Sama’a: Sufiana songs by Rekha and Vishal Bhardwaj

The pain of separation from the Creator is at the core of Sufi lyrics and music, and the central idea of love and longing for and union with the beloved as espoused in Sufi songs, seems to have evergreen and widespread appeal, unhindered by, man-made boundaries of region, religion, caste and creed. Today, besides the traditional repertoire, a large number of songs are sung under the Sufi label. These compositions show a marked influence of contemporary idioms and expressions, which are widely popular with the masses.

Born in Delhi, Rekha Bhardwaj’s initiation into music was under her elder sister. Subsequently, the journey continued, first at the Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, and later through her training under Amarnath, a senior vocalist of the Indore gharana. For the last two decades and more, she has sung playback for numerous films in Hindi and also Bengali, Marathi, Punjabi and Malayalam. Her songs in Delhi-6, 7 Khoon Maaf and Ishqiya have won her two Filmfare awards and a national award. Besides working with her filmmaker-composer husband, Vishal Bhardwaj, her collaborations with other composers such as A.R. Rahman, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and others, have made her one of the film industry’s revered voices.

Vishal Bhardwaj is a writer, filmmaker, screenwriter, music composer and playback singer. Having made his debut as a music composer with children’s films in 1995, Bhardwaj received wider recognition with his screenwriting and compositions for Machis (1996). His innovative blend of Indian and Western styles has produced iconic soundtracks for films including Satya (1998) and Godmother (1999) while also writing and producing edgy adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays such as Maqbool (2003), Omkara (2006) among others. With nine national and three international awards, Bhardwaj’s works are celebrated for strong storytelling, complex characters and unforgettable music.

The grand finale of this edition of the festival will unfold with a joint presentation by Rekha and Vishal Bhardwaj, offering a bouquet of sufiana pieces, some composed by them, such as ‘Naina Thag Lenge’ (Omkara), ‘Kabira’ (Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani), ‘Hamari Atariya’ (Dedh Ishqiya), ‘Yeh Ishq Hai’ (Rangoon) and others from their Bollywood repertoire.

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