Naturally

By Ruchika Kher, "Sufis from the South" - The Week - Kochi, India
Sunday, May 31, 2009

Sufi music is generally associated with north India, but three Dargah singers from the south are pioneering a different brand of singing-a mix of Tamil, Urdu and Arabic.

Abdul Ghani, 57, Ajah Maideen, 42, and Saburmaideen Babha Sabeer, 65, are Sufi singers who mesmerise music lovers with their chants at the shrine of Meeran Sahib Abdul Qadir Shahul Hamid Badshah in Nagore in Tamil Nadu's Nagapattinam district.

The trio have lent their voice to an album, Nagore Sessions, produced by EarthSync.

"The Sufi movement spread to south India, too, and one of the most important Sufi shrines in India after Ajmer Sharif is the one at Nagore. Singers there have their own brand of Sufi singing," said Sonya Mazumdar, CEO, EarthSync. "Our project is about giving such artistes platforms, and exposing the world to their kind of music."

The three singers have fused their earthy chants with middle-eastern percussion, contemporary western and Indian instruments.

"Our compositions and our brand of Sufi are different from other Sufi singers," said Ajah Maideen, who recently took part in the Bhakti Utsav, a festival of religious hymns.

They have also performed in different cities in Israel and Australia. All three are well-versed in Tamil, Urdu and Arabic.

"We are not trained in this form. But this is what comes naturally to us and I think it clicks with listeners," said Abdul Ghani.

They used to perform at marriages and other festive occasions, apart from singing at the dargah, to make ends meet. But they say the situation has improved after the album came out.

"Earlier people in our state did not know about us, but with this album and these shows people have started recognising us," they say. "We are famous now."