Of late, Sufi music has become a staple diet for Bollywood with several films carrying numbers from this particular genre. Incidentally, Prasoon Joshi recently wrote a devotional song named Khwaja Ka Ishaara to mark the 801st anniversary of Hazrat Khwaja Gharib Nawaz Dargah.

urns out the songwriter is grateful to AR Rahman for introducing him to unknown facets of Sufism. Interestingly, Prasoon also wrote his first Sufi track titled Arziyan for Rahman in the Sonam Kapoor-Abhishek Bachchan starrer Delhi 6 and has words of gratitude for the musical maestro.

`Since I was born and brought in places like Lucknow and Rampur, which are centres of Sufi poetry in India, the fascination was always there. But I'll forever be indebted to Rahman for adding new dimensions to my understanding of Sufism. He made me aware of so many Sufi saints and shrines that I didn't even know existed,` says the lyricist.


Ameen Peer Dargah, situated in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh is one such place of worship that was shown to Prasoon by Rahman. `It is also known as Ajmer Dargah of the South and Rahman is a regular visitor there. I pay my respect every year now and draw inspiration for my work from these travels,` adds Prasoon.