Delhiites witness a magical evening on the first day of Ghazal Festival

The ‘Ghazal Festival’, organised by Sahitya Kala Parishad, the Delhi Government’s art and culture department, which promotes various Indian arts and cultures, received an enormous turnout on the opening day of the event. The two-day event will run through today in the LTG Auditorium, Copernicus Marg, Mandi House.

On the first day, the first performance was by versatile artist Suman Devgan. Her ensemble featured ‘Halke halke suro main Ghazal chediye’ composed by Raza Amrohvi, ‘Maan mausam ka kaha’ by Bashir Badr, ‘Dil to kehta hai ke shikva kijiye’ by Akhter, ‘Shehre zindagi tanha’ from Rifat Sarosh’s collection and ‘Manzilon se begana’ by Ghulam Rabbani Taban. Devgan’s mellifluous, sonorous voice gave these poems a beautiful touch.

The evening continued with another soul-touching presentation by Poonam Chauhan. She sang a selection of lovely ghazals beginning with Iqbal Aleem’s ‘Kuchh aise zakhm bhi darparda’, Parveen Shakir’s ‘Ik hunar tha kamaal tha kya tha’, Mirza Ghalib’s ‘Ye hum jo hijr mein’ and many more.

Sharing her views, Dr Monica Priyadarshini, secretary of Sahitya Kala Parishad, said, “We’re striving to organise all the festivals that would introduce the Delhiites to all the cultural intricacies of our Indian heritage. With all these cultural events, we bring together both young and established performers. ‘Ghazal Festival’ is one such small attempt to make ghazal fans’ evenings more soothing and lyrical. Ghazal is an ancient genre of poetry that beautifully depicts spirituality and romance. This festival is sure to bring serenity to one’s mind.”