KATHMANDU: The chill of the cold evening was pierced by the enchanting voice of Kaluram Bamaniya as he began a soulful musical journey with Guru Vandhana on December 6. Sitting under the open sky in the garden of the India House at Indian Embassy, the guests enjoyed the heart warming words of Kabir’s poems through Bamaniya and his troupe’s rendition in the form of bhajans.

“When I sing his poems, I am immersed in his words. His songs bring a sense of peace and spirituality to both the audience and us,” said Bamaniya adding that he never prepares songs for his performances, “I just go there and sing.”

Hailing from a family of folk singers in Malwa, Madhya Pradesh, India, Bamaniya cannot recall the first time he heard Kabir’s words. “Ever since I can remember, I have been hearing my father and grand-father sing his songs. Sant Kabir’s songs are engraved in my soul and I have a special attachment to his poems. His bhajans are everything for me,” he added.

Jagrit rhenha nagar mein and Aap tharo kahin pardesi are two songs he vividly remembers his father and grand-father singing and wished one day he would be able to sing like them. He has fulfilled his wish — Bamaniya has been performing with his troupe for the last 10 years and they have performed all over the world. When asked about the strength of the group he said, “It’s his songs that hold us together.”

Performing in Nepal for the first time in the Kabir Festival organised by Indian Culture Centre, Bamaniya expressed, “I want the audience to embrace the essence of Kabir’s teachings and make their life better.”

Shabnam Virmani, whose movies were also screened at the festival, talked about how the oral tradition like that of the Bamaniya family has kept Kabir alive in modern times. Virmani also interpreted the songs for the audience at the event.

“Thaare rang mahal mein, ajab sehar mein,” sang Bamaniya. Virmani explained how in this song Kabir is telling everyone to share the cup of nectar with brothers and neighbours.

Ram Raheem sab ek hai mat samjho do echoed in the venue. For all those who had gathered there on the day of a bandh, the message from Kabir of brotherhood, love and equality were a poignant reminder of the relevance of the words of this 14th century mystic poet.