Sufi Kathak at Global Fusion...where boundaries blur and only music and dance remains...sans boundaries

Article on Sufi Kathak in TLF Magazine, India

DANCER DIVINE

Dear Manjariji,

I have written this poem to you on a sudden inspiration….

…I hope you will like the poem.

With warm regards,

Jayasree Bahl

Jabahl2001@yahoo.co.in

DANCER DIVINE

A filmy veil across your face

Of fatigue there’s ne’er a trace

Dancer divine, your artistry flows

From an inner sanctum where only God goes

You twirl, you whirl like an autumn leaf

With a grace which words belies

Your every movement of perfect hue

Like a dewdrop on a rose freshly lies

Sorrow and joy flit across your visage

As clouds in a windswept sky

Shadow and light in a desert mirage

Could be no more elusive if they tried

In darkness, in light you dance in abandon

Searching for the union divine

I watch mesmerized like a hypnotized one

Wishing this inspiration could be mine

My pen can no more do justice to you

Than words could your status elevate

For you, Manjariji, are an apsara divine

No human strength can your fervour abate

Enraptured by your excellence, I am transported

To a realm of the highest grace and skill

God lives in you, He draws you to Him

This I can see as I sit oh! So still

Baba Zaheen Shah Taji

Main hosh mein hun to tera hun, deewana hun to tera hun

Hun raaz agar to tera hun, afsana hun to tera hun

Tu meri kaif ki duniya hai, tu meri masti ka aalam

paimana hun to tera hun, maikhana hun to tera hun

 

  

- GHAZAL - BABA ZAHEEN SHAH TAAJI

 

An introduction to Manjari Chaturvedi, creator of Sufi Kathak dance

"I dance in surrender to Him, to His Glory, to His Love and to His world

there is an underlying lilting melody and strong rhythm in my dance,

which depicts separation and union, the fire of the eternal dance of moth...”

MANJARI CHATURVEDI is a leading exponent of the Indian classical dance form of Kathak and is acclaimed for being the creator and ONLY performing artist of Sufi Kathak. She has combined the mysticism of Sufi traditions with classical Indian dance to create a stunning new art form called Sufi Kathak. 

Thus, setting a historical step in the field of performing arts through the creation of a completely new artform, which remains original and yet follows the precedents of mystical traditions that are nearly 700 years old. 

In the last decade, Manjari has performed in more than 200 concerts all over the world including Europe (France, Germany, Portugal, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, U.K. & Ireland), the Middle East (Dubai, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Kuwait), South East Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka) and Central Asia (Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan) along with Australia and America.