Sufi Aman Mela: Lose yourself in the ecstasy of the whirling dervaish and transcend the ego’s shroud

Mela at PNCA calls upon the ascetic to entertain and give a love-filled message.

ISLAMABAD:

Dancing to the tunes of Bulleh Shah, Amir Khusro, Sachal Sarmast and Ghulam Fareed, the performers moved on the stage pulling the audience into the trance that the Sufi inadvertently delves into, while calling out to the spiritual.

The National Performance Art Group performed on popular Sufi kalams, all of which received a thunderous applause from the audience. The dancers performed on the popular Bulleh Shah poems “Tere Ishq Nachaiyan”, “Aaj Rang Hai” and “Gharoli” and Amir Khusro’s “Aaj Rang Hai” amongst others.

The “Sufi Aman Mela” was organised by the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) in Islamabad on Friday.

“The aim behind the show is to convey a message of love and harmony through the works of our great Sufi poets and philosophers to abate depression that has taken hold of us in the current scenario,” said PNCA Publication Deputy Director Amber Shah. The festival made its’ debut last year in Multan, the city of saints, and has been held in different cities including Hyderabad, Faisalabad and Karachi.

The show started with Meena Gul’s “Maiye Ne Main Kaino Akha”, setting the mood for the evening. The first dance performance was on one of the most popular sufiana kalam “Tere Ishq Nachaiyan”, which was complimented by an ascetic rhythm woven by the tabla, dhol, flute, harmonium and piano players stringing out the words. This along with “Aaj Rang Hey” were the highlights of the show.

Clad in colourful costumes, an effort was made to combine the desi dancing style with the classic Turkish Sema (whirling ritual) which is characteristic of the Mevlevi Sufi order in the present day Turkey.

Followers of Maulana Rumi, they are also known as the Whirling Dervaish for their practice of moving in circles,  as a form of dikhr (remembrance of God); whirling from right to left, the derviash, or semezen, embraces all humanity with love, testifying to the One Creator, intentionally participating with the whirling movement of all beings. The right hand’s palm is pointed toward God to receive his blessings, while the left hand palm to the ground to transfer them. This fits in well the PNCA’s efforts of battling the current disturbia with love.

The choreography was good and all dancers, especially Azeem Haidri, Sehrish and Javed and Mashi, gave powerful performances.

The audience was enthralled as Haidri whirled on to the stage wearing ghungros, while Sehrish gave a lead performance on “Gharoli” holding a ghara (waterpot). The dances had a moving affect on the audience as the youngsters danced with abundance.

“We have received a good response and will continue giving these performances,” said Haidri.

Mashi said, “We have made an effort to dispel the prevailing fears and depression and trying to send a message of love and peace.” He said they had performed in China too where they had received a lot of praise. He said the government seems to be neglecting art and culture even though it can make use of the art form to wipe out the growing hatred in society.

There were synchronisation issues, but the audience’s encouraging attitude and the dancers’ enthusiasm covered the few slips.

Zarqa Chaudry, the choreographer said, “A dancer wants to understand every form of dance, luckily I had very intelligent students to work with.”

Singer Sonia Azeem sang “Gharoli” that had the audience on its feet.

Saira Tahir, a music graduate from the University of Punjab, told The Express Tribune that sufiana kalam has a soothing affect on the mind. Her soft voice suited the notes of “Chaap Tilak Sab Cheen Laye” and “Mai Nahi Jara Khairya De Naal”.

Azeem also seconded the opinion and said the new generation was not as familiar with this form of music due to undue neglect to the genre but now people are slowly becoming familiar with it.

Sain Mushtaq gave a chimta performance and was asked for an encore by the audience. He sang the duet “Jugni” with Tahir. Shaukat Manzoor presented “maiyas”, interacting effortlessly with the audience; he sang “Yar Gaddi Ayi Hai” on a request.

Shabnam Majeed sang “Yar Meri Pat Rakhio Bala” toward the end. The two-hour-long show wrapped up with a dance performance on “Dam Mast Kalandar”, the kalam dedicated to Laal Shahbaz Kalandar, who preached religious tolerance amongst Muslims and Hindus.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 18^th, 2011.