‘Mehfil-e-Qawwali’ sets stage ablaze in EP

[gallery size="medium" td_select_gallery_slide="slide" td_gallery_title_input="‘Mehfil-e-Qawwali’ sets stage ablaze in EP" ids="117957,117955,117956"] By Safi Hyder DAMMAM — It was probably the coldest night of this winter when temperatures touched 2 degrees Celsius, but inside the auditorium of International Indian School, Dammam, the stage was set ablaze by some very mystical and spiritual qawwalis (a genre that is based on mysticism and spirituality), rendered by Naushad Sabri and his troupe brought from Saharanpur, India, to celebrate the 68th Indian Republic Day. Naushad and his troupe had already mesmerized the audience in a similar program organized at Indian Consulate in Jeddah. The ‘Mehfil-e-Qawwali’ (concert) was organized by the Indian Embassy in cooperation with Indian Council for Cultural Relations and International Indian School Dammam. All credit for this memorable evening goes to Indian Ambassador Ahmad Javed, who gave priority to the Eastern Province, which otherwise has always been ignored by previous embassy administrations. The normal practice is that all cultural programs and events are held either in Jeddah under the consulate banner or in Riyadh under the aegis of the Indian Embassy. The Eastern Province has always been an ignored region in cultural happenings. This concert augurs a new era for the Eastern Province, which hopefully will witness more and more such events. Much credit also goes to School administration led by school Managing Committee Chairman Mohammed Abdul Waris and head of Institution Dr. Mohammad Shaffe for making arrangements in a very short time and ensure that maximum number of Indians could enjoy the show. The auditorium was filled to capacity. In line with the tradition of qawwali, the troupe started with a “Hamdia Qawwali” (in praise of the glory of God) and rendered “Allahu Allahu” Qawwali. It was followed by two popular “Naatia Qawwali”, a tribute to Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him — ‘Taajdaare Haram’ and ‘Bhar de Jholi’. The troupe sung a couple of ghazals including ‘Kissi nay apna banaya, banake chod diya’ (someone made me a companion and then left me alone) before presenting a qawwali from a popular Hindi movie “Amar Akbar Anthony”, ‘parda hai, parda hai’ (there is a veil, there is a veil). The interaction with audience by the lead qawwal, Naushad Sabri made the evening more interesting. He referred to the known fact that Ahmad Javed, the Indian envoy, took just one rupee as a token salary during his service in India and dedicated a couplet of the ghazal to him. The troupe also mesmerized the audience by presenting a melodious instrumental interlude in between the qawwali renditions — reflecting their mastery over the chords and the percussion instruments drills for near-perfect harmonization of melody and rhythm. The audience warmed up with “Chaap Tilak Sab Cheeni” considered to be an epic in qawwali tradition and composed by Amir Khusro, a 14th century renowned poet who also wrote in Hindawi language and who is also credited to have started the qawwali genre. As Sabri and his troupe were to wrap up, the audience requested in one voice, ‘Damadam Mast Qalander’, another popular number which is like a must sing number in any musical concert. The audience became frenzied with every couplet of the “Damadam Mast Qalandar”. The whole auditorium was clapping to the beat of the music. It was a complete spiritual bonding of the audience with mysticism. In a very short speech, Javed assured the people of Eastern Province that more focus will be given to the Eastern Province in all aspects. He thanked the people for their response. Earlier, Hifzur Rehman, of Indian Embassy praised efforts of the ambassador in arranging glimpses into the Indian culture and music. He thanked the managing committee, the principal and staff of the IISD for arranging the event. Ambassador Javed honored the sponsors of the event, Eram Group, ITL World, Western Auto Co. Ltd., Badr Al Rabie Medcal Group; Red Star; ASMACS; SAB and presented to the representatives of these companies plaques of appreciation. He also presented gifts to the members of the troupe. Waris, who had exerted great endeavors in making the program a grand success, proposed the vote of thanks. “The event will be etched in the hearts and minds of the audience for a very long time,” he said. Dr. Irfan Waheed, head master of the senior secondary school (boys section), anchored the program.