Mardana's Children

Trailer

Music. Devotion. Unity

A short film on the Rababis of Lahore, a community of Pakistani Muslim musicians with deep-rooted ties to the Sikhs by way of a centuries-old music tradition.

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About the Rababis

The rababis are a community of musicians who trace their roots back more than five centuries to Bhai Mardana (1459-1534), a Muslim musician and close disciple of Guru Nanak (1469-1539), founder of the Sikh religious community. Bhai Mardana accompanied and served the Guru his whole life as the pair travelled across South and Central Asia singing songs of divine wisdom and and awakening diverse audiences to the Oneness of the Creator and Creation.

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Testimonials

Fantastic and important research, it promotes unity and shared histories. Many congratulations.

A wonderful initiative and very artfully done in a way that is both captivating and informative. This is a lost art form and the sikh community and wider community is sadly missing out on such benefits. The priorities are wrong and its disappointing.

A film which shows the lasting impact of loss and separation and some of the ways of expressing healing. It has helped me connect with and see how it’s possible to have creative stepping stones back to ancestors and cooperative ways of being, and forwards to today.

I think the storytelling is key – in the film, and your making of it. As a Sikh, passionate about music and heritage, I found the film incredibly moving.

So phenomenally beautiful and important – thank you! Please distribute widely!

This cultural tradition has to be kept alive, ways must be found. Not just for physical buildings but those that strengthen our ties with the musical traditions to survive for the future generations but also to build solidarity as was the central message of Guru Nanak. The sikh community must find ways to invite and welcome Muslim musicians back into the Gurdwara or other forums In Pakistan and India, but also more widely.

Excellent film to bring to light the divisions in our society, but gives hope that with the right intentions we can overcome prejudice and bring this musical tradition back.

Such amazing, inspiring and significant work you guys are doing

A well needed and well deserved tribute to Guru Nanak Sahib. A must watch!

Our Team

Kirit J. Singh

Co-Producer

Kirit Singh, co-founder of The Mardana Project, is a musician & historian, based in London, UK. He completed his doctorate exploring the history of Sikh patronage of music in colonial Punjab at SOAS University. He is a student of dhrupad vocal music under Pt. Uday Bhawalkar and also a practitioner of shabad kirtan, the sacred music of the Sikhs.

Jasdeep Singh

Co-Producer

Jasdeep Singh, co-founder of The Mardana Project, is a musician & scholar of the Punjab gharana of percussion, based in Birmingham, UK. He has studied the rare percussive art of the Jori of Punjab under masters including Ustad Sukhwinder Singh Pinky and Pt. Yogesh Samsi, has conducted research on the history of this tradition, and also published work on the subject.

Nathan Drillot

Filmmaker / DOP

Nathan Drillot is an award-winning filmmaker based in Vancouver, Canada, with over a decade of experience of producing and directing documentary content. He co-runs the production house Salazar Film, whose work has been recognised by Pitchfork, Motionographer, TED, National Geographic, Awardeo, and Vimeo Staff Picks among many others.

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