Ghulam Farid Sabri

Ghulam Farid Sabri was a qawwali singer and a member of the famous qawwali group, The Sabri Brothers. In 1930, he was born in Kalyana, Punjab, British India. His family was musically inclined way before he was born. His family’s older generation has been singing qawwalis and songs since the Mughal days. They also have a direct connection with the descent of Mian Tansen. Mian Tansen was a musician at the court of Akbar The Great This series was a touching narrative of "Jalaluddi >> Read More... . His grandfather Mehboob Baksh Ranji Ali Rang was also a great musician. Baqar Hussain Khan, his maternal grandfather was a sitar player. In short, we can say, he hails from a family of artists and musicians. So, it was only natural for him to inclined towards music from a young age. Music was in his genetics. He was brought up in Gwalior, India. As a kid, he wanted to run away and live somewhere in the wilderness.

A place where he can feel the utmost peace and calmness. But, his mother stopped him and made him realize his responsibilities. He started formal music training at the age of six under his father. He trained in North Indian Classical music and qawwali. During that time, he also learned to play harmonium and tabla. Initially, he learned music from his father and many other teachers in Gwalior. Later, he and his younger brother Maqbool Ahmad Sabri and Kamaal Ahmad Sabri went further and learned music under Ustad Fatehdin Khan, Ustad Ramzan Khan, etc. After the independence in 1947, his family left their hometown and shifted to a refugee camp in Karachi, Pakistan. The living conditions in the camp were awful, they were not getting the essentials. And the food was also extremely expensive and unhygienic. The money they got in return for their hard work was barely enough to sustain life. People suffered from malnutrition, and the worst living conditions brought many diseases.

Sabri got the job of carrying bricks for the government houses and roads. At night he carried the bricks alone and made a home for his family. In the process, he got physically so drained that his lungs got severely damaged. The doctors said that his lungs were so injured that he won't be able to sing again. Sabri got disappointed and went to his father for advice. The advice was rather tough, he asked him to sit in the middle of the camp for four to five hours and do the practice. He continued doing so for the next two years, and amidst this, he got beaten by his neighbor for disturbing their sleep. But, he never stopped, he kept going. And slowly, his lungs got stronger, and his magnificent voice was formed. Later, he started to mix with other qawwali groups.