SHIKARPUR, AN ERA LOST UN NOTICED

Dr. Agha Inamullah Khan

July 5, 2020

Shikarpur today is known for its Kulfi Faluda only & Mola Bux’s pickles, that too of low quality. Expelling Afghans has been anxiety for most of the nationalists of Sindh. But there were times when Afghans who migrated to Sindh, merged here in its language, culture and have served Sindhi culture to a great a deal and their ashes are buried in its soil fertilizing wild vegetation’s.

The first society Dharampukars Amateurs Society to promote Drama & Theater was established by notables like Thakurdas Nagrani a session Judge, famous poet of those times & musician Durrani Ghulam Nabi Agha Sufi, Maharaj Tejbhandas and others at Shikarpur, in 1897. I feel blessed to have some of the collection of old hand written letters  to be most valuable treasure in contemporary era of information technology, quantum computing devices & artificial intelligence, where reality pretty soon might seem a myth only. Annexed here is one such letter shared by Agha Abdullah Jan (alias Zulfi Khan), Agha Sufi’s grandson, written by Mr. Gadadhar Sharma; a renowned dramatist & Cine artist, dated June 27, 1938, from Bombay to Agha Sufi; suggesting to arrange a theater play in a month or so and informing him about airing one of Agha Sufi’s written song, “Kanga deenjae Preen khy Peghaam weenday weenday”, on radio on July 2^nd that year. Few months later Agha Sufi left for his heavenly abode. I appreciate Zulfi Khan’s effort to preserve this precious 82 years old letter. I wish Shikarpur had a museum, where we could preserve its heritage for its future generations. That very song was filmed for the popular Sindhi movie, “Abana” filmed on Shikarpur in 1958, around 20 years after his death. Not many of you are aware of this fact. Are you!!

Unlike today's busiest Shikarpur with cattle marching on roads; streets soaring with donkey carts, and mostly illiterate population migrated from its rural peripheries; it used to have mobile libraries. Books were driven on carts around the town, borrowed by pedestrians even and returned, and this reflects the scholarly capacities of populace of those times residing in Shikarpur. A book on Sociology in Sindhi language was written by Professor Shahwairan of Bombay University who belonged to Shikarpur.

Shikarpur had music schools, where mostly Hindu girls learnt dancing. Shikarpur was the first town to have an old age house. Shikarpuries were the innovators of financial instrument “Hundi”, operationalized later in various parts of the world. The very first Eye hospital of sub-continent was established in Shikarpur back in 1893, called Sir Henry Holland Eye Hospital. 

Agha Sufi's ancestors like Sufi Muhammad of today were also people who descended from mountains, but Agha Sufi had more to do with poetry, romance and musical instruments singing songs of eternal love, peace and brotherhood than Sufi Muhammad's rocket propelling grenades and war machines seeding hatred, learned from madrassas financed by foreigners whose agents, holy clerks misguided them quoting from script written at the hands of devil in the name of Islam. Even prophet during his life time warned of such holy men who even know Quran by heart, but could mislead you, such people were called Khwarjis.

Ghulam Nabi Agha Sufi was born in Shikarpur in 1889. He received his primary education in Shikarpur and for secondary grades went to Sindh Madrastul Islam in Karachi, then completed his specialization in homeopathy. He also remained attached to education department of Khairpur state and worked with them. Wrote many books on poetry, script writing, history of art, language and grammar, music, and his best publication was on life and Sufi poetry of Sachal Sarmast, the great Saint of Sindh. He translated many verses from Koran, in poetic dialect. With the magic of his tunes on harmonium and his humble voice, he treated children affected with chickenpox. Many of his songs to this day are played on All India Radio. He had space for people from all faith and could not imagine violence unlike today's Mullah's version. After initial religious lessons from Agha Hassan Jan Sarhandi he soon joined the company of famous saint Ali Muhammad Luqmani, and lastly came to Daraza town in the circle of Sufi followers of Sachal Sarmast. Sakhi Qabool Muhammad the second in the progeny of Saint Sachal was fond of his music and Agha Sufi was one of his favorite and noble followers. He used to call him, his Nanak, as Joseph (Yousuf) Nanak was favorite of followers of Sachal Sarmast. Hence the room allotted to Joseph (Yousuf) Nanak was then gifted to Agha Sufi, for as long as he lived. Agha spent his remaining years in the company of yogis and Sufi singers, lost in the eternity of mysticism. His message was love and love only. His popular written Bhajan sang by him in sweet simple voice,'Thaar maata thaar'(Cool it mother goddess cool) is still played on All India Radio. Agha Sufi's ashes were laid to rest in his ancestral graveyard in the historical city of Shikarpur, in 1938. Agha Sufi's nephew Agha Gull was a research scientist and a Lecturer from September 1983 to August 1987 in Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and then from September 1987 to August 1989 at Yale University and since August 1989 to this date he is teaching as Professor of Computer Science in University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States of America.                                                        

You know they say," if the label shows your intent; wear it", and if history makes one feel proud, please allow me to introduce my link. Agha Sufi's sister was my grandmother, who carried on his work of medicine and treated thousands of poor for free, serving the ultimate goal of humanity. I must have his genes shared in my otherwise naughty DNA, and I am proud of that. God bless his soul.

A Sufi is not slave to greed, pomp and show, but his soul finds that divine light and fly with wings of wisdom bestowed by the divine, suppressing his Ego, with ultimate desire to be slave to eternal love of Almighty and all His creations.

Ghulam Nabi Agha Sufi (1889-1938)