Bollywood’s sufi music obsession has given many timeless melodies

When AR Rahman first heard the rich voice of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and was blown away by it, he did not realise that he was listening to a master who was already on his journey to make his favourite genre, Sufi music, a household name, not just in the subcontinent but the world over. His live concerts, albums and film soundtrack introduced Sufi music to millions of fans. At a time Bollywood music had become a genre in itself, Ustad flew in from Pakistan to lend variety to our music and make Bollywood sing tunes those were alien till then. The Sufi influence till then was limited to a handful of Qawaali numbers in period dramas.

We heard Khan on Indian screens for the first time during the opening titles of Shekhar Kapur’s Bandit Queen in the year 1994. His soulful melody “Choti Si Umar” captured all the pain of a little girl forced into child marriage and to bid good bye to her family. The number set the mood for the tragic life story of Phoolan Devi that was about to unfold onscreen. That, incidentally, turned out to be a fresh beginning for Bollywood as well.

Many movies, a good number of them from Mahesh Bhatt’s production house followed. The song ‘Ishq ka Rutba’ is still popular though nobody remembers the film Kartoos (1999), which he had composed for. While many of Khan’s compositions were rehashes of his popular Qawwali numbers, others were arranged in the quintessential Bollywood template. His super hit song “Tere Bin Nahi Jeena” in Kacche Daage is such a song. Bhatt’s passion for Sufi music continued and still reflects in the soundtracks of his productions even after two decades of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s demise in 1997.

Bhatt’s 2005 superhit production Kalyug is an unmissable album in any Sufi playlist. Sa Re Ga Ma sold 14 Lakh copies of the album that year, which included songs composed by Anu Malik, Faisal Rafi, Rohail Hyatt, Jal, Goher Mumtaz and Mithoon. Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, the nephew of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, cemented his niche in Bollywood with the soulful numbers "Jiya Dhadak Dhadak Jaye," and "Tujhe Dekh Dekh Sona".

Atif Aslam, another Pakistani singer sang “Juda Hoke Bhi” and “Who Lamhe” in Zeher the same year to mark his arrival.

Atif had been a permanent fixture of Bollywood till right-wing nationalism put curbs on the creative freedom of Bollywood. 

Pritam’s soulful Sufi composition “Ya Ali” sung by Zubeen Garg is another landmark song when you talk about Sufi influence in film music. The song, featured in Gangster, 2006 romantic-thriller helmed by Anurag Basu had other superhits in the same genre including the sensual “Tu Hi Meri Shab Hai” by KK and the emotional “Mujhe Mat Roko” by Kavita Seth.

A.R.Rahman, who practices Sufism, hits a high whenever he is offered a chance to use Sufi music for any situation in a film. His oeuvre of Sufi songs became richer ever since he composed "Chaiyya Chaiyya" for Mani Ratnam’s Dil Se (1998). The song based on Sufi music and Urdu poetry found a place in the worldwide top 10 list released by BBC in 2002 and was also used in the opening and closing credits of the musical Bombay Dreams and the movie Inside Man.

AR Rahman’s unwavering devotion to Sufism has produced gems such as “Zikr” from Bose, The Forgotten Hero (2004), “Khwaja Mere Khwaja” from Jodha Akbar (2008), “Piya Haji Ali” from Fiza (2000) and “Arziyan” in Delhi-6 (2009).

Rahman had once recounted he listened to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan while composing for Roja in 1998. Rahman then wondered why can’t he compose and sing music like him as Sufi music is something he cherishes. He made it happen a couple of years later when Khaled Mohammad asked him to compose a Qawwali for Fiza. The beautiful song praising one of the greatest Sufi saints Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari.

Kailash Kher an independent singer who debuted in Bollywood with his chartbusters “Allah Ke Bande” (Waisa Bhi Hota Hai) and “Rang Deeni” (Dev) is a distinct Sufi and folk voice that composers love.

Apart from “Arziyan” in Delhi-6, AR Rahman had used his voice in “Yun Hi Chala” (Swades), “Al Maddath Maula” (Mangal Pandey). Kher has also released many successful singles and albums, such as “Teri Deewani”.

This piece is not enough to cover the whole Sufi playlist of Bollywood. Many composers ranging from Anu Malik to Amit Trivedi have used Sufi music in their compositions.

There was a time when Sufi music was not accepted by all. Thanks to the many independent music platforms and mobile apps, Sufi music has gained wider acceptance. You cannot find a music app without a couple of Sufi playlists.

When you consider the Sufi influence in his film songs such as those in Taal or the singles that he had done for Coke Studio, Rahman is currently the greatest ambassador of Sufi music after Nusrat. As a student of Sufism, he confesses that his enlightenment was destroying every kind of ego and generating an idea that happiness was the true measure of wealth. What more do you need to close your eyes and elevate yourself to a different plane other than listening to one of Rahman’s mesmerising Sufi numbers?

(Dress Circle is a weekly column on films. The author is a communication professional and film enthusiast. Read his past works here)