Our world is conflicted and fractured; it is probably in a more precarious state than the second world war. We need to make peace with ourselves, with nature and with our brothers and sisters and one way to do this is through arts and culture, particularly through the healing power of music. Music unites us, allows us to express our feelings and emotions that are often difficult to do through traditional communications. There is one particular genre of music that is known for its healing and that is the ancient form of Indian music called Bhajans. Bhajan refers to a devotional song with a religious theme or spiritual ideas, in any language. The term ‘bhajanam’ means reverence and originates from the root word ‘bhaj’, which means to revere, while the term ‘bhajana’ also means sharing.
Bhavik Haria and ‘Sama’
Now international musician, Bhavik Haria is taking this special music of Bhajan and giving it a contemporary sound and has produced a new album called ‘Sama – songs of virtue’. Sama is an album two years in the making, with seven meaningful songs. It is a UK-India production, where the music includes celebrated musicians from the UK and India. Produced by Kaykay Chauhan with lyrics by Ajay Chandaran, the album released on 30 May, and is an initiative that has been supported by the Arts Council England and Atlantic Electrics.
‘Sama’ takes the listener on a soulful journey of transformation, transcending religious labels. The album explores gratitude, compassion, and the liberating power of forgiveness, important reflections in today’s troubled world. Crucially, ‘Sama’ is part of Bhavik’s mission to #KeepBhajansAlive which he successfully started in 2020 and to help his campaign, the album has a QR code that gives an English transliteration of the lyrics from Hindi.
Bhavik has evolved the sacred vibration of bhajans to engage new audiences. His concerts are hugely popular drawing ethnically diverse people of all ages, from as young as 10 to 70 plus. ‘
The Nehru Centre on 5 June
To celebrate the launch of the album, a special evening was held on 5 June at the Nehru Centre, where over 130 people came together, and included the Deputy High Commissioner, HE Sujit Ghosh. Bhavik brought the house down! Drawing in the largest audience for the Nehru Centre this year. The audience was a cross section of people, some who have not experienced Bhajan music before, and were enthralled with the experience.
On the night Bhavik performed songs from the album with talented musicians that included a tabla player, a saxophonist and violinist, bringing traditional Indian and Western instruments together.
Hedley Swain, CEO of the Royal Pavilion and Museums Trust, Brighton & Hove spoke and made the point of how “important that music from different faiths and traditions are being heard in the UK and contributing to its rich creativity”. We also heard from Bhavik who expressed his gratitude of seeing a cross section of people come together to help celebrate ‘Sama’ and importantly enjoy the music!
He added, “Each of the seven songs on Sama reflects a universal journey that we all share – a search for connection, unity, and balance in a world that often feels chaotic. This is music that goes beyond religious boundaries, exploring themes of gratitude, compassion, and the power of forgiveness. I am proud of ‘Sama’ and its music, which explores unique compositions.”
What’s next for Bhavik, well he is now on a three-city UK tour this summer, that will include London, Birmingham, and Manchester and this tour ends on 23 June. He recently returned from a sell-out tour of South Africa, perhaps his next stop should be India!
