How Sufi musicians from Nagor are taking their music beyond the dargah

M. Haja Maidan lives in Thethi village of Nagapattinam district. this third generation Saint (ascetic) of Rifa tarika (Order) Sufism has been singing Islamic devotional songs since the age of nine. He along with his brother-in-law Abdul Ghani performs in and around their coastal village. Together they present compositions set to the beat of ‘Dayara’. Haja’s elder brother Sabarmadin Babha Sabir was the third member of the troupe until his death in 2012.

The life and music of singers such as Hajj has been shaped by the Nagaur Dargah, which is dedicated to Saint Abdul Qadir, just a few kilometers from Thethi, and is considered one of the largest pilgrimage centers in South India.

During a recent visit to the dargah, the presence of music—instruments and vocals—was as tangible as the five imposing minarets that frame the temple. Whether in the form of Nagaswaram and Thavil concerts at Nagra Medai in the upper storey of the temple, or in the form of concerts by independent artists and Saint Below, devotional tunes are seamlessly woven into worship rituals.

spotlight on talent

Haja, Abdul and Saburmadin remain in the shadows, but for EarthSync (an audio-visual production house) award-winning 2007 documentary, ‘The Laya Project’, which made headlines on them.

For more than two years, the Laya Project explored communities in India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the Maldives and Myanmar, traveling to countries affected by the 2004 tsunami and documenting their folk music traditions.

The trio became popular as the ‘Nagor Boys’ with their simple rendition of ‘Ya Allah’, showcasing their voice and their ability to spin a mesmerizing sonic web with tambourine-like instruments.

He was later invited by the project’s Chennai-based Israeli music producer, Yotam Agam, to record ‘Nagore Sessions’, a line-up of guest artists including a Zohar fresco on Middle Eastern percussion by monks from the Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, Sarangi. Horns included. Rhodes and programming by Patrick Sebag, Harmonium by Palakkad Sriram and Bass by David Saban, by Ustad Murad Ali Khan.

“The Laya Project made a huge difference in our lives,” says 52-year-old Haja Maidan. “It earned us recognition from the Tamil Nadu government and social organisations, and we were invited to tour Australia, Middle Eastern countries and Israel with our songs. Till then, going to Chennai was also a big effort.”

majority of Saint There are no written song books. “We have memorized over 100 songs taught by our ancestors, that we sing according to occasion,” says Haja.

influence on popular culture

With Sufism in Tamil Nadu dating back over 400 years, Islamic devotional music has become a part of popular culture in the state. It has two distinct strains: Islamic songs that focus on the core tenets of the faith, and Sufi styles which mostly consist of ‘pugaz malai’ or peen, in praise of saints and holy men whose shrines are still revered.

Islamic music worked its way into ‘gana’ songs, which were originally meant to commemorate the dead and were integrated into Tamil films, especially in the 1950s. Songs like ‘Mera Naam Abdul Rahman’, ‘Ondre Solvan’ and ‘Eloram Kondaduvom’ were picturized on prominent stars MG Ramachandran and Sivaji Ganesan playing Muslim characters.

One of the most recognizable voices of the genre is singer Nagor EM Hanifa, whose baritone and style continue to influence many even seven years after his death. “My father started singing at the age of 13 in Thiruvaluntur in Thanjavur district on a bullock cart, which was both stage and band transport. He learned to throw his voice without the aid of a microphone, which shaped his distinctive singing style,” says his son Naushad Ali, who also moonlights as a singer.

While Hanifa was not keen on appearing in films (he sang in some), he became the ‘voice’ of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) with his upbeat political songs played before party meetings.

The influence of the project brought in the development of Islamic music can be seen in Tamil films in recent times. Musicians such as AR Rahman and Ghibran have performed more subtle in this style.

“Sufi themes include both self-awareness and acquired knowledge. It can be a word or an epiphany that is expressed in poetic form. When you present a song with soul-shaking lyrics, people Answers it on a deeper level,” says Chennai-based lyricist Mashook Rahman, who wrote ‘Khwaja Uttha Khwaja’ for the Tamil version of the 2007 magnum opus. jodha akbari, Sung by Rahman (who also composed the film’s music), the hymn to the melodious quest for spirituality continues.

Nagor Hanifa | photo credit: MOORTHY M

online success

Sound recording technology, and along with it, the market for devotional songs has grown to create a thriving music scene online in many pilgrimage centers such as Nagaur. Some of the more successful singers in Nagor have set up recording studios at home.

“Sufi musicians of yore used to write their own songs and compose melodies apart from playing instruments. But as he became deprived of education, he started using poems written by others. For more than a decade, it seemed that Nagaur was no one to follow Hanifa. We are trying to replace it with a more contemporary interpretation of Islamic and Sufi music,” says Umar Farooq, singer and owner of Sufi Music, a recording studio in Chennai. For his 2019 video song ‘Ya Meera-Qadr Wali’, Omar collaborated with Iranian percussionists to achieve a more authentic soundscape for the drums.

Interestingly, most of these productions are self-financing as the music is seen as a religious offering. “It costs around Rs. 1 lakh to make a high quality song with video, but no money talks; we all just pitch in with what we have,” says Omar.

“At present, Sufi music is not organized in Tamil Nadu. The fakir is doing his job. The film’s composers are trying it out in films. And independent producers like us are finding a new voice in our recording studios,” says Omar.

Roots in Nagor

Many Sufi singers have been associated with Nagor and his legacy (Saint Abdul Qadir is said to have learned music from Sufi mystic Muhammad Gauth along with Hindustani prodigy Tansen). “We sing at the dargah for our pleasure, and don’t expect any payment,” says Nagor Hafil Sahib Qadiri, who has been singing for 20 years as part of the Qadiriya Qasida group in Nagaur.

The 40-year-old has worked with companies like Sufi Music, producing lyrical videos in Urdu and Tamil. With 150 songs in his repertoire, Hafil Sahab says he has reduced singing on social occasions (for a fee) and is now concentrating on Sufi music in the dargah.

It is important to preserve the folk music traditions of Tamil Sufi artists as a younger generation Saint Prefers a more mainstream life. For example, Haja Maidan’s son has taken up driving a car for a living.

Yotam Agama | photo credit: special arrangement

Recalling the serendipitous discovery of the Nagaur Boys by an Indonesian colleague passing through the dargah during the Laya project, music producer Yotam (who returned to Israel in 2020 after nearly 15 years in Chennai) says he is fascinated by Tamil Sufi music . ,

“Unlike North Indian and Pakistani Sufi groups, which use large ensembles of South Asian musical instruments, Tamil Sufi singers have only the frame drum, which is common in Arab countries. People can go into a samadhi simply by listening to the chant-like tones of his songs,” says Yotam.