Ghulam Farid Sabri

"Shahenshah-e-Qawwali" Ghulam Farid Sabri Pride of Performance
Background information
Born	1930 Kalyana, Punjab, British India
Died	5 April 1994(1994-04-05) (aged 63–64) Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Genres	Qawwali, Ghazal, Sufi music
Instrument(s)	Vocals, harmonium
Years active	1946–1994
Title	Hazrat Aalam Shah Warsi
Awards	Pride of Performance in 1978

Ghulam Farid Sabri (1930 – 5 April 1994) was a qawwali singer and member of the Sabri Brothers, a qawwali group in Pakistan in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The Sabri Brothers received the Pride of Performance award by the President of Pakistan in 1978.^[1] Sabri was also a Sufi mystic connected to the Chishti Order.

Early life

Ghulam Farid Sabri was born in Kalyana, a village in the district of

Ghulam Farid Sabri initially learnt music from his father and many other musical teachers (Ustad) in Gwalior. Later, he and his younger brothers Maqbool Ahmed Sabri and Kamaal Ahmed Sabri furthered their knowledge of music under Ustad Fatehdin Khan, Ustad Ramzan Khan, Ustad Kallan Khan, Ustad Latafat Hussein Khan Rampuri, and their spiritual master Hazrat Hairat Ali Shah Warsi.

Migration to Pakistan

Following the independence of Pakistan in 1947, his family was uprooted from their native town and transported to a refugee camp in Karachi, Pakistan. Conditions in the camp were woeful, food was scarce and expensive, and the rewards for hard work were barely enough to sustain life. Malnutrition was rife and brought with it f tuberculosis and dysentery. Sabri found employment carrying bundles of bricks for the government house building or breaking rocks to build roads. At night, almost single-handedly, he built his own brick house to shelter his family. Eventually, he became ill. Worn out, he was told by a physician that due to the condition of his lungs, he would never again have the strength to sing. In despair, he went to his father for advice and the advice he was given was uncompromisingly tough. Every night for the next two years, he would have to sit in the middle of the camp for four to five hours making zikr. All those days he bore the scars of beatings with wood sticks and stones thrown by his tired, sleepless neighbours and brawls he was in, when they were determined to stop him; but he would not be deterred and, as time went by, his lungs grew stronger and his magnificent voice was formed. Soon, Sabri started to mix with a small group of people who appreciated qawwali.

Career

Ghulam Farid Sabri's first public performance was at the annual

Ghulam Farid Sabri lived in the heavily congested and overpopulated Pakistani suburb of Liaquatabad, Karachi. At night, he used to lay on his bed listening to the sounds of surrounding lanes and alleyways. His sleep was minimal and his night was filled with constant zikr, made using his 1000-bead tasbih. He wore this tasbih around his neck during recordings and live performances.

Ghulam Farid Sabri initiated his sons into classical music at a young age. One of his younger sons, Amjad Farid Sabri, once recalled: "The hardest part was being awakened at 4:00 AM. Most riyaz is done in Raag Bhairon and this is an early morning raag. My mother would urge our father to let us sleep but he would still wake us up. Even if we had slept after midnight, he would get us out of bed, instruct us to make wuzu, perform tahajjud prayers, and then take out the baja. And he was correct in doing so because if a raag is rendered at the correct time, the performer himself enjoys it to the fullest".

Death

The night before he died, Ghulam Farid Sabri and the Sabri Brothers were about to tour Germany later that week. His appearances in Britain and the United States set a pattern and began to build an audience for what has now come to be known as world music.^[2] Ghulam Farid Sabri died on 5 April 1994 in Liaquatabad, Karachi following a massive heart attack. He died en route to a hospital and beside him was his beloved younger brother, Maqbool. His funeral was attended by approximately 40,000 mourners. He was buried at Paposh Qabristan, in nearby Nazimabad. His modest white grave is situated near his father's grave. His legacy was carried on by his younger brothers Maqbool Ahmed Sabri, Mehmood Ghaznavi Sabri, and Kamal Ahmed Sabri, who performed as the leading and senior members of the Sabri Brothers after his death. Later, Sabri's son Amjad Sabri also helped carry on his legacy and the qawwali tradition while other students and relatives also inherit his legacy by performing qawwali.

On 21 September 2011, his younger brother Maqbool Ahmed Sabri died due to cardiac arrest and was buried near his grave.

On 22 June 2016, during Ramadan, his son Amjad Sabri was shot dead in Karachi, and was buried near his grave.

On 3 October 2018, his son Azmat Farid Sabri died.

On 27 May 2020, his wife Asghari Begum died.^[3]

On 21 June 2021, his youngest brother Mehmood Ghaznavi Sabri died in Karachi and was buried inside their mother's grave, making it now a double-storey grave which is located nearby the graves of Ghulam Farid Sabri, Maqbool Ahmed Sabri, and Amjad Sabri.

Qawwalis featured in films

Several of their qawwalis were featured in films:

• "Mera Koi Nahi Hai Tere Siwa" appeared in the 1965 Pakistani film Ishq-e-Habib
• "Mohabbat Karne Walo Hum Mohabbat Iss Ko Kehte Hai" in the 1970 Pakistani film Chand Suraj
• "Aaye Hai Tere Dar Pe Toh Kuch Le Ke Jayen Ge" in the 1972 Pakistani film Ilzam
• "Baba Farid Sarkar" in the 1974 Pakistani Punjabi film Sasta Khoon Mehenga Paani
• "Bhar Do Jholi Meri Ya Muhammad" in the 1975 Pakistani film
  Bin Badal Barsaat
• "Teri Nazr-e-Karam" in the 1976 Pakistani film Sachaii
• "Mamoor Ho Raha Hai" in the 1977 Pakistani film Dayar-e-Paighambran
• "Aftab E Risalat" in the 1979 Indian Hindi film Sultan-e-Hind Khwaja Garib Nawaz (RA)
• "Tajdar-e-Haram" in the 1982 Pakistani film Sahaaray

Awards and recognition

• Pride of Performance (Tamgha E Husn E Kaarkardagi) Award by the President of Pakistan in 1978 to the whole Sabri Brothers group.^[4]
• Spirit of Detroit Award by the federal government of the United States to both Ghulam and Maqbool Sabri in 1981.^[4]
• Khusro Rang to both Ghulam and Maqbool Sabri by the Raag Rang Society of India in 1980.^[4]
• Bulbul E Pak O Hind by the Shrine of Nizamuddin Auliya to Ghulam and Maqbool Sabri in 1977.^[4]
• Charles de Gaulle Award by Charles de Gaulle to Ghulam and Maqbool Sabri in 1983.^[4]
• A doctorate degree was awarded to the Sabri Brothers as an honor for their hit record Shikwa Jawab E Shikwa (Of Allama Iqbal) by the University of Oxford.

References