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Photo: S.S. Kumar

PHENOMENAL: Rais Anis Sabri

Deeply revered amongst them is the name of Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti, the renowned 12th century mystic scholar-poet hailing from Iran, who revitalised the Chishti order founded by Khwaja Abu Ishaq Shami Chishti and settled in Ajmer (Rajasthan) where he established the liberal Chishtiya order of sufis.

Also known as ‘Gharib Nawaz’ (patron of the poor) his tomb, the Dargah Sharif at Ajmer draws believers the year round, particularly during the ‘urs’ (death anniversary).

In Sufism, metaphoric texts regard ecstasy as a state of connection with the Divine and sufi rituals like ‘dhikr’ and ‘sama’ use body movements and music to attain a state of trance. Qawwali is derived from the Arabic word ‘Qaul’ (axiom or dictum).

A qawwal is one who sings qawwali or the dictums of the prophet and praises of God. Central to the medium of qawwali are the verses and writings of Sufi saints suffused with mysticism and esoteric content. These have been passed down, largely through oral traditions.

Twelve-year-old Rais Anis Sabri is one of the youngest performing sufiana qawwals and a phenomenally talented one at that. Being the son and disciple of Rais Sabri who in turn is the disciple of the renowned qawwal Aslam Sabri, enabled the child to absorb the intricacies of the genre from his father right from the tender age of four. He began performing at age seven.

A native of Najimabad in Uttar Pradesh, Anis draws strength and inspiration from Ajmer Dargah Sharif. His performance for the Amir Khusro Academy at Chennai had an eager audience hanging onto his every word.

With his uncanny knack for drawing a response, the diminutive figure on stage erupted into a display of prowess that would have done a thespian proud. Whether he raised his voice to a shout or lowered it to a quiet tone, effortlessly weaving song, anecdote and analogy into a single seamless narrative, one thing was patently evident. Anis is a natural.

Dressed in his signature bright orange robes and a sequinned cap rimmed with the same colour signifying the Chishti ‘rang’ (colour), Anis launched into the invocation, hitting the high notes with power-packed confidence.

The next piece based in raag Darbari stirred with its resounding refrain.

Other pieces included ‘Mere Ghar Aaana Pyaare Nabhi’ and the popular ‘Maa Baap ka Dil na Dukha.’

With an unflagging energy that left adults shaking their heads in wonderment, the child artiste deftly wove together complex spiritual concepts by resorting to disarmingly simple analogies.

One such which drew spontaneous applause was the ‘mobile phone’ analogy where Anis likened man’s lifespan to a SIM card of uncertain validity, needing frequent recharge to connect to the Almighty through prayer (outgoing) to order to receive divine grace (incoming).

The emotionally charged interactive ambience had admirers typically walking up to the artiste, mid-performance, to shower him with praise and tokens of appreciation.

Through it all, the performer didn’t miss a beat, holding forth with unflappable composure and professional élan.

The artiste was ably supported by the strong vocals of Mohammad Yaseen who presented prelude verses and Wahid Hussain (vocals and harmonium) as well as Mohammed Abid (vocal), Rashid Akashi (banjo), Asif Akashi (tabla), Tasleem Sabri and Shehzad Ahmad (dholak).

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