we planned, discussed and hosted this Mehfil (concert),” he said. He presented shawls to all the artists, a traditional Indian gesture to honor artists and men of letters. He admitted that it was his first live experience of Qawwali and hoped that it would be etched in his memory forever. The Consul General was accompanied by his wife Dr. Nazneen Rahman. Naushad Sabri and his troupe, who presented 11 qawwalis, began by paying glowing tribute to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) by rendering famous Naat (Praise of Prophet) “Tajdar-e-Haram” (King of Holy Sanctuary), which was originally sung by Ghulam Farid Sabri of Pakistan. Then “Sar E La Makaan Se Talab Hoi” set the venue on fire as the entire audience clapped to the tune of Qawwali and mute spectators became active participants. “Bhar De Jholi” (Fill my bag—a connotation to prayers); “ Chaap Tilak Sab Cheeni Re Mose Naina Milaike” (Penned by Amir Khusro) and initially sung by Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan set the tone of the musical evening. After the rendition of some very famous qawwalis, began the requests session. The concert came into full swing when a senior citizen from the audience requested the artist to sing “Bewafa Youn Tera Mushkurana, Bhool Jaane Ke Qabil Nahin”, on which the artist sang addressing the Indian Consul General and his wife, which created a humorous ripple in the crowd. Another request “Paisa Bolta Hai” captured the imagination of the audience who are still debating the recent demonetization in India. Requests also came for some famous filmy qawwalis which was immensely enjoyed by the audience. However, the stellar of the evening came with “Damadam Mast Qalandar’ which has become an immortal iconic qawwali originally sung by the famous Bangladeshi singer Runa Laila in 1976. Earlier, welcoming the audience, Dr. Irshad Ahmed, consul press and information, said that Qawwali is the bridge, which connects the people of Ganga and Jamuna, a reference to Indian cultural diversity and its unity. He thanked the organizers, which included Asim Zeeshan, Imran Kausar, Khaja Nasir Jamal and Mohammed Hyder, without whom the event could not have been successful. He also thanked Mazahar Saleh Siddiqui, the design editor of Saudi Gazette who designed the announcement poster for the concert a day before, for his effort.