“Music has the power to kindle dormant emotions in an individual, most significantly those of love and harmony,” said distinguished singer, composer and actor Shekhar Sen, one of the performers at the NCPA Bandish, a festival at Mumbai’s National Centre for the Performing Arts earlier this month showcasing the works of some legendary composers of yore.
Joining Sen on stage was eminent sitarist Shujaat Husain Khan, a connoisseur of Sufism and Hindustani classical music. While Khan presented the poetic works of 14th century legend and ghazal master Amir Khusro, Sen sang compositions of renowned Bhakti poets Rahim and Ras Khan.
“The brilliant simplicity of composers like Khusro and Kabir touches my psyche,” said Khan. “The best part of Sufi music is that it is a philosophy that cuts across religious barriers, boasting of purity in thought and content.”
For someone who excels in the khayal (soch or thought) genre, it is no wonder that Khan believes music encompasses not only spirituality, but also sensuality, pathos, and longing. “Sufism advocated simple virtues like truth, happiness, piety and enjoyment of life,” he said. “But having said that, I am not here to impart messages, I play music because I enjoy doing it and I want my audience to enjoy listening to it.”
On the other hand, Sen, who has performed widely acclaimed musical plays on Bhakti saints like Tulsidas and Kabir, said, “Music is a conduit that leads one to salvation. It defines one’s relationship with the Almighty.”
Explaining his choice of devotional poets like Rahim and Ras Khan, Sen said, “While Rahim is popularly credited with the invention of chhands or metre in poetry and his evocative couplets on morality, Ras Khan was an ardent devotee of Lord Krishna and sang his glories better than any of his contemporary Hindu counterparts. Both of them deserve to be acknowledged as the cultural flag-bearers of Indian art.”
Among Ras Khan’s greatest contributions was the introduction of Persian and Arabic elements into Indian poetry where Sanskrit ruled the roost.
Though Indian music now attracts admiration around the globe, it is hardly cherished in the country of its origin. Sen believes that “we lack in packaging and hence lose out on the appeal factor”. But Khan does not feel threatened by the apparent lack of enthusiasm in today’s Western culture-crazed youth. “Our art has survived for centuries and will continue to do so even if a handful of people recognise its worth,” he said.
Dr Suvarnalata Rao, the NCPA’s head of programming for Indian music and the brain behind the Bandish festival, said, “Through this event, we wished to showcase a piece of history, its profound meaning and timeless relevance that could give us an enriching glimpse into our own tradition.”
Loosely, a bandish refers to compositions set in a frame linking the lyrics with the melody. The festival was an attempt to keep this cultural and artistic legacy alive.
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