'Karavan-e-
Ghazal'
This serial, as its name suggests, traces the forward movement
of a form of poetic Urdu composition, called the 'ghazal', a form that was sung for only
small appreciative audiences during the me-dieval period. Today, the ghazal' has attained
widespread popularity because of singers like Begum Akhtar, K. L. Saigal, Talat Mehmood,
Mohammed Rafi, LataMangeshkar, Mehdi Hassan, Jagjit and Chitra Singh,
Anup Jalota, Pankaj
Udhas and several others.
'Karavan-e-Ghazal' (alternate title: Dastaan-e-Ghazal) is a serial in 13
parts on the history and origin of the ghazal' beginning with Amir Khusro in the 13 th
Century and ending with Faiz Ahmed Faiz. The serial records the contributions of poets
like Quli Qutub Shah, Waris Shah, Siraj Aurangabadi, Arzoo, Anand Ram Mukhlis, Abdul Hai
Taban, Jafar Zalalli, Meer Taqi Meer, Mus Hafi, Nazeer Akbarabadi,
Ghalib, Bahadur Shah
Zafar, Dagh, lqbal, Josh and Bismil.
The serial is being directed by Saeed Akhtar Mirza and Ashok, Ahuja, and the
music is being composed and directed by Ustad Amjad Ali Khan. The script has been written
by S.M. Mehdi and Mr. Sumedh Shah is the executive producer. Each programme begins with a
ghazal sung by a well-known singer like Pankaj Udhas ; Anup Jalota, Penaaz Masani, Roop
Kumar Rathod and Chandan Dass, among others. The first episode features Shobha Gurtu and
Hariharan.
Asha Bhosle and Lata Mangeshkar have also shown interest in the programme.
Ustad Amjad Ali Khan who will select the artistes is clear that he does not want to
compose pure classical music for the programme, but popular music.
Three major record companies-HMV, MIL and CBS-have agreed to allow the use
of, recordings of their ghazal' artistes. An understanding with the producers
of the serial-Atia Communications-will ensure that each label (HMV, MIL, CBS) gets
mechanical rights for at least 60 minutes of the recorded music of their
artistes. |
 Singer Shobha Gurtu with Amjad Ali Khan.
.
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L to R-Saeed Mirza, director; Zubairi,
sound recordist,
Radiogems; Amjad Ali Khan; and Uttam Singh, composer.
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'Dastaan-e-Ghazal' will also be released on records and musicassettes.
The 'ghazal', as a poetic composition, has a discipline all its. own. It
consists of any number of couplets or 'shers', each being of perfect length and rhyme.
This balance cannot be disturbed by even as much as a part of a syllable.
Content-wise,
each couplet is self-contained, complete in its two lines ('misra's'): it cannot spill
over into the next couplet. Moreover, one couplet should contain only one thought. These
rigid restrictions impart a gem-like quality to each couplet, each scintillating on its
own.
The 'ghazal', which had a long and glorious tradition in Iran, was new to India in the days
of Amir Khusro, the first Indian poet who tried to graft Persian with Braj, Awadhi and
other Indian languages to produce what he called 'Hindvi'. This was the first attempt at a
composite Indian language, having components of several languages and dialects of India.
Though the results may seem a little raw and coarse today to more sophisticated
audiences, the language has a freshness and vigour. Khusro wrote a number of 'ghazals' in
this language, and they still survive.
'Karavan-e-Ghazal' takes us back to the early days of ghazal. |
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