'Meeting Mukhtiyar Ali' - Episode 03 from the film 'Had Anhad'

In this episode of the film ‘Had Anhad’ we venture into the village of Pugal in Rajasthan, to meet with the breathtaking Sufi folk singer – Mukhtiyar Ali and his family – and in the process we learn a thing or two about how the Sufi experience relates with Kabir, Ram and the Beloved.

Kabir was a 15th century bhakti poet of north India who defied the boundaries between Hindu and Muslim. He had a Muslim name and upbringing, but his poetry repeatedly invokes the widely revered Hindu name for God – Ram. Who is Kabir’s Ram? The film ‘Had Anhad’ journeys through song and poem into the politics of religion, and finds a myriad answers on both sides of the hostile border between India and Pakistan.

Had Anhad is one of 4 films made by Shabnam Virmani, entitled ‘Journeys with Kabir’, the others being ‘Koi Sunta Hai’, ‘Chalo Hamara Des’ & ‘Kabira Khada Bazaar Mein’. Shabnam is a filmmaker, singer and director of the Kabir Project, located at the Srishti School of Art, Design & Technology in Bangalore, India.

Mukhtiyar Ali is a extraordinary performer of Sufiana kalaam and Bhakti songs from the village of Pugal, in the western most part of the state of Rajasthan in India. He belongs to the Mirasi community, whose traditional occupation has been to sing, and has imbibed the tradition from his own father and elders. Today he is a highly versatile artist, collaborating with many contemporary musicians such as Vasundhara Das and Mathias Duplessy. For the Kabir Project team however, Mukhtiyar ji remains the fiesty singer we met in Pugal, who’s music blew our minds, and whose understanding of Kabir was honest, clear and from the heart!

Contact Mukhtiyar at: 91-94131-06911, [email protected], www.mukhtiyarali.com.

This is one of a series of upcoming uploads for Ajab Shahar, a webspace featuring songs, images and conversations around bhakti, sufi and baul poetry from India and thereabouts, currently under construction by the Kabir Project team. www.ajabshahar.org, www.kabirproject.org

Had Anhad (Bounded-Boundless): Journeys with Ram & Kabir, 104 min, musical documentary, 2009.
DVD of film available at http://www.amazon.in/dp/B00PJTQILW

Film Credits:
Camera & Direction: Shabnam Virmani
Direction Support: Rumah Rasaque & Smriti Chanchani
Script & Editing: Shabnam Virmani & Rikhav Desai
Animation: Orijit Sen & M M Pradeep
Songs by: Mahesha Ram, Prahlad Tipanya, Mukhtiyar Ali, Kaluram
Bamaniya, Shafi Faqir & Fariduddin Ayaz
Sound Recording: P M Satheesh in Rajasthan & Malwa; G M Chand in Pakistan
Sound Mixing: Fireflys Post Sound, Mumbai
Research & Concept: Shabnam Virmani & Tara Kini
Advisors: Linda Hess, Ashok Vajpeyi, Vidya Rao, Purushottam Aggrawal
Translations: Shabnam Virmani, Homayra Ziad & Linda Hess
Financial Support: Ford Foundation, New Delhi
Produced by: Srishti School of Art, Design & Technology, Bangalore
Collection: The Kabir Project

Date of Making: 2009