''Chhaap Tilak Sab Chheeni'', is a

Ghazal The ''ghazal'' ( ar, غَزَل, bn, গজল, Hindi-Urdu: /, fa, غزل, az, qəzəl, tr, gazel, tm, gazal, uz, gʻazal, gu, ગઝલ) is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry. A ghazal may be understood as a ...

written and composed by

Amir Khusro Abu'l Hasan Yamīn ud-Dīn Khusrau (1253–1325 AD), better known as Amīr Khusrau was an Indo-Persian Sufi singer, musician, poet and scholar who lived under the Delhi Sultanate. He is an iconic figure in the cultural history of the Indian s ...

, a 14th-century Sufi mystic, in popular Western Indian language

Braj Bhasha The Braj language, ''Braj Bhasha'', also known as Vraj Bhasha or Vrij Bhasha or Braj Bhāṣā or Braji or Brij Bhasha or Braj Boli, is a Western Hindi language. Along with Awadhi (a variety of Eastern Hindi), it was one of the two predominant ...

. Due to the resonance of its melody and mystical lyrics, it is frequently heard in

Qawwali Qawwali (Punjabi: (Shahmukhi), (Gurmukhi); Urdu: (Nasta'liq); Hindi: क़व्वाली (Devanagari); Bengali: কাওয়ালি ( Bengali)) is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing, originating from the Indian subcontine ...

concerts across Indian Subcontinent. Chaapp Tilak Sab Chheeni is considered as Amir Khusru‘s most known Kalam which is basically a penned version of his imagination of devotion and the joy of oneness with the eternal one. This poetry is an epic example where an inherent middle eastern art form gets entangled with the Indic philology, custom and art a unique twist between the two artforms. This kind of devotion is rarely seen in Islamic ghazals and qawwalis preceding it. This poetry is a great example of the role both cultures played to create this Ghazal and Qawwali which has a unique essence combining both Indic and Islamic culture which inherently created a new unique art form which contributed to the early beginnings of the

Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb ''Ganga–Jamuni Tehzeeb'' (Hindustani for ''Ganges–Yamuna Culture''), also spelled as ''Ganga-Jamni Tehzeeb'' or just Hindustani Tehzeeb, is the high culture that arose in the Yamuna-Gangetic plains of northern India, the Hindustan region, ...

culture to be developed. The theme of the composition, being the absolute power of a mere glance from the Divine, is a central theme in sufi mystic literature. This

poem Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings ...

has been sung in Qawwali format by notable Pakistani and Indian Qawwals, including Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan,

Naheed Akhtar Naheed Akhtar (also spelled Nahid Akhtar) is a Pakistani playback singer. She is tagged as the "''Nightingale of Pakistan''". She was the top Lollywood playback singer during the second half of 70s and 80s. She won 3 Nigar Awards and a Pride ...

, Mehnaz Begum,

Abida Parveen Abida Parveen ( Urdu, sd, ; born 20 February 1954) is a Pakistani singer, composer and musician of Sufi music. She is also a painter and entrepreneur. Parveen is one of the highest paid singers in Pakistan. Her singing and music has earned ...

Sabri Brothers The Sabri Brothers (Punjabi, ) were a musical band from Pakistan who were performers of Sufi qawwali music and were closely connected to the Chishti Order. They are considered as one of the greatest Sufi qawwali singers of all times. The Sab ...

Iqbal Hussain Khan Bandanawazi Iqbal Hussain Khan Bandanawazi ( ur, ٱستاد اقبال حسن قان بنره نواذى; 1942-2010) was a Sufi qawwal of Hyderabad India. He had worked as a top artist in All India Radio Akashwani for many years. His Qawwali group is known ...

, Farid Ayaz & Abu Muhammad Qawwal, Ustad Jafar Hussain Khan,

Ustad Vilayat Khan Ustad Vilayat Khan (28 August 1928 – 13 March 2004) was an Indian classical sitar player.Ustad Shujaat Khan,

Zila Khan Zila Khan is an Indian Sufi singer and actor. She sings classical and semi-classical musical forms and performs in the tradition of Imdadkhani gharana. She has acted in Bajirao Mastani a film by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and also actively acts in t ...

Hadiqa Kiani Hadiqa Kiani (in Punjabi and ur, ) is a Pakistani singer, Songwriter, Guitarist, composer, actress, and philanthropist. She has received numerous local and international awards and also has performed at the Royal Albert Hall and The Kennedy ...

, Smita Bellur,

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her con ...

Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in th ...

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (Punjabi, ; born 9 December 1974) is a Pakistani Singer, primarily of Qawwali, a form of Sufi devotional music. Khan is one of the biggest and highest paid singers in Pakistan. He is the nephew of Nusrat Fateh Ali Kha ...

Kailash Kher Kailash Kher (born 7 July 1973) is an Indian music composer and singer. He sings songs with a music style influenced by Indian folk music and Sufi music. He was inspired by the classical musicians' Pandit Kumar Gandharva, Pandit Hridayna ...

and Kavita Seth.

Text and translation

Popular culture

The 1978

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

film '' Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki'' featured a version by

and

. Another popular version, by

and

, appeared on the Pakistani musical variety show Coke Studio. Other Indian films which include the ghazal include ''

Saat Uchakkey ''Saat Uchakkey'' () is a 2016 Indian comedy film directed and written by Sanjeev Sharma, starring an ensemble cast of Manoj Bajpayee, Kay Kay Menon, Annu Kapoor, Vijay Raaz, Aditi Sharma, Jatin Sarna and Nitin Bhasin. It was released on 14 Oc ...

'' (2016) where it is sung by

Keerthi Sagathia Keerthi Sagathia (born 14 September 1979, in Mumbai) is a musician and singer. Keerthi is the son of famous Gujarati folk singer Karsan Sagathiya. In 2005 he was a contestant for Sony TV reality show '' Fame Gurukul''. He was a celebrity guest ...

(composed by Bapi–Tutul), ''

Unpaused ''Unpaused'' is an Indian Hindi-language anthology film consisting of five short segments directed by Raj & DK, Nitya Mehra, Nikkhil Advani, Tannishtha Chatterjee and Avinash Arun. With an ensemble cast, the stories revolved around lives of peo ...

'' (2020) - composed by Shishir A Samant and sung by Samant and Sunil Kamath. The song has maintained its popularity over the years, being regularly heard on television talent shows in India and Pakistan, and on social media as well.

References

{{Reflist 14th-century poems 14th-century songs Sufi songs Sufi music Indian songs Qawwali songs Ghazal songs Islamic music