Women have shattered the cultural norms in Sindh by singing poetry written by Sufi poet Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai.
In so doing, they were encouraged by Pei Ling Hong of Taiwan, who was writing her thesis on the music of the poet.
A young woman from Sindh, Ghulam Sakina was inspired enough to create her own group to sing Bhitai’s classical songs.
“Shah Latif has written about seven brave women characters. My father thought that I should sing the Raag and make a group of seven girl singers, each girl should be named as Soormi.”
Pei-Ling Haung came here for a thesis on Shah-Jo-Raag from Taiwan in 2014, and Sakina started singing for her when Pei-Ling also sang.
Listening to Ghulam Sakina’s singing also impressed her friends, so they made a group of these seven Soormis.
After creating the seven Soormis, they were named after the brave female characters narrated in Bhitai’s poetry, namely Sohni, Sassui and Sorath.
Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai’s words are enshrined in ‘Shah Jo Risalo,’ which consists of seven chapters, named after the Soormis
The characters of these romantic stories are Marvi, Moomal, Sassui, Sohini, Noori, Sorath, and Leela, whose pain of separation from the beloved, and the struggle to meet the beloved have been praised in Bhitai’s poetry.
These women now join the ranks of male singers who sing Shah’s poetry at the mystical shrines of Sindh.