Notes from the other side
By: Narendra Kusnur
It was a sheer delight to hear the Mekaal Hasan Band perform at the Shanmukhananda Hall on Friday evening.
For those who haven’t heard — or heard of — this Pakistani group before, it blends traditional classical and Sufiana elements with rock and jazz arrangements.
At the show, presented by music channel ETC, the group performed songs from their brilliant album Sampooran. While tracks like Sajan, Rabba, Waris Shah, Yaa Ali, Darbari and Sanwal were charmingly rendered, there were two very interesting things about the group.
One was the way extra-talented vocalist Javed Bashir stuck totally to his classical roots, as the instrumental backdrop fused jazz and rock with eastern melodies.
The other was the manner in which guitarist-composer Mekaal had re-arranged the songs for the live format, using extended guitar and flute solos, and maintaining a tight rhythm session.
Flautist Mohammad Ahsan Papu was a treat to the ears, playing perfectly with the mood of each song.
For those who missed the show, it is being telecast by ETC at 9 pm this Friday. Of course, one hopes the ambience of the live concert is reproduced well enough on television.
The Mekaal Hasan Band is the latest in the line of Pakistani bands visiting India. Though artistes from various genres — pop, ghazals and Sufiana — have visited India off and on since the early ’80s, it’s been only in the past four years or so that the momentum has picked up.
For a long time, cross-border visits by artistes from both countries were affected by political tensions.
Some Indian musicians have complained about how they never got opportunities to perform in Pakistan. But now that things are much better, there is scope for two-way traffic.
Pakistani artistes have always been admired by a small section of Indian audiences. In the ghazal field, Mehdi Hassan and Ghulam Ali have a fairly large following, and by regularly visiting India in the ’80s, they managed to increase that fan base.
A small yet devoted number of listeners have tuned in to singers like Mallika Pukhraj, Farida Khanum, Iqbal Bano, Nayyara Noor and Tahira Syed. For those who liked light or folk-based music, Noorjehan and Reshma were a good choice, despite limited availability of recordings.
In the mid ’90s, admirers of Sufiana music started closely following Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.
Besides his qawwali albums, he did a few crossover albums for Peter Gabriel’s Real World label, thus getting international exposure. After his death in August 1997, Sufiana music found a new star in Abida Parveen.
Though she had been performing regularly in Pakistan since the late ’80s, she released a few albums based on the poetry of Baba Bulleh Shah, Kabir, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Hazrat Shah Hussain especially for the Indian market. The Sabri Brothers have their own set of devotees.
Of course, the biggest expansion in the past few years has taken place in the field of Pakistani pop and pop-rock. Though one heard Nazia Hassan, Zoheb Hassan and Hassan Jahangir in the ’80s, it was only around 1998 that Junoon kickstarted what later became a regular affair.
Yes, Strings had attracted audiences a few years earlier with its video Sar Kiye Yeh Pahad, but once Junoon began doing shows here, others followed suit. Adnan Sami, whose roots are in Pakistan, became a big star in Indipop.
Strings came with a revised line-up. Ali Haider impressed with his songs Purani Jeans, and more recently, Fuzon has been wowing the Indian crowd with songs like Ankhon Ke Saagar, Ankhiyan and Tere Bina.
Nusrat’s nephew Rahat Fateh Ali Khan came for a few concerts, and even contributed his song Mann Ki Lagan to the film Paap.
Last year, artistes like Fakhr-e-Alam and Aaroh came on short visits — the former to look for opportunities, and the latter for the music launch of Rakht, where they had contributed a song.
Pakistani pop musicians talk about how their market has expanded tremendously in the past few years.
Besides the bands mentioned above, Vital Signs, Sajjad Ali, Noori, Juneid Jamsheid, Haroon, Abrar ul-Haq, Shehzad Roy, Aghaz, Mizmaar, Hadiqa Kayani and Caravan have been popular among the local youth, either in the past or today.
We’re sure some of them will be eyeing the Indian market in the next few months, considering that there is a huge potential here.
The entry of Pakistani bands in the Indian market has had some interesting results. To begin with, Indian pop listeners are being exposed to different sounds. Junoon had its own brand, blending rock with Sufiana elements.
Both the Mekaal Hasan Band and Fuzon have smartly adapted traditional and classical tunes with western arrangements. Secondly, some of these bands are collaborating with Indian artistes like Euphoria and Silk Route at live shows, spreading the message of peace.
That’s a great sign. Industry watchers will, however, point out that while a lot of Pakistani bands have been performing here, too many Indian artistes have not been playing across the border.
This is what one looks forward to actually. Now that the doors have opened and opportunities have increased, one hopes more and more Indian artistes play there, and expose the crowds on that side to some fabulous live gigs. Music, after all, has no boundaries.
http://ww1.mid-day.com/columns/narendra_kusnur/2005/january/101222.htm
