3rd edition of The Sacred Amritsar fest opens

Eminent artistes performed at the third edition of the two-day The Sacred Amritsar festival in sync with the harmony of the holy city. The opening night saw writer, poet and composer Priya Malik touching heartstrings with her “Ishq hai, ishq hai, ishq hai”, a piece that celebrates love‘s longing just like Amrita Pritam’s “Main tainu pher milangi”. The night concluded with a compelling performance by Rehmat-e-Nusrat, a self-trained qawwali group from the Kumaon hills inspired by Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

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Taking Amritsarians back into a time when Punjab’s music was a beautiful mix of Hindustani classical and folk tunes, morning concerts by sixth generation Banaras Gharana vocalist Swaransh Mishra accompanied by tabla maestro Pandit Abhishek Mishra and eminent classical vocalist Kalapani Komkali, daughter of legendary Kumar Gandharva, was a celebration of musical heritage.

While Kalapani’s performance was a tribute to her father and guru, she performed two ‘pads’ composed by him that she said her father rarely performed. Inspired by Guru Nanak’s ‘bani’ and Bhagat Namdev’s description of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, both introduced the audience to the connection Gandharva’s music had with this part of the world.

During the day, heritage trails and discussion with Navtej Sarna and Navdeep Suri at the Partition Museum centered on the Partition and its related stories, evoking reactions from those who attended.

The evening concerts at the historic Gobindgarh Fort had three musical presentations — Hazrat Amir Khusro Project by Abhijit Pohankar; a set on Amrita, Sahir and Imroz by storyteller Laksh Maheshwari, and Parampara: Rajasthani Folk Music by Padma Shri Anwar Khan Manganiyar.

Sanjay K Roy, Managing Director, Teamwork Arts, while speaking on the third successive year of the festival in Amritsar said, “Sacred Amritsar Festival honours the deep spiritual connection with Amritsar, a city rich in history and heritage.” Namita Gautam, director of Sleepwell and patron, said this festival reflected our dedication towards nurturing spiritual connections through art sand heritage.