About
To bring India's film lyricists to the centre stage they deserve, recovering them from the anonymity in which their profession leaves them, through original, research-driven performances that restore their rightful place in the hearts of poetry and music lovers.
Charitable trust producing research-driven theatrical tributes to Hindi and Urdu film lyricists. 78+ performances since 2011, 9 poets, 9 cities. Free, by invitation. No tickets, no sponsorships. 36-48 months of research per production. Family members of each poet are made part of the performance.
Ibaadat Foundation was born from a recognition that Indian cinema's greatest lyricists occupy a paradoxical cultural position: their words are loved by millions, but the poets themselves are largely unknown. Songs by Majrooh Sultanpuri, Shailendra, Sahir Ludhianvi and Anand Bakshi are among the most listened-to compositions in Indian musical history, yet the men who wrote them have received a fraction of the recognition given to the composers and singers who performed them.
The Foundation was established on 12 November 2011 in New Delhi by Prithvi Haldea and a group of friends, with the first performance Rooh-e-Majrooh celebrating Majrooh Sultanpuri at the Kamani Auditorium. The model has not changed: each production involves 36 to 48 months of research, including archival work, field research and meetings with the poet's family, who are made active participants in the performance. The resulting 150-minute show is built around 15 to 18 full songs performed live on specially created musical tracks, woven into a conversational dramatic screenplay that presents unknown and untouched pages of the lyricist's life. Saba Sultanpuri (Majrooh's daughter), Dinesh Shailendra (Shailendra's son), Rajesh Duggal (Rajinder Krishan's son) and other family members have appeared in various productions.
Entry is always free, by invitation, to connoisseurs. There are no tickets, no memberships, no corporate sponsorships. The Foundation is funded entirely by the trustees and by voluntary donations from friends. Kotak Mahindra Bank has been associated with shows informally; this is not formal sponsorship but appreciation-based support. This deliberate model keeps the events intimate and the audience self-selected.
The Foundation has performed at Kamani Auditorium, Nehru Centre and Birla Auditorium among other venues across Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Jaipur, Ludhiana, Udaipur, Agra and Dubai. A performance at Jashn-e-Rekhta in December 2024 marked Ibaadat's first appearance on a major national festival stage. Ameen Sayani, after attending Rooh-e-Majrooh, said: This is undoubtedly the most touching, most beautifully presented mehfil I have ever attended in my entire career of 1,200 plus shows.
Founding & Leadership
Initiatives & Portfolio
The founding production celebrating Majrooh Sultanpuri. First performed November 2011 at Kamani Auditorium Delhi. Staged subsequently in Mumbai, Kolkata, Jaipur and Dubai. Among the most performed Ibaadat productions. Saba Sultanpuri (his daughter) appeared in the show.
Tribute to Shailendra, lyricist of Awara Hoon and Mera Joota Hai Japani. Dinesh Shailendra (his son) participated. One of the most performed Ibaadat productions.
Tribute to Sahir Ludhianvi, performed at Jashn-e-Rekhta December 2024. The Mumbai show featured 76 songs over 2.5 hours with the rare presence of singer Sudha Malhotra.
Tribute to Gopal Das Neeraj. Letters of appreciation from Neeraj himself are among the Foundation's most prized documents.
Launched in Ludhiana March 2023. Staged at Kamani Auditorium Delhi, Nehru Centre Mumbai and Birla Auditorium Jaipur. Scripted in Ibaadat's unique conversational style with focus on Raja Mehdi Ali Khan's satire, wit and humour.
Most recent flagship production celebrating Anand Bakshi, one of Hindi cinema's most prolific lyricists with over 4,000 songs.
Periodic special events including Ibaadat Ka Safar (best-of compilation at Kamani Auditorium), Lafz-o-Aavaaz, Shaam-e-Ibaadat, Mehfil-e-Sama, Lutf-e-Ibaadat, Safarnama-e-Ishq.
Ibaadat Foundation addresses one of Indian cultural life's most persistent blind spots: the anonymity of the film lyricist. Songs by Majrooh Sultanpuri, Sahir Ludhianvi and Shailendra are among the most widely heard compositions in human history; the poets who wrote them were in many cases among the finest Urdu and Hindi writers of the 20th century. The fact that they are frequently unknown by name to the millions who sing their words is a genuine cultural loss.
The Foundation's model is as significant as its mission. It produces original research, it brings family members into the performance as primary sources, it charges nothing and seeks no sponsorship. This is cultural preservation and celebration as a civic act, funded by people who believe in what they are doing. The result is an archive of performances, testimonies and research that does not exist anywhere else.
[Atlas Perspective] Ibaadat Foundation is one of the most genuinely distinctive cultural organisations in this Atlas. Its model, rigorous scholarly research combined with original performance production delivered free of charge to an audience that earns its place through genuine interest, is rare and replicable.
The Foundation operates without sponsorships by design, but its 78-show track record across 9 cities, its Jashn-e-Rekhta appearance in December 2024, and the quality of audience response documented across its productions demonstrate a proven and growing model. The next frontier is scale: archival recordings of the research and performances, and international touring to the South Asian diaspora communities in the UK, North America and the Gulf who would respond most deeply. These are areas where institutional support, framed correctly as enabling rather than sponsoring, could make a transformative difference without compromising the Foundation's essential character.
For cultural funders: Ibaadat Foundation is not actively seeking sponsorships and is supported by a number of Individuals and Organizations. The foundation accepts voluntary donations. It is worthy of attention as a model for what deeply purposeful, research-driven cultural production looks like without institutional overhead or commercial obligation.
[Atlas Note] There is value in cultural work being visible - not for publicity alone, but because visibility helps ideas travel, models get discovered, audiences grow and ecosystems learn from what works. Ibaadat Foundation has built something distinctive and quietly substantial. Its work deserves to be documented, discussed and brought into the wider cultural conversation. When good work speaks about itself, it gives the ecosystem something to listen to, learn from and build upon.