Playing different roles, Kashmiri Sufi folk singer talks about the inspiration for this musical
Playing different roles, Kashmiri Sufi folk singer talks about the inspiration for this musical
It has been a crazy week for Abha Hanjura. The Kashmiri Sufi-folk singer, composer and lyricist fell ill. His 15-month-old daughter Sitara and his parents also followed suit. Along with this, his song was also released. “Music helped me grow,” she says over the phone from Bengaluru. After a two-year hiatus, Aura is back on the block with an acoustic Unplugged EP Sufistation Folk Session With a set of multilingual songs depicting the folk music of different regions of North India. Two songs – ‘Sahibo’, a prayer in Kashmiri, and ‘Kale Rang Da Paranda’, a lively Punjabi song that have been released, have a mixed effect.
The idea behind releasing singles rather than entire albums is to ensure “songs from different languages have room to breathe and not get lost”.
of sound and stories
Unlike her earlier EP, Kashmir voice, Marked with heavy sounds, the new EP is simplified so that people can focus on the beauty and simplicity of the songs. “In Punjabi folk, these are called Kiss, a narrative. Folk is also about telling simple stories. The EP has a happy folk-pop vibe and the soundtrack with an emphasis on minimalism reflects her state of mind as a person and as an artist.
aura worked public session More music videos were recorded during the pandemic while she was pregnant. It came at a time when the pandemic brought a lot of work to a halt for artists.
Kaale Rang Da Paranda Team: Aabha Hanjura with Deepak Sharma (Flute), Prashant Gyanmuthu (Bass) and Biplab Bhattacharya (Tabla and Taal). photo credit: special arrangement
Launching an EP in Kashmiri with ‘Sahebo’ was fitting as people had gone through a lot. “I was releasing music after two years and it was also an uncertain phase as the pandemic brought so much anxiety. Everyone needs a little bit of divine joy, hope and positivity.”
Born in Kashmir and brought up in Jammu, although she worked in Mumbai and lives in Bengaluru, she has a strong Punjabi Dogri influence. As someone who sets out to create music that celebrates Kashmir and its roots, has she been successful in this journey? “It’s always a question that bothers me.”
At a time when she was exiting a corporate career and looking for inspiration and purpose for her music, she found it in Kashmir when she visited in 2013. At that time, when Abha started her musical journey, there was no other singer from Kashmir. , He felt that the language and region were under-represented in the mainstream. She recalls, “That trip was lax. I realized how much pain there is all around; it needs to be turned into something meaningful so that a positive conversation can start around Kashmir.
Some numbers are ‘Hukas Bucks’, ‘Joshwala, Sundar Roshewala’ , The ones that were started after that journey seemed to be rediscovering Kashmiri as a language.
A decade old in the industry this year, Aabha is determined to surprise the audience with her diverse performances, which includes an original in Hindi, her creations and a few collaborations.
juggling roles
She combines her music with her role as a new mother where everything is up in the air. She was shocked to learn how disciplined she had become. For someone who has never followed a structured life, her life now revolves around her daughter’s routine.
She says, “It (motherhood) is also like a skill because it turns into a person who can do better than before. I don’t want to glorify motherhood because everything becomes 10 times harder Being a mother has made me a better person and I would have it no other way. Everyone says it and you realize it when you go through it.”
Being a Kashmiri Pandit, Abha feels sad that people pass judgments without researching such a complex issue. “When people talk about Kashmir, they talk about terrorism or tourism. Its rich culture also needs attention.”
The singer tries to create a positive dialogue through music. “It would be great if people have more sympathy towards Kashmiris which includes both Kashmiri Pandits and Kashmiri Muslim community. Sadly, people like to take sides on this issue. The way forward is to have meaningful conversations about root causes, how we address them and not make people the enemy of a community.”