The spirit of Sufi – The Hindu

For the past 58 years, Bhubaneswar Music Circle (BMC) has been quietly but committedly promoting Indian classical music. One of the oldest institutions of its kind in India and the only one in Odisha, the Music Circle works more as a movement, with no established office and with financial support from members.

While the monthly concert series it has been hosting for over three decades showcases young talents from across the country, its much-awaited national music festival features the stalwarts.

For the past nine years, BMC has widened its reach by conducting an annual Sufi music festival titled, Samarpan (surrender). The three-day festival, which has the support of the State government, celebrates the diverse forms of sufi — spiritual, mystical and devotional.

From the baul of Bengal and bargeet of Assam to Maharashtra’s abhang and Afghanistan’s qawaali, the festival has over the years been presenting the essence of the sufi tradition.

Perfect start

The just-concluded ninth edition of the festival held at Rabindra Mandap, Bhubaneswar, featured six artistes from across the country.

The mood of the inaugural evening was set by Odisha’s Sangita Gosain with a song that said, “Thou makes my life eternally musical”. It was one of the eight songs in Odia that she presented in her concert titled Bibhu Vandana (ode to the omnipresent). The simplicity of the lyrics coupled with her emotive and melodious rendition magnified the beauty of the compositions.

Anadi Mishra, who was introduced as “the youngest Grade A singer of India and a three-time award winner at the National Youth Festival, who works as a singer, actor and music director in Jalandhar and Mumbai”, did not live up to the claims. Since Sufi music is about soul, the mood matters more than the the technique or style. However, in an attempt to impress listeners, the team that used keyboard, octopad, dholak, tabla and dholak created less music and more cacophony.

The second evening helped the audience experiencethe true spirit of Sufi music.

Sponsored by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, Jenab Rajab Ali Bharti from Kota in Rajasthan, who belongs to the Seniya gharana, performed for the first time in Odisha. He presented songs by Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, Kabir and Baba Bulleh Shah.

Despite being a playback singer in television and cinema, Rajab opted for minimum accompaniments, – tabla and guitar – which had the maximum impact.

Sohini Basu from Kolkata, the other artiste of the evening, presented an exclusive concert of Nazrul Geeti, songs of Kazi Nazrul Islam, equally loved and revered in India and Bangladesh. The revolutionary poet, a Muslim by birth, penned over 500 songs in praise of the Hindu gods. Sohini performed eight such songs.

The singer’s brief but lucid introduction of the spiritual music tradition of Bengal with special reference to Rabindranath Tagore and Nazrul, helped the audience appreciate the songs better. She touched hearts with her very first rendition that was on Shiva, the presiding deity of Bhubaneswar.

Sohini sang from within, without any attempt to impress her listeners. She even declined demands for singing other songs, staying faithfully focused on Nazrul, her brief for the evening.

Assam’s Sangeeta Chamuah, the first performer on the last day of the festival, didn’t stay true to the tradition of Bargeet — the 500-year-old songs composed by Srimanta Sankardeva and Madhavdeva. Instead of the khol, she used the tabla.

Also, none of the accompanying instrumentalists were from Assam. Hence, the traditional flavour was missing in her concert.

As expected, the acclaimed Sanjiv Abhyankar’s concert provided a fitting finale to the festival.

Accompanied by three gifted accompanists — Abhinay Ravande on the harmonium, Ajinkya Joshi on the tabla, and Apurv Dravid on side-rhythm — the versatile vocalist presented ‘Abhang Rang’.

With his eight carefully chosen abhangs, six in Marathi and two in Hindi, byEknath Maharaj, Sant Namdev, Meera Bai and Sant Tukaram and apt explanations, he familiarised the audience with this music tradition of Maharashtra.

The Bhubaneswar-based author writes on

art and culture.