For ‘love and peace,’ Pakistani Sufi music band performs in Cairo

Cairo: Badar and Bahadur Ali Khan, two brothers and singers from Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore, said they had brought “a message of love and peace” during their performance of Sufi Islamic devotional music and poetry, called Qawaali, on Tuesday evening at the Samaa International Festival for Religious Choir and Music in Cairo.

More than 20 countries from the Arab world, Asia, Africa and Europe are taking part in the festival, bringing together a variety of cultures and religions. The Qawwals from Pakistan are seasoned performers, and have sung Sufi poetry alongside their four-member band all over the world, including in Japan, Oman and Iran.

Dressed in their traditional silk suits and waistcoats, the singers sat crossed-legged on the floor of the stage during the performance, with their traditional harmoniums and drums, called tablas, before them. This is their third visit to Egypt.
“A lot of people in Egypt enjoy Sufi music,” a statement from the band said, praising the heritage of Egypt and the kindness of its people.
“Thank you for the love,” the statement said.

The festival, the 12th edition of its kind, runs until Sept. 26. It is being held under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture in collaboration with the ministries of foreign affairs, tourism and antiquities and Cairo governorate and in coordination with the Hewar Institution for Peoples Arts and Cultures. 
On Wednesday, a celebration marking a meeting point of religions will be held at the Religions Complex in Old Cairo under the theme “Here, We Pray Together.”