The trend started with Kailash Kher's soulful rendition of Allah ke Bande, followed by Rahat's heart tugging Lagi man ki lagan, leading up to 2008's soul stirring Khwaja Mere Khwaja. Sufi music, rather Bollywood's version of the Sufi genre, shows no sign of flagging in its popularity.Singers like Rabbi Shergill, Kailash Kher and even Zubeen Garg have built careers around the genre, and fresh waves of 'Sufi' singers, Indian and Pakistani, continue to lap at the shores of the Indian music industry.Unlike ephemeral fads like Arabian and African tunes that ebb and flow according to listeners' fancy, Sufi has caught and held the attention of afficionados as well as Gen Next in the country for well on five years.

Most music labels too have latched on to the genre. Tips music's managing director, music and artist management, Rajeev Sogani says, "Sufi is the hottest selling thing in the market. Everything with a sufi flavor is loved by the audience. Of course, authentic Sufi music does not work as much as the commercial version works."
Sufi albums released in the last four years
Album name Record labels
Year
Aadat
Saregama
2004
Euphoric Sufi
Times Music
2005
The Magic of Abida Parveen Music Today 2006
The Magic of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Music Today
2006
Kailasaa Sony BMG 2006
Doorie Tips 2006
Jal Pari Tips 2006
The Best of Sufi Collection MP3 Music Today 2007
Jashn-e-Sufi Music Today 2007
Kailasaa-Jhoomo re Sony BMG 2007
Koi Chehra Tips 2008
grees Times Music COO Adarsh Gupta, "The market for Sufi is very big now, but the commercialised version of the music is more in demand, and also popular."

Saregama's vice president, Artiste and Repertoire (A&R), Publishing and New Media Music, Atul Churamani has a different tale to narrate. According to him, "There is no such market for Sufi music. It is all about sufi rock and sufi fusion. That apart, only singers like Abida Parveen, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Kailash Kher and similar authentic Sufi artists can sell authentic sufi music."

But what exactly is authentic Sufi music?

Pakistan based Sufi singer Shafqat Ali, who will soon launch his album in India, says, "Sufi music is more about ibadad (prayer) of God. The whole idea of Sufi music is connecting to God through music. The lyrics of those songs are mostly poems and shayari written to praise God and talk about his love towards mankind."
Top online Sufi track downloads from Feb to June 08 (Courtesy: Soundbuzz)
Song Month
Ranking no
Bandya (khuda ke liye)
May 15-31
1
Aadat (Kalyug) May 15-31
8
Ya Ali (Gangster) May 15-31 10
Doorie (Atif Aslam) March 15-31 1
Ya ali (Gangster) March 15-31 7Adds Pakistani sufi singer Abeeda Parveen, "Sufi-ism is a practice in praise about the almighty. The music is a broader term expressing love for the beloved. The intensity of the love is indefinable."

The music industry agrees and accept this definition of sufi. But does not flinch when it comes to packaging sufi in a populist mode to make the songs hummable by a wider range of audiences.

Says composer Salim Merchant, "The music offered by Hindi film industry as Sufi is not pure, but I don't oppose its remolding completely. The music has just 10 per cent of sufi elements. But it sounds completely agreeable, because Bollywood is acting as a platform on which Sufi music can be really popularised."

Veterans like music director Lalit Sen aver that while the Sufi genre has definitely been diluted by the film industry, the composers' thoughts are very pure. "As long as the thoughts are pure, there is nothing wrong in remolding the music to suite the audiences taste," says Sen.
Top ringtones of Sufi tracks from Feb to June 08 (Courtesy: Soundbuzz)
Song Month
Ranking no
Bandya remix (Khuda ke liye) May 1-15
1
Ya Ali (Gangster) May 1-15 9
Ya Ali (Gangster) April 1-15 10
Dama dum mas kalander (Sufi Folk) April 1-15 7

Adds Shafqat, "The music is popular because, it talks about God in general.It gives the message of love and unity and humanity which every individual can relate to. It talks about human relations in general and that's why it has gained popularity."

On a more material level, the labels believe the fusion of the new sound of Sufi is what is working with the listeners. Says Tips Music, MD music and artist management, Rajeev Sogani, "Just like the era of bangra pop and rock, Sufi is here to stay, even if for just some time."

Lyrically speaking

If the sounds are a derivative of Sufi, so are the words. Laments Music Today's Head A&R, Mannu Kohli, "It's very sad that Sufi music in Bollywood is not authentic and is merely reduced to using words like Allah and maula, to make it sound like Sufi."

Concurs singer Zilla Khan, "Songs in Bollywood effortlessly became sufi with the inclusion of such words. But I believe it's the barkat (grace) of those words which make it the top hits."Shafqat Ali however feels the audience is being cheated with the tweaking of Sufi lyrics and tunes. "The audiences believe in whatever they are offered. Actually, some Sufi singers have started singing for Hindi films, so anything that comes from them because of their tone or 'khula awaaz' is regarded as sufi."

Is that the reason for the influx of singers from Pakistan into the Hindi film music industry? With an increasing number of Sufi albums in the market and the inclusion of a 'Sufi' song in every film, it would seem the market is opening up to fresh singers, both from within the borders and without.
Top Mobile downloads of Sufi tracks from Feb to June 08 (Courtesy: Soundbuzz)
Song Month
Ranking no
Ya Ali (Gangster)
May 15-31
7
Aadat (Kalyug) May 1-15
7
Ya Ali (Gangster) April 1-15 6
Doorie (Atif Aslam)
April 1-15 8
Aadat remix (Kalyug) April 1-15 9
Music Today's Kohli agrees, saying, "Yes, there are a lot of avenues for new singers in this genre. It's only the packaging and to some extent the talent of the singer, that matters, to make the album a hit."

But Churamani says, "More than the genre of the album, it is the melody and the talent of the artiste that is important. At the end of the day, it's the music that sells and not the genre. So, the artist wanting to cut an album, should be sure about his knowledge about his music rather than just tagging it as sufi."

Either way, Sufi music, and its Bollywood cousin, seem to be here to stay. For a long time.