This collection compiles the events of Jashn-e-Khusrau, a festival illuminating the genius of Amir Khusrau, held at Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti and India International Centre, Delhi in March 2010. The festival was organized and produced by Aga Khan Trust for Culture in collaboration with Archaeological Survey of India and India International Centre. It was funded by the Ford Foundation.
Jashn-e-Khusrau celebrates the s f n kal m (mystical poetry of Islam) of Amir Khusrau (1253 1325). Rendered in the kh naq h (shrine) of his beloved pir, Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya (1238 1325), the kal m has been kept alive for over 750 years by the qaww l singers in the shrines of the Chistiya silsil . The festival puts together an exclusive assembly of selected kh naq h qaww l with different darg h affiliations each with distinctive style and repertoire. In that way it is singularly unique. It includes several other related events such as lectures on the poetry of Amir Khusrau and its contribution to qaww l tradition; a discussion with the qaww l on the development of the qaww l styles and contents; heritage walks in Nizamuddin Basti where Amir Khusrau lies buried next to Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya; film screenings on s f music and on Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan one of the greatest exponent of qaww l of our time; and an exhibition displaying Humayun s Tomb, Sunder Nursery and Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti area urban renewal initiatives.
Jashn-e-Khusrau: A Collection presents three music discs exemplifying the vast repertoire of kh naq h qaww l and Amir Khusrau skal m. The book presents, in the first section, three essays with an introduction articulating the history, tradition, and literature of kh naq h qaww l as attributed to Amir Khusrau. The second section compiles the kal m of the qaww l s included in the discs with transliterations and translations.
