Sufi music is dead, will not come back: Singer Javed Ali

The popular singer who has given Sufi hits such as Jashn-e-Bahara and Kun Faya Kun, says the trend of Sufi music is dead.

Different genres of music tend to come and go out of style in Bollywood. For instance, remixes and dance tracks such as ‘Kar gayi chull’ (Kapoor & Sons) and ‘Kala chashma’ (Baar Baar Dekho) have been chartbusters recently. However, there was a time when soulful Sufi tracks dominated the music scene.

Singer Javed Ali says the trend of Sufi music has died and may not return as dance music has taken over.

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Singer Javed Ali , who has delivered hits such as ‘Kun faya kun’ (Rockstar; 2011) and Arziyan (Delhi 6; 2009), says Sufi music “won’t come back”. “That’s because, every genre has its phase. Dance numbers continue to be popular and I believe soulful and romantic tracks, too, will never go out of trend,” he says.

Ali doesn’t mind that actors featured in songs gain more popularity than the playback singers. “It doesn’t bother me,” says Ali, adding, “It’s a fact that actors gain more popularity. But, films are made for stars and not for singers. When it comes to the music, the composers are concerned about who has sung the song. The common man is the one concerned about which actor is featured in the song.” He adds that the main concern for artistes is to get more offers.

“There are so many singers today. The main goal for them is to sing. They can earn money by doing live shows. Today, getting a project is a big deal. We can’t fight for money. If we do, composers will bring in new singers to replace us,” he says.