An evening where the traditions of the mehfil and the dastarkhān come together, just as they once did in the courts of Awadh, Delhi, and Hyderabad.

From the vision of acclaimed chef, poet, and polymath Uday Kamath—renowned for his culinary artistry and for writing numerous ghazals—in collaboration with Musikala, comes Zauq-e-Sukhan: a one-of-a-kind evening celebrating the timeless traditions of poetry, music, and the Nawabi dastarkhān.

It takes place Friday, October 9, 2026 in Ashburn, VA. Purchase your tickets here.

The Mehfil

Ghazals in the traditional baithak style, brought to you by two of Northern Virginia’s most sought-after voices, Swati Kanitkar and Diptanu Das, accompanied by the finest instrumentalists: Debu Nayak on tabla, Shreyas Ravi on harmonium, Soumya Chakraverty on sarod, and Tej Kanitkar on guitar.

In a baithak, the ghazal breathes. Singers and listeners sit face to face. A couplet is sung, then savored, then sung again. Lovers of Urdu poetry, and the poets among us, become part of the evening itself, trading meanings and answering a beautiful misra with a full-throated “Wāh”!

The Dastarkhān

The evening begins the way every great mehfil once did: with food worthy of the poetry to follow.

This is not restaurant catering. Every dish is homemade, following recipes carried through hundreds of years of tradition, prepared with the patience the Nawabi kitchen demands.

And it is not a buffet. In true dastarkhān style, you will be served a hot plated meal—one per ticket, chosen at booking:

Sabz-e-Bahār (Vegeterian)

Lucknowi Veg Yakhni Pulav, Kashmiri Paneer Chaman, Roghani Naan, Raita, Awadhi Kheer

Zaa’iqa-e-Sultānī (Non-Vegeterian)

Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani, Delhi Nalli Nihari, Roghani Naan, Raita, Awadhi Kheer