I feel blessed people call me a scholar

The Sufi maestro and a doctorate in Sufi music, Dr. Satinder Sartaj talks about music and Sufism. Present in Delhi for an event, Satinder was humble and open-heartedly shared his viewpoint about different aspects of life. Sipping on a cup of black tea with honey, the poet-composer-singer-actor, in one word, the multi talented maestro says, "I feel blessed that people call me a scholar at such an age."

He is known for his knowledge in Sufism and Sufi  music culture. But when asked about what role does Sufism play in a layman's life. He composed himself and answered, "People who are good at heart really don't realise that they leading a life of a Sufi. The the simplest code of Sufism0 is that wherever there is purity and sanctity where there is an urge to live for others, Sufism is present there. It is not about any religion or ethnicity. It is an art of living. The practice has been influenced by a lot of religion and culture. It has taken the art of dance from someone, the art of singing from some other and ultimately it formed such a way of life leading which is praised by everyone irrespective of their cast, creed, religion or any other influential factor as such. There are Sufi singers in Hindu community, Sikh community and Islam has of course given birth to Sufism. Now, the Christians have even started taking up Sufi music. So no one can say that this kind of music or this kind of art is restricted for anyone."

Satinder has performed music all around the world. He has been to Australia, United Kingdom and the States as well. He is a person who can said to have both seen the western and the eastern culture. What he feels about western music affecting the popularity of classical music is, "It is quite obvious that western impact is most seen in our country. Jitne Indian log angrez hain, utne to angrez bhi angrez nahi hain… Hain na? But this is bound to happen. Opposites attract. That's the saying. Right? If you ever go to Mcleodganj you'll see foreigners everywhere. They come here to findsomething new and the same happens with us as well. This is a kind of dilemma in everyone's life. There is nothing wrong with it. This is the basic nature of human tendency. Whatever you don't have , you crave for that. You can't get rid of this, until you're enlightened. But, as we say that due to western music classical has been sidelined, we should always remember the way that the classical musicians have been internationally acclaimed, that is due to western acknowledgement only.  Whenever they wanted to collaborate with in any fusion concert they think of the classical musicians. Now people around the world come across Hindustani classical every now and then. That is the reason people in Los Angeles know about Sitar,  Sarangi or Tanpura."

For a lot of people Sufi is equivalent to classical. But he differs, "Sufi  music is not classical music.There is a huge confusion among people. It will be contradictory, but still I'll say it. My doctorate has been on Sufi music. The first topic I had to research on poetry and then on music. When I conducted a survey on Sufi music, I didn't get much of classical essence as much I got of folk. There are songs which you can compose on Ragas, but they are specifically inspired by folk lore. It is better to play daf, iktara, chimta, tumba with these songs rather than playing tanpura or tabla. So, for me Sufi music is closer to folk than classical.

The music is more effective if it is  imple.  I do understand that most people have the impression that a little tough and complex song is Sufi and the easier songs are normal ones. But what I think is that Sufism rests in the lyrics or rather the poems. If you sing Baba Bulle Shah's composition in any form, that will be considered Sufi only. Whoever sings it, doesn't matter."

He is the favourite of a million. But he has his own favourite.  

"Arijit(Singh)… he is the finest vocalist; there's something divine and excellent about him. Some people are gifted. When hesings you forget about yourself and dwell in that divinity. I can't say that he sung Farida Khanum's ghazal better than her, but I can definitely say that he voiced it with ecstatic brilliance. Singing is something when you express the lyrics with your inner emotion. If you have a soulful voice along with that it becomes a masterpiece. That is something which Arijit possesses."

As he was in the capital, it was a must ask of what is the Favorite thing in Delhi for him. He quite swiftly answered, "I love the monuments in Delhi. The old monuments are kind of fascination and point of attraction. I like heritage building built between 14th to 16th centuries. Qutub Minar is a well known monument. But there are some really old yet gorgeous monuments in the heart of our nation. Those fascinate and awe me to the same level."

Social media has given the budding artist a new platform. But sometimes, the misuse of these platforms create nuisance about an art form. His opinion about this was, "I feel blessed that people call me a scholar at such an age. Whenever I talk about this topic, what I feel is that Social media, particularly Youtube, is a great platform for the budding artists or in this case budding singers. It is good thing that those who didn't have any hope that any company is going to record them or release their songs have now got a platform to voice their talent.  And social media has also given them name and fame as well. But, the harm that came along is that when a song becomes a hit, an intense pressure starts building upon him. Now he or she starts panicking about his next release. The key to success for any creative art form is that it should come casually, your soul should be in it. Aapka dil abhi jo chah raha hai aap wo hi gaao… If someone comes and tells you that: Aise nahi waise gaao… That won't do. So when the
pressure comes onto these social media artists, the soulful performance is out of question. Now, the song has the chance to succeed of only 20 percent. That too is because the singer was known for a giving a hit before. Hits on social media cannot decide one's success." According to him, "Success in life is when you meet someone; he or she gets the feel that this person is made for you are made for them only. Your face should be peaceful, no sign of stress on you and you should feel full with what you have achieved in life."

Talking about the what Bollywood offers to Regional music 'Sai' singer said, "If Bollywood hadn't picked up Punjabi music, then how would a Bengali, Rajasthani or a Guajrati come to know about Punjabi music. It is a huge acknowledgement to every regional music. We should always be grateful to Bollywood for giving us this nationwide recognition. If one thinks that this was our Khalees folk, what did they make out of it? Because, your Khaalees folk is famous in your state. They need to include some unique element in the folk form to make it palatable for the entire nation. Whenever there is modernisation to any art form it cannot be tagged wrong. It is just that ornamenting is never discouraged, but in the process ruining the inner beauty of the art form, that can never be appreciated."