Courtesy Hipakistan
Play it again, Tina
Instep - The News
“Ghazal had always been an intellectual’s territory, dismissed by the youth as ''meant for older people.” Enter Tina Sani in 1980s and things were never the same again. She gave classical music a touch of youth and respectability along with a dash of serious glamour too. Here, two decades after her entry into the industry, la belle Sani talks to Zeenia Shaukat"
You once told instep about your war against mediocrity. What according to you is mediocrity and how do you think you will be waging that war?
It’s just a personal commitment to try not to get or accept bad quality work. To me it’s important to look at myself with respect. People here work on the formula of kaam chalta hai tau chalne do and hence we get into this rut of mediocrity.
Musically speaking, today I find myself at a point where I owe it to my work to work hard. I respect my work immensely and I would never joke about it. Every field requires certain standards to be met. We in the recording industry know what good recordings are. We keep Mehdi Hassan on the pedestal because we know he is the best. There are the likes of Lata Mangeshkar and Noor Jehan to look up to and set your own standards against. To me, mediocrity is way below that standard. And worst than that is not wanting to do anything about it.
How much is the commercial aspect important for a singer like you?
It would be wrong to entirely dismiss commercialism as it is important for a talented person to help spread his talent. We do have great talent here, but we all have to make a living at the end of the day. One cannot do that without proper exposure and this is where commercialism can play a constructive role.
I wish we had proper managers in this country. An artist can rarely be a commercial person. We just spend ourselves juggling between producing work and selling it. A lot of times I feel that we are being wasted by producers, who should be using our talent in an innovative manner. That way, India is far better. Off late they have started working on different combinations. Asha Bhonsle sings with Jagjit, a ghazal singer and Colonial Cousins at the same time. It’s a unique combination of people who can work well together. Why can’t we try something like that? People just see that Tina Sani ghazal acchi gaa leti hain. That’s very unexciting. I find my riaz more satisfying.
Classical work needs funding and there are people who are willing to contribute. But in popular music it’s important to be popular and for that one has to be associated with a company. This is commercialism - naked and nude commercialism. Your product’s got to be saleable but there ought to be a thin line between selling yourself and selling your product.
You were once heavily into jingles. Off late you haven’t being doing them?
I gave up singing jingles two years back. Jingles used to be fun, one thrill being good money of course. Besides it was a relief to get away from being Tina Sani, because for change it didn’t use to be me; it was the product. It’s almost like working outside of yourself - comic relief at times.
Two years ago a newspaper column pointed out that serious singers shouldn’t be singing jingles. They argued that by that token even Mehdi Hassan and Noor Jehan should start doing them. I realized that there are people out there who have grown to love me and feel that I shouldn’t be doing such kind of stuff. I understand their point of view. When you are a public figure you have a responsibility too. I feel I owe it to people because I have been greatly appreciated by them and I honestly respect this view.
Do you think it’s natural or do you develop a taste for a certain kind of music?
No that’s acquired. It depends on what you grow up with. That has to do from where you come from. I heard a lot of classical music while growing up. So that had a great influence on my decision to become a singer.
Why do you think classical music enjoys such a limited audience?
As I said the taste for classical music has to be acquired. Classical music demands listeners to know what is going around.
So do you agree that it’s only the educated segment of the society that appreciates this genre of music?
I don’t think so. Classical music was first executed by people who came from musical backgrounds, people who were not really educated buy they were craftsman in their art. For instance Bade Ghulam Ali and Roshan Ara Begum etc. believe me classical music is no joke. It’s a serious form of art. If people would only understand what goes into this whole discipline of classical music; local or western, they would never dare to look down upon it. It has to be the work of a genius to come up with this whole discipline of ragas. It could only be appreciated by those who understand the kind of hard work that goes into it.
You are concentrating more on live shows these days than recordings?
Yeah. It’s been quite a while since I last recorded a cassette, ten years to be more precise. Yes I do enjoy doing concerts more.
So what are your expectations of the audience when you are doing live performances?
My only drawback is that I want people to know Urdu well enough to understand my performance. Otherwise I am lost. I expect people to understand and appreciate literature. And then the art of enjoying three hours of an evening out. For three hours leave your mobile phone and your worries behind you.
For me, when I am performing I enjoy the audience’s presence as much as I would like them to enjoy my performance. The audience becomes the performer for me. It’s a very two way street. I cannot cut myself off from the audience. Otherwise, I would the rather sit in a room and perform.
You started quite late compared to your contemporaries?
I started at the age of 21,22. Since it was a late age to start at I had to cover a lot of ground to make up for lost time. I remember I was on a constant take. I had to do a lot of grasping, convert the information in my mind and incorporate it to make sense of it. I had to do it within the time frame that was mine. For me I started at a point where I was much beyond "ice-cream na khao gala kharab ho jayega’’ myth. So I had to make sure that my performance didn’t get marred by silly influence.
Was it difficult?
At 21 it’s not really easy to be convinced of everything. It took some time to for me to get hold of this discipline of music. Prior to becoming a part of it, I myself was among those who would mock this genre of music. But once I made an attempt to understand it, I ended up appreciating the level of intelligence behind it. It was amazing to see that there was a method to this madness. You can sing a Raag-e-Darbari in ten different ways. It’s a whole game of permutations. It activates your brain. Next came the retention of knowledge. Classical music is all about how much knowledge you can retain.
Where do you see yourself amid all Iqbal Banos, Nayyera Noors and Tahira Syeds?
I can easily put myself in the second or the third gear to them. To me they are the first gear. May be I am their shadow!
You said in a TV interview that out of all the poets you have sung, you have grown to admire Faiz Ahmed Faiz the most. Can you explain why?
Throughout our adulthood we had been travelling a lot. I had seen the eastern part of the country transforming from Pakistan to Bangladesh. Afghanistan broke into shambles in front of my own eyes. So all that made me politically more aware and conscious than the kids of my age. During that period I started reading Faiz Sahib. He spoke to me about things that my mind was questioning. Faiz Sahib, to me, has always portrayed a person, who, in a nutshell, says, that you have to get up and do it yourself. He will not blame on others for whatever wrong that is there. His poems are all about how much we are willing to take up the responsibility. And this is where I think I am able to connect with him. Because as a nation, I sometimes feel as if we are kindergarten students who are always up to some mischief when the class prefect is not there. On my own level I think I could understand what he was trying to convey and I took his message perfectly.
Where do you think classical music stands after struggling to retain its position for five decades in the art industry of the country?
As a nation we’ve been through a lot. We are too young a nation to know where we belong. Although we have inherited a whole heritage of music, we’ve hardly had any time to develop it. In a nation where there is a question of provision of basic health and education, developing music as a serious form of art becomes a luxury. How well have we fared in education that we are complaining about classical music? True, we do have our share of legends like Roshan Ara Begum, Mehdi Hassan and Noor Jehan, and on our part I don’t think we have fared so badly. Our classical singers were and are an absolute force to reckon with. But when there is disturbance in the country, entertainment is the first industry to get hit. And we have had far too many disturbances as such.
Talking about that how much credit would you give to PTV in promoting classical music?
I have absolutely no complaints from PTV. The only thing that I wish PTV had done on a more positive note is giving a slightly better airing time to the classical music. But then I think it’s unfair to ask for that because there is only a limited section of the society who appreciates this genre of music.
What advice would you give to those who are inclined towards classical singing?
There are people who are more than willing to impart knowledge. Newcomers should seek them out. Besides there are some wonderful books on the principles of classical music. One can always turn to them to master the craft.
Do you think it’s monetarily rewarding enough to be taken up as a full time profession?
If they are good enough in their art and willing to give it their all then I don’t see why classical singing cannot be a full time career. People shy away from it because they are unsure. Besides music is a tough world. There is something-new coming up everyday and the old one is tossed aside. You can be a hit this year and be out in a freezer for the next ten years. Unless you make a mark of yourself into a serious exponent like Mehdi Hassan and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, it is difficult to survive here. At the end of the day humari rozi logoon ke saath bandhi hoi hai. It all depends on what people want. A classic case of supply and demand. I will be around as long as people want to hear me. Art must remain a passion for you but it’s hard to bank on it.
In Pakistan I feel that instead of a lead singer, a tabla player or a guitarist stands a better chance of survival because accompaniments are always required for any kind of music. If you are good in accompaniment then chances are that you will get a job for life.
Do you agree with the nation that a local singer gets a lesser due than his foreign counterpart does?
That’s true to some extent. For foreign singers it’s a huge market out there - an international market. Besides there is an issue of royalties which unfortunately our local singers seldom get. In Pakistan we don’t have a proper networking because of the language as it is only understood in a few countries. The other option is that you touch that international level and become popular enough to be picked by any music industry like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. This industry is not racist at all. Only your work matters here and not your nationality.
When do we expect a nice Tina Sani collection from you next?
Soon Inshallah. I am waiting for my son Naseer to grow up a bit to be able to compromise with my long recording hours. Recording is a full time commitment and I don’t want my family to suffer because of it.
After more than two decades in this field what is it that you still yearn for?
I want to be able to sing one raag one day. I wish to sing khayal gayeki in its true form.