As the deep sonorous saxophone like voice of Piran Khan resonates aj kal bhural maand vasa (oh brown cloud bless our region with rain and life) the noble qalam of Khwaja Ghulam Farid, the great desert Sufi mystic floats the star studded serene moonscape amidst the desert wilderness of Dodha an interior settlement in IGNP Stage II, Bikaner. Others enthusiastically join him in a chorus. These self effacing invocations to the rain gods have been of no avail this time. The bearers of lilting rajasthani folk music traditions, whose performances always promise ecstatic feelings of joy, mystical heights, are soothing, gratifying to the heart and soul alike, face the threat of a creeping drought. This drought is the third worst in twenty eight years, out of which twenty six were drought years anyway.
