Qawwali tribute to Amjad Sabri leaves fans entranced

Qawwali fans were entertained to a night-long session featuring the most famous names in the art at the Arts Council on Thursday evening.

The session, which began at 10:30pm on Thursday lasted till the Sehri time on the following morning.

The programme was meant to be a tribute to the late Qawwal Amjad Farid Sabri, whose first death anniversary it was.

The first to perform were the Wasi Nizami’s group.  Nizami was the lead singer. His deep, rich voice made the Qawwali come all the more profound. He and his companions (referred to as Hamnawa in Qawwali jargon) made a really harmonious combination. 

It was so nice to see them entranced while singing the praises to The Almighty and the saints. Their opening number was, “Ali Maula, Ali Maula”.

Their second number was in praise of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). It was a beautifully rendered Qawwali.

Then came Jugnu Farid and his group, who rendered “Tu Emir-e-Haram”, all in praise of The Almighty. Their next rendition was “Main Mureed Han Ali Da”. They were followed by the Abu Muhammad group. 

The most encouraging part of the programme was to see young people, very trendy and modern, clapping and swaying to the numbers, thus giving testimony to their religious side. Their affinity with their religion and culture was so prominent. This was a happy aspect. The singers were totally entranced while they sang and so were many among the audience.

The programme was wound up with the audience being served Sehri.

Famed Qawwal Sabri was gunned down in broad daylight on the 16th of Ramazan (June 22) last year.

Sabri, known for memorable Qawwalis Tajdar-e-Haram and Bhar do Jholi, was shot dead by two assailants in the Liaquatabad area.

On June 11, the late musician’s family, including his brother Sarwat Farid, visited the site where Sabri was shot dead. Speaking to media, Sarwat talked about how despite the fact that arrests were made earlier, his late brother’s assassins had not yet been unmasked.

The brother urged the authorities to proceed with naming the killers, as it had been a year since Sabri’s death. “The Liaquatabad underpass should be named after Amjad Sabri,” he said, adding that the memory of the singer remained in the family’s hearts.