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Five bands that put Sufi poetry through amplifiers: the Lahore band that named the genre, a jazz-rock qawwali outfit, Kailash Kher's band, a Kashmiri-led Pune act and Bengaluru's poets of longing.
Sufi rock was born in Pakistan in the early 1990s, when bands began setting the verses of saints such as Bulleh Shah and Amir Khusrau to electric guitars. Indian bands soon found their own way into the same poetry.
This list covers five bands from both sides of the border, two from Pakistan and three from India, each named with its home city.
Each entry covers who they are and three tracks to play first.
For more, see Legendary Indian Rock Bands and 90s Indipop Legends.
Junoon are the Pakistani band that gave Sufi rock its name. Formed in Lahore in 1990 by guitarist Salman Ahmad, with singer Ali Azmat and bassist Brian O'Connell, they set the poetry of Sufi saints such as Bulleh Shah to hard rock, and writer Nadeem F. Paracha coined the term "Sufi rock" for them in 1993.
Their 1997 album Azadi, with "Sayonee", made them stars across South Asia, and the 1999 follow-up Parvaaz carried "Bulleya", a setting of Bulleh Shah's verse.
Essential tracks
Mekaal Hasan Band were formed in Lahore in 2001 by guitarist, composer and producer Mekaal Hasan. They build songs from qawwali, Sufiana kalam and Punjabi folk, arranged in the style of 1970s jazz-rock bands such as Weather Report and Mahavishnu Orchestra.
Their debut Sampooran (2004), sung by Javed Bashir, set Waris Shah and Amir Khusrau to electric guitar and flute. Saptak (2010) and Andholan followed, and Coke Studio Season 8 performances of "Kinaray" and "Sayon" brought them a new audience.
Kailasa is the band singer Kailash Kher formed in Mumbai with brothers Naresh and Paresh Kamath, adding rock guitars, drums and keys to his Sufi-flavoured folk singing. The name nods both to Kher's own name and to Mount Kailash.
Their 2006 debut album Kailasa, with "Teri Deewani" and "Tauba Tauba", made the band's name outside film music. Jhoomo Re (2007) and Chaandan Mein (2009) followed.
Essential tracks
Alif are a Sufi rock band led by Kashmiri singer, poet and songwriter Mohammad Muneem Nazir, writing in Kashmiri, Urdu and Hindi. They started in Pune as Highway 61 in 2008, then took the name Alif after signing a record deal. Muneem has said Kashmir's mysticism is why he chose Sufi rock.
Their 2016 song "Like A Sufi" with Kashmiri rapper MC Kash was billed as India's first Sufi-rap track. Sufayed (2017) followed, and "Kya Karie Korimol" with Noor Mohammad and Aashima Mahajan reached Coke Studio Bharat in 2023.
Parvaaz formed in Bengaluru in 2010 when Khalid Ahamed and Mir Kashif Iqbal, childhood friends from the Kashmir valley, met again at college. They write in Urdu, Kashmiri and Hindi, and their lyrics read as poetry of longing and faith set to psychedelic, blues and progressive rock.
They are often filed under Sufi rock, a label Rolling Stone India has called misleading and the band laughs off. Baran (2014) and Kun (2019) made their name, and Na Gul Na Gulistan arrived in 2025.
Essential tracks
Related reading is linked in the article above.
