When Tradition Treads the Paths of Tomorrow...

“From our ancestors come our names, but from our virtues our honors”

In all his interviews Shafqat Amanat Ali is inevitably asked a question about the great musical legacy of the Patiala Gharana that he has inherited from his forefathers. And he takes a lot of pride-(and rightly so) in talking about the great musical tradition of the family, where every child born into the family is raised on a daily dose of musical intricacies and nuances.-Training so rigorous, that it builds not just their knowledge of music but even teaches them a thing or two about life itself.

“Learning classical singing is not a time bound process, it is life long- that’s what was drilled in right from the beginning by our elders,” says Shafqat Amanat Ali. “When you begin learning by keeping this in mind it gives you a lot of inner strength.”

The tradition of Gharanas- the different schools or styles- in the Hindustani classical music fascinates me. The concept of a guru passing on his wisdom to his students, who then carry forward the unique style and interpretation, and the specific techniques of rendition, is intriguing and very interesting.

The timeline of the Patiala Gharana boasts of many a great name and their glorious achievements. But if there is just one thing that could sum up this tradition of inheriting, preserving and passing on music, it has to be this video

Salman Amjad and Ali Amjad are Shafqat’s nephews, the sons of his eldest brother the late Amjad Amanat Ali, who himself was an accomplished classical vocalist. And here they sing the composition of their grandfather’s grandfather. It’s heartwarming to watch the young duo sing what was composed almost 200 years ago by someone who established the tradition which they grew on.

The Patiala Gharana founders were Ali Baksh and Fateh Ali Khan, formidable names in the singing circles of the North India in the nineteenth century. They were referred to as Aliya-Fattu. Such was the prowess of their voices, that they were awarded the respective titles of General and Colonel by Lord Elgan, Viceroy of India, in recognition of their contribution to music. So Aliya -Fattu are also commonly referred to as Jerneil and Kerneil… some even called them the Sur kaptan- the captains of sur.

Ali Baksh’s legacy was furthered by his own son and disciple, the very accomplished Ustad Akhtar Hussain. Whereas Fateh Ali’s son Ashiq Ali was guru to disciples who formed the Kasur branch of the Patiala Gharana that boasts of bigwigs like Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.

Akhtar Hussain enjoyed the patronage of Patiala’s King but had to shift to Pakistan after the partition in 1947. 

Recordings of Ustad Akhtar Hussain from Pakistan radio:

Desi Todi

Bihag

His sons Amanat Ali and Fateh Ali made a very successful musical debut in 1945. Fateh Ali remembers in an interview how he and his brother sang in a gathering of some of the most distinguished names and at the end of the recital he was bewildered when instead of congratulating the singers they all rushed to embrace and compliment their guru and father.

Young Amanat and Fateh Ali singing Raga Bihag : 

Shafqat, the youngest son of Ustad Amanat Ali started his training in music at the age of 4. His grandfather, Ustad Akhtar Hussain, formally began his training as it was tradition for the head of the family to introduce every child in the household to the music of the Gharana. Unfortunately both his grandfather and father could not live long enough to guide him in his musically journey. His chacha, Fateh Ali, therefore donned the mantle of his mentor as he was for the rest of the children in the family. In a household so full of potential stars Shafqat often felt that his own skills were sidelined and not encouraged as much. But music was his calling and he was determined to chart his own course in the territory on which his family had ruled for generations. Struggling over the years and often asked by his uncle and elder brother to take up another profession, Shafqat found his calling in fusing the age old musical wisdom that he had inherited from his forefathers with the sounds and beats and arrangements which came from the west.

Shafqat maintains that he is not the first to take a slightly different course from the traditional path. “Classical music too has various forms… one of the earliest forms is Dhrupad which is still there but relatively rare now. After that Khayal gayaki took the front seat and Khayal was what our Gharana started with mainly and made a name with. Thumri followed and was again sung by us, then Ghazal was popularized by my father and brother Asad, who also experimented with pop.”

Shafqat is right when he says he is not the first one to travel down a different path. Even if we talk of fusion, he wasn’t the first in the family to do it. Ustad Fateh Ali Khan’s collaboration Ragas and Sagas with the Norwegian Jazz saxophonist, Jan Gaberek was hailed as perfect blend of the east and the west.

Even singing for films is not a first by Shafqat. His father Ustad Amanat Ali has done playback and Asad Amanat Ali also sang for many Pakistani films in the 80’s. Many might not know that he has even lent his voice for a Bollywood song.

Shafqat might have taken a slightly different route than the usual but his commitment to carry forward  his inheritance of the musical wealth is very evident in his own music. He has understood that changing times require changing strategies. Audiences in general today do not have the time or patience to sit through mehfils and respond much better to live stage concerts, for example. So he cleverly has packaged some of the gems of his elders and presented them to the music lovers in a new form.

Let’s take his Khamaj for instance, one of his most popular songs till date and my absolute favorite. This is adapted from a traditional thumri ,also sung by his father, and uncle. Shafqat just took it and in his own words “made it more contemporary”. He added more words to give it the shape of a song and whether he did justice to this gem is for everyone to see, or rather hear.

His Kartar in Darbari is another one that is inspired by an old Patiala Gharana asthai, sung earlier by Ustad Amanat and Ustad Fateh Ali Khan. “I wanted people to hear it from my perspective,” says Shafqat. So the scintillating orchestra  arrangement is Shafqat’s addition and tribute to this beautiful piece!

“Pyaar nahi hai sur se jisko”- a beautiful composition by Shafqat’s father is like a gentle reprimand and more than that an invitation to people who haven’t realized the importance of music . Sung by many members of the family, this song gets a modern feel with Shafqat’s version for Fuzon, before the band broke up.

Shafqat's classical rendition

And the Fuzon version

“One who walks in another's tracks leaves no footprints”

Charting a new path, like Shafqat has done, in the world of music is always fraught with risks. On the one hand you have the purists, who will always examine the work under a microscope, and on the other, are the average masses who generally have low tolerance level for something that is too intricate and difficult to understand- A double edged sword if you will; or a tight-rope walk where balance is the key. So far Shafqat Amanat Ali has done well in maintaining that balance. The double-edged sword has enabled him to carve a special niche for himself , which allows him to stay true to the tradition of which he is a torchbearer, and also showcase his versatility. He currently is in a position where he has competently covered everything from (Raga) Eeman to (Playback for) Emraan Hashmi

“I believe in adapting to the changing times but without forgetting my roots and the roots still are and will always be in the classical music. Those roots are my identity and I cannot be separate from my identity," he says.

As his fan I look forward to a possibility of Shafqat considering a pure classical album at some stage in his career. But at the same time I remain equally excited about his forthcoming album and his future Bollywood numbers which will showcase his own ingenuity that was nurtured by the age-old tradition of the Patiala Gharana.