In the traditional mould
In Lahore last week, Abu Muhammed and Fareed Ayaz paid tribute to their father Munshi Raziuddin by rendering numbers that are standard fare of qawwali
By Sarwat Ali
As is the wont with musicians such barsis are held by congregations of musicians. Usually a number of performers pay their homage in music in memory of the late musician. The bigger the congregation the better the barsi is considered to be. Wholehearted participation by the musician is considered crucial, the popularity and influence of the late musicians is evaluated accordingly. In this case only the sons of Munshi Raziuddin participated probably because qawwali involves group singing which cannot be restricted to a few minutes and in case of many qawwals participating, the time management of the barsi can become problematic.

Most of us who have had a chance to visit the lower courts may be familiar with the sight of the watchful bunch of people, known as touts in common parlance. No sooner have you entered the court, with the curious look of a first-timer, they approach and welcome you like a long-lost friend or a close relative and start walking with you even if you don't show an inclination to converse. They would adjust their walking speed with yours and whisper in your ear throughout your stroll to the courtroom.

Within minutes they offer you attractive deals, which they claim will save your time, money and frustration, and provide you with a one-stop solution to all your problems. These guarantors of "speedy justice" can even arrange witnesses to strengthen your case or produce within no time "undetectable" copies of documents you would love to lay your hands on.

This scribe remembers an eye-opening account of a visit to the district courts in Lahore some 20 years ago. The purpose was to get the copies of some academic certificates attested by an oath commissioner. As the scribe was accompanied by a tout, referred to by a friend, the oath commissioner did not even bother to see the original documents while attesting the copies. All he said was: "You have come with our respected Malik sahib. It would be disrespect [to him] if I started asking for originals."

This scribe was shocked, to say the least. This one incident was representative of what may have been going on in the courts. All such practices, which may be considered crimes under the Pakistani laws, were being carried out with impunity.

It appears the situation did not change much with time and these groups have become stronger by the day. Even today they play with the law, twist facts and evidence to suit their clients and make good money. It may appear strange but it's a fact that there is a breed of professional witnesses who regularly testify in our courts for money. Most of the time, they testify in favour of those who they are seeing for the first time in their lives, and prove to be a major obstacle in the dispensation of justice.

This year has not been as good for these groups, aptly called tout mafias, as crackdowns have been launched against them all over the country. In a recent move, the Lahore Capital City Police Official Pervez Rathore issued orders to the police to take action against the 239 touts identified by the authorities. These touts provide people with back-dated stamp papers, affidavits, fake property documents and what not.

The legal fraternity has welcomed the move and termed it in line with the objectives of the National Judicial Policy 2009. Punjab Assistant Advocate General Raza-ul-Karim tells TNS that the lenient attitude towards such elements in the past led to the spread of this menace.

"There is no doubt they enjoy the support of some corrupt employees in the court, something taken care of in the said policy. Perjury is a serious offence punishable with imprisonment or fine but these professional touts function without any fear. Such malpractices will be checked now as the Supreme Court has set up an efficient system for collecting information pertaining to alleged corruption and other misdeeds in the judiciary, under the above-mentioned policy," says Karim.

The manual system of record-keeping has also been a reason behind the growth of such mafias. It was very hard to tally records of hundreds of thousands of dust-coated court files lying in towering heaps.

"The situation has improved now with the digitisation of police and case records," says Babar Ali, an inspector in Punjab police. The inspector who oversaw the process at Crime Record Office, Lahore in 2007-08, says it is now possible to track such witnesses in a digitally-searchable database available with the department. "You simply enter the name of the person and you will get a list of cases in which he has appeared [as witness]."

Babar says the record pertaining to a particular case is updated after every court hearing. This includes the names of the witnesses whose credentials are verified from Nadra. "The policemen deputed in courts are also keeping a vigilant eye on these touts involved in such practices."

He says the record is monitored strictly in cases of serious crime against person and property but not much care is given to cases like fraud and forgery. "There is need to take these cases seriously as well."

While there are those who praise this move, the sceptical lot thinks the litigants' life will not become easy even after this. Asif Iqbal, a social worker based in Karachi, thinks many people approach these touts just to avoid the complex legal obligations. "Many a time, the genuine witnesses stop visiting courts after appearing in one or two hearings and leave the litigants in a lurch."

"This is because the time span of a court proceeding is too long and second, there is hardly any security for the witnesses who are taken as enemies by the opponents. This leaves litigants with the only option to hire the services of the on-site and ever-present witnesses."

The same holds true for the guarantors who have to face the music in case a criminal who is released on bail disappears. "The police treat the guarantors so badly that hardly anyone is willing to give surety on behalf of others, especially when they are not related," says Muhammad Tariq, a small-time businessman based in Lahore.

Tariq recalls the ordeal that he and his family had to go through some years back when an under-trial prisoner released on his guarantee disappeared. Every other day, the police would raid their house or call them to the police station and ask them to produce "the criminal they were harbouring."

This leads many litigants to look out for options like submitting fake documents and bonds to secure bails. In case such a person is required by the police, there is no way to trace him or his guarantor.

Munir A. Malik, ex-president, Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) tells TNS that prevalence of corruption in lower judiciary is a major hurdle in dispensation of justice. He says he had first raised the issue of expeditious verification of bail documents in 1986 when he was the president of Karachi Bar Association.

"It's the basic right of a litigant to get bail without delay. This necessitates a foolproof but speedy verification system that checks and validates bail documents and identity of the witnesses."

Malik says the situation has improved considerably in Sindh over the years and the grip of "peshkaar" (equivalent of reader in Punjab) on court matters is loosening day by day.

The police may have taken a long-due step by acting against fake witnesses and touts, the move will be effective only if the factors that give these elements space to prosper are also taken care of.

The News on Sunday: The surface texture of your work seems to be at the core of your aesthetics. How has it evolved over time?

Riffat Alvi: I prefer the tactile quality of my surfaces rather then starting on a smooth canvas or plain wood panels. So, I build my works with layers of earth and colour -- to project my solidarity with our planet and its inhabitants.

My love for this medium became more intense after seeing the Altamira Cave paintings in Spain. I was interested in seeing what this earth (which is the repository of history) does on wood. How pure it is that we do sajadah on it and use it for tayammum (ablution to cleanse prior to our daily prayers).

British painter, Alan Davey, recognized that I was using earth colours for my Mohenjodaro series at the Bradford Gallery. I stopped using oil and water colours and made a frantic search from city to city, such as Multan, Quetta, Thatta and Chichawatni, looking for minerals, semi- precious stones and sediment rocks. And I have not looked back since.

TNS: In the early-1990s you used paper from notebooks to make your smoke drawings. Tell us something about them.

RA: 1993-94 was a sensitive time in Karachi. Body bags were the law of the land. Deprived of electricity and out of desperation for want of material, I picked up a sketchbook and hovered the paper above the flame... the image of a head appeared and the smoke drawings came about quite unexpectedly, but naturally.

The immateriality, fragility and density of smoke continue to inspire me. It is an alternate medium and it was an appropriate one to document the times.

TNS: The textural nuances pull one back to an ambiguous area which has to do with a cerebral engagement on the viewer's part too…

RA: My artistic expression keeps expanding within the parameters of earth and smoke. I agree that the viewer too brings a new interpretation to the work. My work brings you to the core realities of life and the story from dust to dust. Masood Kohari, Dabir and Talat have been my mentors.

TNS: Some 20 years later when you do the smoke drawings again, it appears that you are trying to replicate a gesture that was potent then but not anymore. One reading can be that you are crutching on. Would you agree?

RA: My smoke drawings cannot be replicated. Each image is highly sensitive. The sensitivity of the medium and its fragility could create a similar form but not an exact copy. Interpretations can vary. Many new ideas can evolve; perhaps I can capture the smoke as an installation. It recurs in other textured works with pigment and is not detached from my expression.

TNS: Would it be fair to assume that there is something in the pace and movement of your iconography that relates to a special time? It is not abrupt or direct? It is indirectly approaching violence, for example. By doing so, do you become a part of a tradition which relies on a non-Western, non-confrontational approach?

RA: I don't think it is fair to assume that my iconography relates to a special time. It is not abrupt. It is direct. Yet it is condemning, not condoning, violence. It mirrors society. My work reflects protest in a way that does not spoil peace. I am not really influenced, but I have admired Jalib, Faiz, Rumi, Parveen Shakir and Kishwar Naheed -- they speak honestly through their prose and poetry. I am very fond of reading Ibn-Arabi and Kashful Mahjub, book of Data Ganj Bukhsh. But the ultimate guide for me is Quran's translation.

TNS: There are many doors that seem to open in the newest body of work, many concerns of your past work that consolidate here. What do you think you will be taking into future?

RA: Intuition has guided me always. As quoted by Dr. Akbar Naqvi, 'Intuition is for a fraction of a second, if you can catch it… you have achieved it'. He has been a great source of guidance for me. I am reading my artworks on several levels; social issues like place of a girl-child in our society. I would like to work on large scale. Perhaps more exploration on coloured smoke.

TNS: Would you like to comment on your baked clay pigeons on gold coloured stands?

RA: My pigeon is related to my earlier use of birds, signifying peace in the midst of utter chaos. These are channels of hope and add relief from my paintings of smoke and nails. They may appear as commodities. I could have kept my birds white, bare and undecorated as in the past but something urged me to change the scale and go all out and decorate. I needed that space for some reason. Perhaps if the same birds were displayed along the empty bowl installation in the small room, the connections made would have been different. My references are coming directly from my lived experience.

TNS: The subtle ambiguity of form in your paintings is contradicted by the realism of pigeons that are highly decorative with intricate with elaborate henna designs? Here, the process of baking and decorating, that is the clay object, is the subject. What about the subtext that you have initiated on beauty and kitsch?

RA: I am not disturbed by the decorativeness. The intention was not kitsch. It again comes back to how you chose to make the connections and in what light you want to interpret the work. Yes, I have opened a new door with the decorative bharat, and please note that the use of henna is still very close to other organic materials I have been using. My birds may enlarge. So, I don't know what new direction the birds may take in future. At this point it was important to show them as they are and get a response.

In the traditional mould

As is the wont with musicians such barsis are held by congregations of musicians. Usually a number of performers pay their homage in music in memory of the late musician. The bigger the congregation the better the barsi is considered to be. Wholehearted participation by the musician is considered crucial, the popularity and influence of the late musicians is evaluated accordingly. In this case only the sons of Munshi Raziuddin participated probably because qawwali involves group singing which cannot be restricted to a few minutes and in case of many qawwals participating, the time management of the barsi can become problematic.

At the urs of sufia, especially where qawwali is held, it is generally observed that the qawwals get little time for their performance. At the urs of Data Gunj Buksh, for example, the number of qawwals always outstrips the number of hours that are allocated for sama. The urs then becomes a procession of qawwals who perform back to back for three days and nights, and it is more a matter of paying homage than an actual session of qawwali. The entire proceeding offers continuous listening. Besides, exposure to music has its own advantage.

Earlier, only the barsi of Fateh Ali Khan-Mubarak Ali Khan in Faisalabad used to be well-attended. It was not restricted to any one genre of music but all the famous ustads and musicians participated irrespective of their form. The primary reason was the presence of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan who made this event an important one in the music calendar. Now that Rahat Fateh Ali is being accepted as a musical heir, the barsi should regain its importance -- or that the barsi of Nusrat Fateh Ali be held according to the stature of the man. This year it almost passed unnoticed.

Abu Muhammed and Fareed Ayaz are now the rightful heirs of their family's musical heritage. They were adequately prepared and hence ready to step into the shoes of their father, in fact since his death they have become one of the leading qawwals of the country, almost encapsulating what Munshi Raziuddin's music represented.

Munshi Raziuddin was the last qawwal in the traditional mould despite tremendous changes that have racked this genre of music. Listening to him was a throwback to a bygone era when qawwali was basically an extension of the creative expression built round the shrine, and even while evolving its own semi-autonomous form, did not sever the umbilical chord with its origins.

Raziuddin Khan loved to trace his musical inheritance straight to Medina and sahabas. But the genre of qawwali, as it is known, is a creative product of the South Asian environment. Both, the musical structure in terms of raags and the rhythmic patterns as well as the text are indigenous, and a creative response to the situation as it existed for many centuries in South Asia.

It is not surprising that all qawwals trace their antecedents back to the era of Amir Khusro. Munshi loved to narrate how the art of qawwali was transferred by Khusro to his disciples because they were being prepared to engage in a musical combat with the Brahmins about the salient virtues of the two religions that they represented. The foremost among these disciples was Ibrahim Samit, and through Samit the art of qawwali travelled down to him, changing principally less in its form and content.

But the genre of qawwali has undergone some changes. From the shrine it was brought to the concert hall where the expectations from it too have changed. The gradual shifting of focus to the western sources of knowledge has weakened our links with our heritage encapsulated in classical Arabic and Persian languages. Most of the repertoire of qawwali being in Persian with an icing of Arabic is lost to history.

Since the word qawwali is from the word qawl, the text assumes a significant part of the performance. Usually the text is in praise of Allah through one of his attributes, the Prophet and the Ahlebait. The qawl has usually been Arabic, either from the Quran or from one of the ahadis, on some event relating to the prophets life, followed by poetry in Persian by the leading mystical poets of the language. In the subcontinent, the kalam incorporated the local languages; mostly what is now called Urdu, or the various dialects that went into the making of Urdu as well as the regional languages. In the Punjab the poetry of the Punjabi Sufi poets became the patent and the most potent verses to be rendered.

Munshi Raziuddin took great pain to stay faithful to the traditional sequence of qawwali. Some of the standard numbers of the repertoire of qawwali he sang in the combination of the primal chant and the heavy rhythm of the drum. Similarly at the barsi the sons too followed the same trail and rendered some of the numbers that are standard fare of the qawwali -- and were sung well by this group, like Hydarium mastum qalandurum ke banda e bo Ali hastum, peshwae tamam rindanum, the famous rubai of Boo Ali Qalandar, Mun kun tu maula, a hadis set to composition by Amir Khusro, chashme maste ajebe, zulf taraza ajabe, tori surat ke bulhari Nijam, nami danam che manzil bood, chaap tilak sub cheen li, mujh se naina milaike, meray banay ki baat, mein to pee key paas gaee, hairee main to prem dewani, chaitti boni vey babiba, muflisanem amada dar kue too, ghar nari gunwari, sun rey peer rangrez ke, arey sakhi kaisey kahoon, subhana zil mulke, har cheese musabab e sabab sey mango and rung.