3. Treasures of Female Sufi Music, with Dr. Razia Sultanova

www.JanylJusupjan.com Podcast Chaï Latte & Salt Episode nr. 3: Treasures of Female Sufi Music, with Dr. Razia Sultanova, date : March 2020   Listen to the new 3rd episode of Chaï Latte with Dr. Razia Sultanova, author of "From Shamanism to Sufism, Women, Islam and Culture in Central Asia". This episode of the first English language podcast on Central Asian culture is dedicated to the International Day of Women. 

Some update from the host Janyl Jusupjan, independent filmmaker and author (Kyrgyzstan):

Early March I was supposed to be at the Eurodoc workshop for film producers in Italy’s French Aosta region. Because of coronavirus it got canceled but they proposed a skype consultation with tutors. They gave valuable insights and advice for the People of the River film project by Christian Lelong and I (Cinedoc Films production).

Also I started preparation for a new film project in Russia. It is at an early stage so I can only say that it will be centered around a big musical personality. I am also working on my book projects. I received very good news from my former employer, that I can go ahead with publishing a collection of my articles from the Pamirs, which I will,most likely, self-publish. I did receive a publishing proposal from a university, but as a self-publisher, I will have no constraints translating it into other languages.

Now I have to decide whether I should publish it in Kyrgyz and then translate it into English, or go straight to the translation work, which would take more time, and I would have to understand how much it will cost to edit. Then I would have to raise money somewhere. Perhaps Patreon.com may be a good place. It is a website where people can support independent creators with small contributions.

I am also working on another book project tentatively called Breakfast Talks with Christian Lelong, where I am interviewing the producer of my “Letters from the Pamirs” feature documentary. Christian produced or made dozens of documentaries some of which were at Cannes, Berlinale and other exciting places for film. So the talks are wealth of knowledge, but we learn also about Christianas a person.

There are some 25 interviews so far, and more are on the way. I'll send a sample interview in one of my next emails, so watch out for that.

I continue to receive nice messages. For example, Edward Lemon tweeted: “What a fantastic initiative, well done, Janyl Jusupjan, for putting this podcast together! I look forward to listening on my commute”. Thank you Edward, it is very much appreciated, and safe driving!

Despite all the work, we manage to go to the countryside. Recently we went back to La Drôme region in southern France, which is famous for its lavender fields. You may remember them from some Van Gogh paintings.

We came to love a certain crêperie, a place where they serve French pancakes, in one of the small towns. They have a meal called La Tête De Le Vol (The Head of a Cow). It is quite simple, so simple that it reminds me of my mom’s boiled meat dish in our childhood. She was a nomad and knew only that type of cooking. But with some nice wine and homemade Spanish desert, La Tête De Le Vol is a Celebration!

This podcast is supported by volunteers - Stephen K. Vincent from the UK and Damon Kutzin, Saint John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, USA. They edit and proofread my texts and interviews.

Having an English language podcast is a big responsibility and I am very happy to have Stephen and Damon in my team. Merci beaucoup, my friends!

As you may know, the Chaï Latte Podcast has a home on my website: www.janyljusupjan.com, where there is also information about my feature documentaries. For example, Letters from the Pamirs page includes the trailer and endorsements.

In one of the endorsements, Igor Rubinov of Princeton University writes about the film: "A stranger and wanderer may hold many worries but this documentary shows that they are not alone." Nicely said, ha?! Thank you, Igor!

If you are subscribed to my email updates through my website, then you probably received my email with the video clip (https://youtu.be/_dMA3IQG4VQ) of this new podcast with Dr. Razia Sultanova, the author of the groundbreaking research publication «From Shamanism to Sufism, Women, Islam and Culture in Central Asia». Subscribers sometimes get earlier content like this clip, before the episode is available to everyone.

As it is mentioned in the episode, I met Razia in London almost 10 years ago, I interviewed her, in Russian, in front of the School of Oriental and African Studies where she used to work. Here is that interview: https://youtu.be/Re8hL0Jo4Uo.

From an email list I am subscribed to, I found out yesterday (what a counsidence!) that Razia Sultanova has left her position as Chairperson of the Music of the Turkic Speaking World Study Group, due to organizing and leading a new Group on the Global History of Music. Congratulations to Razia!

Share this story and tag me as Janyl Jusupjan on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram - I will be delighted to hear from you! If you want to know how you could support this podcast, find me on patreon.com/janyljusupjan.

The next show will be with Daniel Prior, an American researcher who deciphered the tape of an epic story by a little known Kyrgyz epic teller and musician Kenje Kara. The tape was recorded by a Russian traveler more than a century ago! And yes, you will be able to hear that tape!

Enjoy Chaï Latte with Salt!