Dama Dam Mast Qalandar

Dama Dam Mast Qalandar (transl. Every Breath for the Ecstasy of Qalandar)^[1] is a spiritual Sufi qawwali written in the honour of the most revered Sufi saint of Sindh, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (1177–1274) of Sehwan Sharif. The origins of the poem is unknown, since no recordings or written documents exist mentioning it prior to the 1950s. However, legends around the Shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan suggest that the original poem was initially written by the 13th-century Sufi poet Amir Khusrow, then further modified by Bulleh Shah in the 18th century. The poem includes a reference to the town of Sehwan, and the word "Lal" can refer to Lal Shahbaz Qalandar as a young man, his legendary ruby glow, or his red dress.^[2] Bulleh Shah gave an entirely different color to the qawwali, adding verses in praises of Shahbaz Qalandar and giving it a large tint of Sindhi culture. It also venerates Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad.

Contrary to popular legend, renowned Pakistani composer Ashiq Hussain only composed a dhamaal version of it. As Hussain himself put it, he was asked to compose the popular version at the request of Saghar Siddiqui, who only brought it to Hussain. Saghar Siddiqui's version is an edited version of the original poem.^[3] Hussain composed it initially for the 1956 Pakistani film Jabroo. Later in 1969, it was modified by Nazir Ali and sung by Noor Jehan in the Pakistani film Dillan Dey Soudey.

The qawalli is a popular traditional Sindhi Sufi Islamic folk song across the northern Indian subcontinent, especially Punjab and Sindh, as well as Iran.^[4] Various renditions of the song have been composed and performed by numerous composers and singers over the years. The Pakistani singers include Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Aziz Mian, Abida Parveen, Shazia Khushk, the Sabri Brothers, Reshma, Komal Rizvi, and Junoon. The song has also been performed by the Bangladeshi singer Runa Laila, and Indian artists like Hans Raj Hans, the Wadali brothers, Harshdeep Kaur, Nooran Sisters, Mika Singh (with Yo Yo Honey Singh; and solo in the 2013 film D-Day), Alisha Chinai (in the album Bombay Girl), Amit Kumar (in the 1978 film Nasbandi), Baba Sehgal and Alka Yagnik (in the 1994 film Hum Hain Bemisaal), Rekha Bhardwaj (in the 2013 film David), Rashi Salil Harmalkar (in the TV show Kullfi Kumarr Bajewala). Though various artists have tried to give it an improving touch yet the best is still by Noor Jehan, Abida Parveen and Shazia Khushk. The reason being the Dhamasl touch of this mystic poetry, as mostly people still dance passionately on the rhythm of the poetry to pay tribute to Sufi Saint Lal Shahbaz Qalandar and Imam Ali. The tune of the rhythm has to of a peculiar setup to make the Dhamaal in high spiritual ecstasy.

Popular modern renditions of the song include the melody composed by Pakistani music composer Master Ashiq Hussain. Originally called "Lal Meri Pat", the song was initially composed for the 1956 Pakistani film Jabroo.^[5] It was sung by Inayat Hussain Bhatti, Fazal Hussain, and A.R. Bismil. Ashiq Hussain was reduced to poverty in later life, living in a slum at the Bazar-e-Hakiman in Lahore.^[5] When Hussain died in 2017, most Pakistanis were unaware that he was the original composer of the modern melody.^[6]

The most popular modern rendition of the song, which includes Ashiq Hussain's melody, was "Dama Dam Mast Qalandar" from the 1969 Pakistani film Dillan Dey Soudey, where it was modified by Nazir Ali and sung by Noor Jehan.^[7] It was then sung by other Pakistani singers like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Aziz Mian, Abida Parveen, Shazia Khushk, the Sabri Brothers, Reshma, Komal Rizvi, and Junoon. The song has also been performed by the Bangladeshi singer Runa Laila, and Indian artists like Hans Raj Hans, the Wadali brothers, Harshdeep Kaur, Nooran Sisters, and Mika Singh (with Yo Yo Honey Singh).

Pakistani musicians Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and M. Arshad composed a new song inspired by "Dam Mast Qalandar", with a different melody and arrangement. It was sung by Khan and released as "Dam Mast Mast" in his 1991 album Mast Qalander (Vol 14).^[8] Khan also performed the song for the 1992 Pakistani film Boxer. in both Punjabi and Urdu. His song is variously called "Dam Mast Qalandar Mast Mast", "Dam Mast Qalandar" or "Mast Mast". In 2016, British-Azeri singer Sami Yusuf performed a rendition of Khan's song in his album Barakah.

The Bollywood music director Viju Shah used Khan's version to produce the hit song "Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast" sung by Kavita Krishnamurthy and Udit Narayan for the Bollywood film Mohra (1994),^[9] the soundtrack album of which sold more than 8 million units.^[10] In turn, "Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast" was remade as "Cheez Badi" by Neha Kakkar and Narayan for the 2017 film Machine.^[11]