Mausikar arranges thrilling performance of dance and music

Islamabad 

Many volunteer cultural groups are sporadic in their activity or become dormant but the Mausikaar Trust is very regular and arranged a thrilling performance of dance and music that gave members and their guests an evening to remember. 

Held at the Marriott as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), the event saw a full house of enthusiasts gather at the Kohinoor Hall to enjoy the occasion –- it’s not every day that a treat like this comes along! Best of all, thanks to Mausikaar policy of keeping it affordable, the tickets were very reasonably priced -– people would have gladly paid more for two hours of entertainment and refreshments to boot!

Welcoming the audience, Mausikaar President Dr Seema Khan, who manages to keep the trust going even though she does not live here permanently -- said the trust relied on membership and donations to fund its projects, which include promoting new artistes; providing help to impoverished ones; running a training academy and generally working for the preservation of traditional performing arts. She thanked the government organisations like PNCA etc: for their support and appreciated the dedication of her committee for their help. She then announced the names of the artistes, classical dancer Amna Mawaz being the star attraction with support from Dr Faryal Aslam and Adnan Jehangir (classical dance) and Ammar (guitar/vocals) and Waseem (‘rubarb’) performing in the interludes between dances.

The ever pleasant Marriott General Manager Hartmut Noack welcomed the audience as well as Mausikaar, which has returned to the hotel after a gap of many months. He hoped everyone would enjoy the evening and promised more events of a similar kind in future.

The programme began with Faryal showering rose petals to bless the stage, in a dance titled ‘Mangalam/Brinda Bun’ while emphasising that if young people pick up a flute or an instrument there would be peace in the world. This was followed by Amna invoking the spirit of dance to recorded alarupa music sung by Farid Nizami with Ustad Mohammad Ajmal on percussion and living legend, Indu Mittha vocalising her own composition. 

A coordinated dance by Iftikhar Masih, Faryal and Amna followed, performed to a recorded piece composed by Indu Mittha, sung by Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan, with Salman on flute and Ustad Mohammad Ajmal on the ‘pakhawaj’. Next Adnan Jehangir performed a ‘kathak’ dance titled ‘sargam,’ followed by Amna relating the story of a young village girl who enchants with her ‘sola singhar,’ -- intertwining both the technical and emotive aspects of classical dance. A ‘sufi kalam’ sung by Javed Bashir and Humaira Channa saw Adnan twirling like a ‘dervesh.’ Amna then performed to Kishwar Naheed’s well known satirical poem, ‘Hum gunehgar aurtain’ (we sinful women) with recorded vocals by Kanwel Iftikhar; Mohammad Rais Khan on violin and Ustad Mohammad Ajmal on tabla, composed by Indu Mitha and Amna. 

This dance was in honour of women who struggle every day against the injustices and oppression of a patriarchal society; an affirmation of the beauty; strength and power of womanhood. The grand finale saw Amna and Adnan on stage together, performing on Hazrat Amir Khusrows ‘khabaram raseeda,’ ‘in the hope of a new beginning where everything is encompassed by love,’ with musical accompaniment by Ammar and Waseem. The performances were appreciated with loud applause; comments like ‘marvelous,’ ‘wonderful’ and ‘great’ were heard and later it was agreed that it was an excellent ending to the cultural calendar of the year.

Indu Mittha started her Mazmoon e Shauq school in 1999 but she is the oldest exponent of dance in Pakistan. Dr Faryal Aslam trained in ‘Mazmoon-e-Shauq’ and has done her PhD in Culture and Performance from California. Amna Mawaz graduated from Mazmoon-e-Shauq and is now teaching there. She has performed in China, India and America and various cities of Pakistan. She is also a political and social activist. Adnan Jehangir from Lahore was trained by Beena Jawwad and for the past few years his guru has been Rajindar Gangani. He has performed both at home and abroad.