Qawwali is best defined as classical, devotional music in South Asia that transcends religious categorisation. What do these changes mean for qawwali? Are these a recent phenomenon or have they been around for a while? Are such changes consistent with what other forms of religious and devotional musical genres have experienced? Has the essence of qawwali changed or is it only being positioned differently? These are some of the questions that this essay seeks to explore. The anthem creatively adapts the musical form commonly associated with qawwali – retaining the laal qalandar refrain – which generates easy identification with the Lahore Qalandars cricket ensemble, besides alluding to the tribute paid regularly to Sufi Laal Shahbaz Qalandar at qawwali gatherings.Īlso read: Qawwal gali: The street that never sleeps For those interested in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), it is hard to miss the catchy Lahore Qalandars team anthem, released a couple of months ago. The commodification of qawwali goes hand in hand with the commercialisation of qawwali. It is simply that such performances in the diaspora are decidedly easier to keep up with than the innumerable ones within South Asia. This commodification of qawwali, though, is not an exclusively diaspora phenomenon.
The demand for these performances coupled with the costs associated with bringing the performers to North America means that organisers are able to price tickets with relative freedom. The Aga Khan Museum in the same city hosted Fareed Ayaz and Abu Muhammad Qawwal within two weeks of opening its doors to the public in September 2014. In Toronto alone, for example, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan has become a regular attraction for the members of Pakistani and Indian diaspora. She, however, would not be the first or the last of the many globally recognisable performers to sing qawwali for an audience that pays significant sums of money to listen to them. A portion of her performance, by popular request, would be devoted to the singing of qawwalis. Afzal Sabri Qawwal performing at Junagadh House, Karachi | Arif Mahmood, White StarĪbida Parveen was scheduled to perform in front of a crowd in Toronto in May 2016.
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