Haryana: A small village in Haryana has composed songs on the Mahabharat - penned not by the Hindu saint Ved Vyas - but by poet Sadullah Khan in the 18th century.
The villagers in the evenings gather around a lantern to listen to Ayub Khan who sings these compositions.
Khan is from Manikhera in the Muslim dominated Mewat region of Haryana. He is a Mirasi and belongs to the Meo community.
Mirasis are a group of Muslim singers who sing Pandun Ke Kara or the Meo Muslim version of the Mahabharat. They trace their origin to Hindu gods and say that their conversion to Islam was through Sufi saints.
"We are Muslims. We have no hesitation in singing Hindu epics. We might belong to a different religion but the same blood flows through our veins and God is one and the same for everyone," Khan said.
The traditional art of the Mirasis has not been able to keep pace with the modern times and now they sing in election campaigns and state functions.
Their songs are also available on audio cassettes. While the steady sale of these cassettes indicates their popularity, Khan says he is not given his due share and sees himself more as a labourer than as an artist.
"In our minds we might be kings, in reality we are nothing. Our children don't want to take up our profession. They consider it insulting. Our community just does not have the kind of impact it used to have once upon a time," Khan said.
This year the Meo Mirasis are performing the Mahabharat in Nautki, a Muslim-dominated village.
Hindu or Muslim, or should one say Hindu and Muslim, these unique singers and their songs run the risk of fading away if recognition does not come their way.
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