They came. They performed. And they conquered. This was the unanimous appreciation of connoisseurs for the Ahmad Sham Sufi Qawwali Group from Afghanistan’s capital city of Kabul that performed at the recent Samarpan music festival in Bhubaneswar. The annual festival, hosted by the half-a-century old Bhubaneswar Music Circle in association with the Tourism Department of Odisha Government for the past four years, features Sufiana music.
On the inaugural evening of the festival, the eight-member troupe, brought to Bhubaneswar with the help of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), stood up to greet the audience in a rare gesture of humility. They also received a standing ovation fromthe audience as the curtains came down on the captivating concert. As we waited for an interaction with the troupe leader Jenab Mir Ahmed, a cult figure in the music scene of Afghanistan, it was amazing to see a large number of people rushing to the green room to greet them. Among them was ICCR’s former Director General and India’s former Ambassador to America Lalit Mansingh who hugged Mir Ahmed and recollected his three years of stint at Kabul as a diplomat decades ago; they fondly shared sweet memories of many musicians of Afghanistan.
“This is how the artistes can bring people together, besides nations and cultures, closer”, emphasized the 56-years-old doctor-turned-musician during our . “Music has no religion. It touches the hearts of people instantly. It promotes humanity and harmony in the society. Sufi music has the inherent power to heal hearts and souls as it is spiritual. This is my fifth trip to India and I am well aware of the immense mass appeal and appreciation of Sufi music and qawwali here. That is why we love performing in India,” he reveals.
The renowned musician seems quite concerned about the “divisive forces” that are disturbing world peace today though he was never vocal about it during the interaction. “It is important to build up heart-connections among the people; so that all sorts of ill-feelings can be easily erased. We are missionaries of music preaching love and peace through our art”, stated the artiste who volunteered to perform in India even without a performance fee in view of the budgetary constraints of the government.
One of the highly respected qawwali groups of Afghanistan, the Ahmad Sham Sufi Qawwali Group has been performing for more than 30 years as a flag-bearer of the 700-years-old vibrant musical tradition. However, it was banned from performing under the Taliban regime. Braving the threats on his life, Mir Ahmed continued his mission of music and succeeded in reuniting the troupe for public performances. His brother Zia Mohammad and sons Ahmad Sadiq and Ahmad Mudasar have joined his group who performed in Bhubaneswar.
“Afghanistan is one of the centres of Sufism where music is used in praise of God. Several of the most celebrated Sufi saints came from this part of the earth – foremost among them has been Rumi, who was born in 1207 in the city of Balkh. We have been disseminating the Sufi music culture of our land that seeks to establish love and peace through our concerts. Wherever we have performed, we have received amazing admiration of the people,” said Mir Ahmad who has led his troupe to perform in Germany, England, Russia, Scotland, Tajikistan, India and all over Afghanistan. The group’s noble gesture of donating the funds it raised during the UK tour for the welfare of the widows and children disabled by war was widely appreciated.
Though trained as a medical doctor, Mir Ahmed resorted to the treatment of several social aliments through music. “As a teenager, I was better known as a ghazal singer. Gradually I was drawn towards the mystic and spiritual elements in Sufi music and by 1994 I had formed my exclusive Sufi qawwali group to carry on my mission,” recollected the musician who is an ardent fan of late Mohammed Rafi and for whom “meeting its people” continues to be his greatest attraction of visiting India.
