Muzaffar Ali on What Awaits Sufi Lovers at the Soulful Jahan-e-Khusrau this Year

Purana Qila in New Delhi is all set to resound with the soul and sounds of Sufism as Jahan-e-Khusrau returns from March 27–29, 2026. One of the most enchanting tributes to Amir Khusrau and the enduring teachings of the likes of Rumi, Bulleh Shah, and Lalleshwari, the festival has emerged as a cultural sanctuary of music, poetry, art, literature, food, and philosophy, captivating audiences for more than two decades.

As this one-of-its-kind spiritual heritage unites its connoisseurs, this also happens to be the most opportune time to speak to the unstoppable filmmaker, artist, and cultural visionary Muzaffar Ali, the curator and creator of the festival.

In his words, “The 2026 edition is a commemoration of the sounds of Iran. There will be the resonance of the sound of the daff and kamancheh blending with the tabla and the mridangam. The elements that were part of the Khusrau sound world will come alive, and the dance, like always, will take centre stage with Qawwali and verse from the Khaqah e NIyazia, a fountainhead of poetry and art."

"Khusrau’s world was enormous, but every crevice gave expression to a mystery which unfolds year after year. Khusrau’s conversation with the Divine is a blend of all the classic games we play, from chess to Polo. As timeless as his verses, the Khusrau festival this year is as new as the people and artistes themselves. It is a discovery of verse, discovery of rhythm, and above all, the divine horse of secrets and ascent.”

Robb Report India (RR): With such a diverse journey spanning from filmmaker to designer, author to artist, and cultural curator to social activist, who do you believe you truly are?

Muzaffar Ali (MA): I believe in the divine force that connects the outer you with the inner you. A phenomenon often manifested in the poetry of the mystics, which cuts through the mundane and ordinary, moving through medium to medium, inspiring and being inspired by artists and artisans alike. The equilibrium of elements is my search, and I can see through imbalances in values both aesthetic and human.

RR: What inspired the creation of Jahan-e-Khusrau, and how has its vision evolved over the years?

MA: Jahan e Khusrau is the final port of call in zikr. Jahan e Khusrau is a realm of peace and harmony. It is a world in itself. It is poetry and sacred dance. It is meditation and celebration of discovering sounds and voices. It is blending artistic expression in the true spirit of Khusrau and other mystic poets like him.

Jahan e Khusrau is a flexible world where imagery takes you through dizzying heights. I arrived at the threshold of Jahan e Khusrau in the troubled and timeless valley of Kashmir in the late eighties while shooting Zooni.

RR: The audience for Jahan-e-Khusrau changed over the years? What is the meaning/relevance of the theme for this year -“The Steed of Longing | Safar-e-Ishq”?

MA: I have also changed with the audience, which it has too, in many diverse ways with the world and the cultural ecosystem. But the inherent ecstasy of Khusrau’s verse and its qawwali are ever fresh. Some singers have gone bling and cater to the impatience and fake opulence of the modern youth. But a serious mindset that celebrates authenticity is emerging strongly. It is evolving globally. The circle is expanding as its vision becomes universal and classical.

The horse has become a metaphor for my art and symbolically in the expression of musical ensembles. This time, I created two horses lit from within, creating a rhythm and feeling with light and sound.

There will be a mythic opening for each evening of Jahan e Khusrau. Two spectral horses, iron skeletons wrapped in muslin, breathing light inside the ancient stones of Purana Qila with flute and Daff music, and the night sky of Delhi— beyond designing a stage, it is summoning a vision. The light behaves like zikr—rhythmic, breathing, and ecstatic. Not just illumination, but spiritual choreography.