What happens when ritual – rather than evoking and affirming a philosophy – begins to replace it? When its potent symbolism and capacity to mobilize and move masses gets quagmired in the sludge of human politics and corruption? Can institutions and rituals be reformed more effectively from without or within? For it to bloom, must a lotus be in sludgy waters?

This episode of the film Kabira Khada Bazaar Mein journeys into the heart of these questions with the widely popular, radical and independent-thinking folk singer of Kabir – Prahlad Tipanya – as he confronts the contradictions of his choice to join the Kabir Panth sect as a mahant, an ‘authorised propagator’ of the message of Kabir.

This is the fourth episode of the film Kabira Khada Bazaar Mein, which won the Special Jury Prize, 52nd National Film Awards in September 2010. This is one of 4 films on Kabir made by Shabnam Virmani, filmmaker, singer and director of the Kabir Project, located at the Srishti School of Art, Design & Technology in Bangalore, India. Write to her at [email protected]. View the full film at    • Kabira Khada Bazaar Mein: Journeys wi...  , and get DVDs of the film at http://www.amazon.in/dp/B00PJTQQRI

Film Credits -
Camera & Direction: Shabnam Virmani
Script & Editing: Shabnam Virmani & Rikhav Desai
Editing Support: Aarthi Parthasarathy, Parmesh K
Additional Camera – T. Jayashree
Direction & Production Support: Smriti Chanchani & Rumah Rasaque
Songs sung by: Prahlad Tipanya & Kaluram Bamaniya
Music Recordings: P. M. Satheesh
Sound Mixing: Fireflys Post Sound, Mumbai
Research & Concept: Shabnam Virmani & Tara Kini
Motion Graphics: M M Pradeep
Poetry Translations: Linda Hess, Homayra Ziad, Shabnam Virmani
Advisors: Linda Hess, Ashok Vajpeyi, Vidya Rao, Purushottam Aggrawal, Tara Kini
Financial Support: Ford Foundation, New Delhi
Produced by: Srishti School of Art, Design & Technology, Bangalore
Collection: Kabir Project
Year of Production: 2009

This is one of a series of uploads for Ajab Shahar, an upcoming webspace featuring songs, images and conversations around Bhakti, Sufi and Baul poetry from India and thereabouts, currently under construction by the Kabir Project team. www.ajabshahar.org, www.kabirproject.org