Jaipur, Faiz and Ali Sethi
14 February 2010
Ali Sethi recently attended the Jaipur literary festival and his extraordinary performance is now accessible to those who were not there. I should thank him for sharing this video. Ali’s instructions were also meticulous but I will not post them here except his concluding comment: the whole of the rest of the session is fantastic, and includes an excellent performance by Shabana Azmi as well as a very funny story told by Javed Akhtar about his first meeting with Faiz Sahib..
Click and enjoy!
Jaipur Literature Festival 2010
All My Posts, Arts & Culture, India, On Pakistan, Pakistan, Pakistani Literature, Poetry, South Asian Literature, SouthAsia, video, World Literature
Jab Faiz aaye the.. (When Faiz had arrived !). I was a kid (in every sense of the word) and Faiz had visited Hyderabad – A.P., India. He was wearing a Safari Suit. I was not aware of his position or status as a Poet. As a kid, i only knew of Ghalib and Iqbal as the Poet-Supreme.. and Ghazal meant “Begum Akhtar” and her lilting voice. But we knew Faiz was a “big man”… He came to Hyderabad. Everyone was intent on inviting him… and he accepted most invitations (if not all). He was a very simple man… and enjoyed simple food. People offered him genuine love… and he was overwhelmed. He could not accept all the invitations, so a Public Reception (of sorts) was arranged for him at A.C. Guards. He came… those who loved him thronged the place. He showed great empathy. Its been years and years, but now i look back to that day.. and say.. woaw.. it was great having met Faiz.. (even as a kid)… and of course., Madame Nur Jehan rendered that Ghazal, most beautifully. I do not know much about music, but Madame Nur Jehan did not “sing” that Ghazal. She rendered it… padhaa hai… and that “padhna”… has its own beauty. Of course, ghazal-singing (Gaayaki) is a branch of vocal music with its huge repertoire. No denying that. Yet, Madame Nur Jehan’s redention of this beautiful Ghazal… remained etched (on an average person’s memory… as mine).
Thanks for the comment janab. You have so much to share – always..
There are private recordings of Madame Nur Jehan’s rendition (padhnaa) of Faiz especially in mehfils when Faiz lived in Karachi. WIll see if I can grab hold of them and share the link incase i am successful. great sharing by dastagir sb.
[...] Read here – the post at Cafe Piyala is appropriately titled: Name, Name, My Kingdom for Name Jaipur, Faiz and Ali SethiAli Sethi recently attended the Jaipur literary festival and his extraordinary performance is now [...]
Naveed bhai: Please send us the links or files and I can post them on the blog..
thanks for the comment
I had no idea that Ali Sethi had a good voice and could perform so well. Loved the story by Javed Akhtar.