A 19-year-old Srinagar boy, enabled by social media platforms, is infusing new life into what is considered the soul of Kashmir’s folk music — the rabab, a long-necked lute.
Sufyan Malik’s 45-second video, shot on a mobile phone against the backdrop of the heavy snowfall witnessed on November 3, has stormed the internet, with over 4 lakh views and counting.
“I came for a short vacation to Kashmir. As my parents left home in the morning, my friend and I decided to shoot the video with snowfall as the backdrop. Initially, I played it for my friends in Pune, to show them snow. To my surprise, the tune of a local song, ‘Janaat-e-Kashmir’, on the rabab, became an instant rage on Internet,” Mr. Malik, a student of engineering at Pune’s MIT College, told The Hindu .
Mr. Malik shot the video 18 times because his hands fingers in the cold weather. “There was no electricity to warm my hands. I had to match the speed. It was hard to play three beats down and one beat up. Finally, we did it,” said Mr. Malik, a resident of Srinagar’s Nowshera area.
The effort paid off as the video attracted 1.54 lakh views on Twitter in just a couple of days, with more views on Facebook and Instagram in the weeks that followed. From politicians like National Conference’s (NC) Nasir Sogami to activist Shehla Rashid Shora, the young player earned plaudits from across the spectrum in the Valley and outside.
“Snow and the rabab probably reflect our identity. People felt an immediate connection. I have pledged to play the rabab all my life. I will do my Masters in composition to enable the survival of the rabab,” said Mr. Malik, the son of a doctor mother and a hotelier, Wahid Malik, who support their son’s efforts.
The makers and listeners of the rabab are both fast dwindling in Kashmir. In north Kashmir, only two families continue with the trade of crafting the rabab, from the dozens of just a few decades ago.
Seen in many variants across central Asia, the rabab arrived in Kashmir from Afghanistan many centuries ago. “Compared to the seven strings of the Afghan rabab, the Kashmiri version has 22 strings, with two strings crafted out of goat gut through an elaborate process. It’s these two strings that create its mesmerising echo,” Mr. Malik said.
Soul-stirring
Ghulam Muhammad Ganai, 63, from Ganderbal’s Kangan area, is among the few instrumentalists left from the old school. “I play the rabab only in Sufi mehfil s (night-long devotional gatherings). The word ‘rabab’ comes from rooh (soul) and bab (expression). It should stir the soul. Only those who are nearer to god value the instrument. Around 15 of us are left now,” said Mr. Ganai.
However, young players like Mr. Malik are bringing the instrument back into mainstream culture. “I played the rabab for a musical fusion called ‘Firdous X-He is a pirate’ based on the theme song of [the film] Pirates of Caribbean and the theme music of [TV show] Game of Thrones in 2017. It was an instant hit here,” he said.
On June 28 2018, Mr. Malik played the rabab at The Hilton hotel in Los Angeles. “Many Kashmiri-origin people in the audience wanted to have a workshop for their kids after the show. After the hits we produced in 2017, at least 50 students registered to learn to play the rabab at the Delhi Public School (DPS) in Srinagar,” said Mr. Malik.
