03/09/2026
Composer: Nasar Malik
Poet: Majid Qadeer
Singer: Sajar Nafees
Backing Vocals: AM Choir
Produced & Directed by: Talha Ghafoor
Arrangement: Arshad Mahmud & Talha Ghafoor
Dholak & Tabla: Sagar Valji
Mixing: Arshad Mahmud
DOP: Aarab Khan
Colorist: Mahad Maajid
Video Editor: Shahzaib Ahmed
Art Direction: Uzma Sabeen
Videography at: SMB Studios
Some melodies are searched for. Others arrive unexpectedly and demand to be remembered. Har Dam began with one such moment.
The story of Har Dam goes back to around 2006–2007, when Majid Qadeer, Nasar Malik and I were living in Islamabad. We had already worked together on a collection of songs, but felt it should include a Hamd, a song devoted entirely to the praise of God.
One day, Nasar was on his way to buy groceries when a melody suddenly came into his mind. Afraid he might forget it, he asked the driver to turn around, returned home and immediately recorded it on his keyboard. Only then did he go back to the market. Afterwards, he told Majid: this melody should become a Hamd.
That spontaneous musical thought eventually became:
“Har Dam Sir Te Rehndi Ae Rehmat Rabb Rehman Di
Sara Tera Karam Ae Maula, Hasti Ki Insaan Di”
Majid kept its central refrain in Punjabi, intimate and direct, but moved into Urdu as the poetry explored deeper ideas of creation, Divine attributes, spiritual knowledge and human perception.
Nasar composed the complete original melody, and we initially recorded Har Dam as a contemporary solo song. Almost two decades later, its musical identity changed.
In 2024, I watched Sajar Nafees perform the work of Amir Khusro in a qawwali setting at Faiz Mela, Alhamra Hall, Lahore. Hearing how naturally she carried the energy and spiritual intensity of qawwali gave me an idea: what if Nasar’s composition were reimagined in that form?
Sajar remained at the centre, with the AM Choir, trained by legendary composer and music director Arshad Mahmud, surrounding her in the spirit of a qawwali gathering.
There was another quiet beauty in this production. The choir and musicians came from Muslim, Christian and Hindu faiths, all coming together with the same respect and feeling to perform a Hamd in praise of God. For me, that became part of its spirit: different traditions meeting through music in gratitude to the Creator.
Sajar also took a leading role during the sessions, guiding the choir through their recordings and helping shape the vocal character of the performance. She composed the opening and concluding alaaps, along with smaller alaaps between the antaras.
Her newly composed opening also brought Majid back into the creative process. During recording, we asked him to write new words for Sajar’s alaap, nearly two decades after he had written the original Hamd:
For the arrangement, Arshad Mahmud and I deliberately kept things simple. Tabla and dholak form the strong qawwali foundation, supported by bass, guitars and pads, while harmonium, santoor, flute and bells add colour in selected spaces without overwhelming the voices.
Sajar’s favourite part of the Hamd is the second antra:
“Nam Hai Tu Hi, Dam Hai Tu Hi
Tu Hi Faiz-e-Karam Hai, Tu Hi
Mera Maan Bharam Hai Tu Hi
Mera Lauh-o-Qalam Hai Tu Hi”
The words move beautifully from the Divine name and every breath of existence towards grace, faith and Lauh-o-Qalam, evoking Divine knowledge and destiny. Sajar performed this section with particular devotion, with her delicate alaaps adding even greater depth.
My own favourite is the final antra:
“Naari Khaki Aabi Tere
Noori Noor Hijabi Tere
Taba Tabi’een Turabi Tere
Katib Qutb Kitabi Tere”
Here Majid’s poetry expands from personal devotion towards contemplation of creation itself, before arriving at a profoundly humble thought:
“Na Tere Imkaan Te Pohnchi, Hadd Mere Wajdaan Di.”
Even at the furthest reach of human thought and inner perception, the reality of God remains beyond imagination and comprehension.
The video follows the same idea. Sajar and the ensemble form an intimate qawwali gathering in soft whites, creams and delicate tones. Behind them stretches a celestial landscape inspired by the early universe, with stars, light and galaxies taking shape. The contrast was intentional: a small gathering of human voices against the unimaginable scale of creation.
Har Dam also preserves another part of Nasar Malik’s musical legacy. I first met Nasar as a teenager at Islamabad Arts Council, where he taught me piano. Blind since childhood, Nasar passed away in 2023 and never heard this qawwali interpretation, but his melody remains exactly where it should be: at the centre of everything.
Har Dam is our tribute to Nasar’s melody, Majid Qadeer’s poetry, Sajar Nafees’s voice, and above all, an expression of gratitude for the mercy that surrounds human existence at every moment.
If Har Dam speaks to you, we’d love to hear from you. Please leave a comment and tell us which verse, alaap or musical moment stayed with you the longest.
Talha Ghafoor
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