Filmi qawwali

Filmi qawwali (Urdu: فلمی قوٌالی. Bengali: ফিল্মি কাওয়ালি, Hindi: फ़िल्मी क़व्वाली) is a form of qawwali music found in the Lollywood, Dhallywood, Tollywood, and Bollywood film industries.^[1]

It represents a distinct subgenre of film music, although it usually bears little resemblance to traditional qawwali, which is the devotional music of the Sufis. One example of filmi qawwali is the song Pardah Hai Pardah sung by Mohammed Rafi, and composed by Laxmikant–Pyarelal in Indian film Amar Akbar Anthony (1977).^[2] Another example of filmi qawwali is the song "Qurbani Qurbani Qurbani" rendered by Kishore Kumar, Anwar and Aziz Nazan and composed by Kalyanji-Anandji for the Indian film Qurbani(1980).^[3]

Within the subgenre of filmi qawwali, there exists a form of qawwali that is infused with modern and Western instruments, usually with techno beats, called techno-qawwali. An example of techno-qawwali is Kajra Re, a filmi song composed by Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy. A newer variation of the techno-qawwali based on the more dance oriented tracks is known as the "club qawwali". More tracks of this nature are being recorded and released.

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and A.R. Rahman have composed filmi qawwalis in the style of traditional qawwali. Examples include Arziyan (Delhi 6), Khwaja Mere Khwaja (Jodhaa Akbar)^[4] and Kun Faya Kun (Rockstar).

Examples in the Bengali Tollywood cinema include the song Remix Qawwali (Bindaas) sung by Neha Kakkar and Nakash Aziz.^[5] In addition to this, the Bengali Dhallywood cinema also includes qawwalis such as the song Tikatuli (Dhaka Attack) sung by Motin Chowdhury.^[6]