Latest news with #Adishakti
Indian Express
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Aditya Roy Kapur, Sara Ali Khan saw me freaking out on day 1 of Metro In Dino, recalls Ali Fazal: ‘The film is inside Anurag Basu's head, no one knows what's happening'
Anurag Basu is all set to return with the follow up to his 2007 romance anthology Life… in a Metro, Metro In Dino, slated to release in cinemas on July 4. It consists of almost an entirely new cast, including Aditya Roy Kapur, Sara Ali Khan, and Ali Fazal. Fazal recently revealed he initially struggled with Basu's style of filmmaking. 'Basu sir has a very interesting way. The whole film is inside his head. So nobody knows what's happening. And that's another exhilarating experience because you don't know what's coming,' said Fazal, adding, 'I remember Adi (Kapur), Sara and all these guy are on set the first day, and they can see me freaking out! Kya karein, scene nahi hai (What to do, there's no scene paper). But that's how he works.' In the interview with Galatta Plus, Fazal explained further, 'The scene paper comes in very last minute. Of course, there's a whole script, and he's got the whole thing down.' But he also pointed out that nobody could access the full script because Basu's approach to Metro In Dino is quite different from its first part. 'This particular construction of Metro is pretty different. And I think for that very reason, he didn't want us to read the script. It really helped! When the film is out, I'd love to talk about it. It's surprising that even in a very light, romantic film, he's managed to bring his swing. And I enjoy that,' added Fazal. He claimed that collaborating with Basu can be both unsettling and rewarding. 'He pushes you! He'll throw in a word or an emotion, and just give me a little different perspective. Most times, when he gets it, he doesn't. That's another problem directors don't realize — Mani (Ratnam) sir, Basu, they are lovely directors, but actors love it when the director goes, 'Good!' But there's nothing. He just says, 'Next shot,'' said Fazal. Fazal will be next seen in his debut Tamil film, Mani Ratnam's crime thriller Thug Life, in which he stars alongside Kamal Haasan, Simbu, Trisha, and Nasser among others. The film is slated to release in cinemas next Thursday on June 5. Going back to Metro In Dino, Fazal revealed it's a musical so Basu works around that. Also Read — Ali Fazal on Mirzapur The Film: 'It is like going back to the start…' 'He'll give you a rhythm, literally a rhythm, sometimes as a beat! For me, that's like nectar because then I can map everything. We don't use beats or rhythm much. That's the way I learnt. I never got to learn acting. Hence, Adishakti. It's the one place where I managed to learn anything. Which is why I keep going back there,' said Fazal, referring to Adishakti Theatre Arts, a laboratory for theatre art research based in Tamil Nadu.
The Hindu
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Soulful music to connect with the Sufism core
As the torchbearers of the classical Qawwali legacy bequeathed by Amir Khusro, the 13th century Sufi poet-musician, the Warsi Brothers embellished the finale of Adishakti's 11th Remembering Veenapani Festival, with a concert for the ages as they rendered several gems from their repertoire. For close to two hours, the Hyderabad-based duo of Naseer and Nazeer Ahmed Khan Warsi, never looking like they were playing for the first time in these parts. Accompanied by a large ensemble of instrumentalists and backing vocalists, the Qawwals of the Delhi gharana quickly struck a rapport with the audience — each appeared to pick cues of the other, like old friends at a reunion. Mentored in Sufi music by their grandfather, Padma Shri Aziz Ahmad Khan Warsi, these Sangeet Natak Akademi awardees are custodians of the Khayali gharana of Delhi, and sustain an unbroken lineage as descendants of disciples trained by Amir Khusro, mystic poet and founder of traditional Qawwali, inventor of the sitar and creator of the tarana. Divya Bhatia, curator of the Jodhpur RIFF while presenting the brothers, noted that the Delhi gharana, that has curated over centuries a gayaki that blends poetry, music, and mysticism, is the only musical lineage to accept Qawwali (derived from the Qual, or prophet utterance), as a legitimate art form. The duo opened with 'Aley Nabi', a Qawwali-na'at by Amir Khusro, and soon the audience has sprung into the act, synchronising their hand-clapping with the rhythm kept by the accompanists. Whether it was the exhilaratingly-paced 'Meri Piya Ghar Aaya' (a kalam by the Sufi saint Bulleh Shah) or the gently flowing melody of 'Sanson Ki Mala Pe Simron Mein' (On the rosary of breath), the brothers essayed variations of particular phrases, or repeated lines to emphasise the spiritual essence or depth of emotion, ranging from unbridled joy and infinite grace to the sense of fulfilment, in associating with the divine. As the pace of the 'radif' (refrain) of 'Allah Ho Allah Ho' spirals, the senior Warsi, Naseer Ahmed Khan, raises his left index finger and lets out a cry from the depths of his soul, eliciting instant appreciation from the audience. And, lest the melody distract from the import of the lyrics in kalams like 'Yeh jo halka halka suroor hai' (that speaks of intoxication of love and desire, and in the same breath implores forgivance), the senior Warsi, would pause to restate a line, resort to gesticulations and engage in a back-and-forth with the audience, to add emphasis to the lofty idea. The concert also featured infectious Qawwalis such as 'Kaali Kaali Zulfon' and 'Ye Shan Tumhari Hai Aaqa'. As the ensemble of support singers, sometimes interjecting a stream of sargam, added a hymnal aura and depth to the renditions, they were joined by a hundred voices from the crowd who formed a mass choir. One will never figure out how the enthusiasts managed to bend the laws of physics, with an already over-saturated venue turned into a dance floor, as the last couple of rollicking Qawwalis are rolled out. By now, a human wall has entirely blocked the view of the stage. Amid the wild cheers and thundering applause, one barely hears Adishakti's Artistic Director Vinay Kumar offer the customary courtesies, and remarking how the concert perfectly reflected Veenapani Chawla's vision of a vibrant community art space. The finale, in a sense, also closed the loop of the 11th edition of the free-entry festival, that had begun with an evening of Sufi music by the protegee of the Warsi Brothers, Smita Bellur, in collaboration with SAZ, a trio of Rajasthani folk musicians.
