Anil Kumar

This Foundation Project implemented by IFA aims to study the prevalent practices of Chalant music in and around the town of Kishtwar, identifying it as a marker of cultural fluidity between the Chenab Valley and the Kashmir region. Alongside this, the project will analyse, document and contextualise the music and poetry of Janbaaz Doolwal, who is associated with the genesis of this musical style. Anil Kumar will be the Coordinator for this project.

Anil Kumar is a filmmaker and sound designer who is currently pursuing his Master’s degree in filmmaking with a specialisation in Sound Recording and Sound Design from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune. Being a musician himself, he has consistently engaged with music and related art practices in Jammu and Kashmir. Given his interest and expertise, he is best suited to be the Project Coordinator of this Foundation Project of IFA. 

Though being attached to the Jammu division, the cultural practices of the Chenab valley invariably show influences of Kashmiri culture and Dogra culture alike. However, the social and cultural facets of this region have not been able to attract substantial scholarly interest and remain largely overlooked. One such cultural element that this research project aims to explore is Chalant as a musical genre. Radio Kashmir played a significant role in making music from outside Kashmir accessible in the region. This also led to shifts within the musical traditions of Kashmir. Anil aims to study how the Chalant musical style embodied one such significant shift from the traditional musical practices in the region, such as the Sufiyana Mausiqi. 

The research process will include recording different musical samples and having musicologists examine and interpret them. Anil will travel to the areas of interest in Chenab Valley and Kashmir in order to look into the oral narratives, archives of Radio Kashmir and the Jammu Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture, and Languages, as well as the personal memoirs of people and institutions associated with music in Kashmir. Apart from this, he will interview and analyse the performances of contemporary artists who are using the internet as a platform to share their music. With the assistance of his son Zubair Doolwal, who possesses a sizable collection of poems and personal recordings by Jaanbaz Doolwal, Anil will also compile the information currently available on Janbaaz Doolwal.

The outcomes of this project will be a 30-40 minute high-resolution audio package and a film based on the music and poetry of Doolwal. The Project Coordinator’s deliverables to IFA, along with the final reports, will be the film, the audio package of musical performances, and audiovisual documentation from the field.

This project suitably addresses the framework of IFA’s Arts Research program in how it brings to light a relatively marginalised musical tradition and its practitioners from the Kashmir valley while also contextualising it through a critical examination of the factors that have contributed to the renewed interest in Kashmiri musical traditions in new media platforms and current public discourse.

 IFA will ensure that the project is implemented on time and that the funds expended are accounted for. IFA will also review the progress of the project at midterm and document it through an Implementation Memorandum. After the project is complete and deliverables are submitted, IFA will put together a Final Evaluation to share with the Trustees.

This project is made possible with support from BNP Paribas India.