Across centuries of Indian devotional thought, love has been the most potent metaphor for the human search for the divine. Poets of the Sufi and Bhakti traditions articulated longing, surrender, ecstasy, and union in verses that dissolve the boundaries between the sacred and the personal.

These verses have long been intertwined with music. Published anthologies, manuscripts, and pothis often prescribe specific raags for individual poems, and in many instances, even indicate song forms such as jhoolna or hori. Aalam-e-Ishq brings to you a curated exploration of this vast poetic and musical inheritance. Drawing on their deep grounding in Hindustani music and an abiding engagement with textual traditions, they present a selection of compositions illustrating different perspectives on ishq or love, including timeless verses such as Hazrat Amir Khusrau’s Jab yaar dekha nain bhar, dil ki gayi chinta utar, and Abdul Hadi ‘Kavish’’s Ghazab dhaa gayo tore naina Murari, among others.

Join us for an evening that celebrates love in its many shades brought to life through the enduring dialogue of Sufi-Bhakti poetry and Hindustani music.