MUMBAI: Singer-composer Nisschal Zaveri will present Whispers of the Infinite – Spring Edit, a ghazal and poetry performance exploring love, silence, and renewal, at the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival on Friday, February 6th at 7:00 PM at Mumbai’s historic Cross Maidan. Zaveri joins a distinguished lineup including Usha Uthup, Grammy-winner Ricky Kej, Kanishk Seth Trio featuring Kavita Seth, and other acclaimed artists at one of India’s most celebrated cultural events.
Started in 1999, the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival is Mumbai’s premier public celebration of art and culture, transforming the city’s heritage precinct into an open-air canvas of music, visual arts, theatre, dance, and literature. This year’s theme, “Ahead of the Curve”, resonates deeply with Zaveri’s approach to the classical ghazal form. The artist trained in Indian and Western Classical brings forward a practice that honours tradition while ably extending its expressive boundaries through contemporary sensitivity and minimalist presentation.
Whispers of the Infinite is Zaveri’s ongoing ghazal and poetry project that explores intimacy, silence, and emotional depth within the classical tradition. The Spring Edition, timed with Mumbai’s seasonal shift, draws from themes of longing, bloom, and transcendence. The performance invites attentive listening, allowing poetry to unfold with restraint rather than spectacle, where romance is approached as a slowly unfolding feeling more than a grand declaration, much like blossoms in the city.
His growing national presence has been reinforced by performances at leading cultural platforms, including a spellbinding appearance at Jashn-e-Rekhta, where he performed for an audience of over 2,000 listeners, and more recently, full-house solo ghazal concerts with orchestra symphony in Delhi and Mumbai, both met with standing ovations.
Zaveri will be accompanied by his ghazal band featuring tabla, sarangi, 12-string guitar, bass, keyboard, and percussion. The setlist is shaped as a gradual emotional journey, moving from stillness and waiting toward renewal and boundlessness. Minimal instrumentation and deliberate pauses create space for the poetry to breathe, offering audiences a quiet encounter with love and reflection.
“Ghazal is not meant to impress – it is meant to reveal. At Kala Ghoda, I look forward to creating a space where listeners can meet the poetry honestly, without spectacle, and rediscover the timeless intimacy that this form holds.” Zaveri says about his upcoming performance.
Event Details: Whispers of the Infinite – Spring Edit
Date: Friday, February 6th, 2025
Time: 7:00 PM – 7:35 PM
Venue: Cross Maidan, Kala Ghoda, Mumbai
Admission: Free and open to the public
About Nisschal Zaveri: Nisschal Zaveri is a Mumbai-based vocalist, composer, and harmonium player working within the ghazal and Hindustani classical traditions. His work explores intimacy, silence, and emotional nuance, bringing contemporary sensibility to classical forms.
