As Jashn-e-Rekhta turns 10, festival continues to celebrate Urdu and its cultural legacy

Greatly inspired by famed musician Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the duo will bring qawwali alive with heaving violins, violas and cellos besides tabla, dholak and the claps one usually associates with form to present the poetry of Amir Khusrau, Baba Bulleshah, Lal Qalandar, Baba Farid among others.

After selling out concerts at Southbank Centre and working with Grammy-winning composer A R Rahman, the ensemble that calls itself Orchestral Qawwali Project is all set to make its India premiere at Jashn-e-Rekhta. According to The Guardian, the project reverberates “with the gravitas of a Hans Zimmer score”.

“Over the last decade, Jashn-e-Rekhta has become a people’s festival, made possible by the love of Urdu admirers world-wide. Every year, it grows in size, proving that Urdu continues to live in the heart of millions,” said Sanjiv Saraf, the founder of the festival and Rekhta Foundation in a statement.

On till December 7, the festival has moved this time from its usual location of Major Dhyan Chand Stadium and will take place at the newly developed Baansera Park in Yusuf Sarai along the Yamuna floodplains.

The first day (December 5) opened with a conversation session, titled ‘Mehekti Khushboo ka Safar Gulzar ke saath’, where 91-year-old veteran poet Gulzar spoke to actor Divya Dutta about love, loss and poetry. Talking about the festival as a cultural movement, Gulzar said during his session, “This movement of tehzeeb, shayari and adab began so wonderfully here and the stage of journey that it has been brought to, that is a great feat. I have been here (at Jashn-e-Rekhta) before and have seen that the colour has not only been ensuing, it is also continuing to spread.”

The conversation was followed by a performance by playback singer Sukhwinder Singh, who took the audience on a journey of Punjabi Sufi poetry as well as his film songs.

The line-up

Day 2 will open with a dramatic reading of a play on the last day in the life of Delhi’s own poet Mirza Ghalib. Titled ‘Hue Mar ke Hum jo Rusva’, it will be performed by actor Shekhar Suman, who will attempt to showcase an intimate portrait of the poet.

Another play. titled Ek Lamhaa Zindagi – A Love Story 1938-1979, written by Nadira Babbar and directed by Makarand Deshpande and Juhi Babbar Soni will showcase a love story amid political upheaval and separation. The life, poetry and songs of Majrooh Sultanpuri will also be celebrated through a musical drama titled Rooh-e-Majrooh.

The afternoon will feature what has often been called the beating heart of Rekhta — the mushaira, which will be led by famed senior poet Waseem Barelvi and Javed Akhtar. It will also have poets Vijendra Singh Parvaaz, Hilal Fareed, Nausha Asrar, Shariq Kaifi, Azm Shakri and Azhar Iqbal among others, recite their works.

On Day 3, Akhtar will pay a tribute to poet and lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi through a conversation, while Shankar Mahadevan and Pratibha Singh Baghel will sing the songs penned by one of the most prolific and political Indian lyricists. Mahadevan, in a statement, mentioned that the festival has been responsible for “preserving Urdu language”.

The musical presentations will also include a qawwali performance by Dhruv Sangri and by composer duo Salim Sulaiman. For the entire music section at the festival, HCL Concerts, known for its classical concert presentations globally, has partnered with Jashn-e-Rekhta.

Day 3 will also feature a conversation, titled ‘Zubaan Mazhab Nahi Hai: Language is not a religion’, which will discuss Urdu being shaped by centuries of cultural exchange and poetry and not belonging only to one religious identity. This will feature poet and cultural impresario Kamna Prasad, former Supreme Court judge Sudhanshu Dhulia, who had upheld the use of Urdu alongside Marathi on a municipal signboard in Maharashtra, and theatre director and playwright Atul Tiwari.

Another conversation will look at food histories and discuss how food, like language, defies any rigid identities. Titled ‘Rang-e-Zaiqa: Hindustan Ke Lazeez Pakwanon Ki Rawayat’, it will feature architecture conservationist Sunita Kohli along with Sheeba Jairajpuri, founder and and owner of Lucknow-based Aab-O-Dana, where she curates authentic Lucknawi food experiences at a century-old haveli, and author and food historian Rana Safvi. The three will be in conversation with Anubhav Sapra, founder Delhi Food Walks.

Like its last editions, the festival also features a Rekhta Bazaar, a books section and Aiwan-e-Zaiqa that will feature a slew of food stalls.