Many bar girls and bar dancers in Mumbai have taken to performing the mujra at private weddings, says Sarid. However, wedding planners say professional kathak dancers who adhere to different gharanas are far more sought after. “This is a serious art form and not all dancers can replicate these movements,” says Ghosh. Traditionally, on a full moon night in February in a small village in UP, an annual nauch meet is organised where qawwali artists share their talents. Many budding qawwals are picked from here.

Bollywood has had a huge role to play in bringing the qawwali into mainstream culture and so have other high-profile weddings like the Elizabeth Hurley-Arun Nayyar wedding last year in Jodhpur, which had a similar theme. Movies like Umrao Jaan and the upcoming Jodha Akbar have influenced fashion and the current trend in wedding couture is regal. Mumbai-based designer Priya Awasthy, who is currently working on actor Tara Sharma’s trousseau, says the kalidar kurtas and flowing outfits that Sonam Kapoor sports in Saawariya are the rage these days. “For Tara’s wedding, I’ve made an empire line choli and a lehnga with 32 kalis,” says Awasthy. For her own wedding collection, Awasthy has used rich colours, with pearls in pipings and lots of gold and silver gota as embellishment.

Delhi designer Anupamaa Dayal recently sold 20 pieces of her Angrakha collection to a foreigner, who was in raptures after watching a qawwali at an Indian wedding. In jewellery too, the sartaj—the ornamental headpiece worn on one side—is suddenly a fashion must-have. “The Nizam influence is very pronounced and people are investing in old-fashioned pieces,” says Chennai-based jewellery designer Suhani Pittie. Clap along, qawwali-funk is back.
(With inputs from Paromita Chakrabarti)