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Ali
Azmat Interview
Social animal
Fifi Haroon previews Ali Azmat's debut solo album 'Social Circus' and talks to
Junoon's lead vocalist in an exclusive interview about life, love, liberty and
the pursuit of happiness
Ali Azmat has a cruel mouth. It sneers in moments of disdain, it curls up when
its amused. It's the kind of mouth women like to feel on theirs, and it's a
mouth that's been around more than a dozen lips that have lived to tell the
tale. It's also a big mouth, which occasionally seems to have a foot in it. Not
that Ali cares much what people think of what he says or does. This is his life
and all those who don't like it can find another sandbox to play in.
But don't be deceived. The mouth is only a piece of the puzzle. The eyes give
Ali Azmat away. He usually hides them behind the comforting darkness of shades
or intensifies the gaze with startling effect for photographs. But away from the
glare of media storms, Ali has eyes that reflect subterranean moods and uneasy
emotions. His mouth speaks with conviction, but his eyes betray an ongoing
soul-searching. The one thing that Ali Azmat has learnt about life after his
rise from rags to riches is that it goes on. And he is quick to tell you that it
has after his on again off again relationship with model Vaneeza Ahmed has
supposedly ended for the last time.
He's looking sharp these days. Kind of mean, smooth and clean-shaven and ready
to launch his solo debut with 'Social Circus.' I recall his early days as a
bratty, energetic twenty something ingenue who suddenly catapulted into the
spotlight with Jupiters and 'Dosti.' Ali was cocky even then; he just wasn't
hip. That combination emerged about five years down the line with Junoon. Sufi
pop, state disapproval during the Sharif ascendancy and a bohemian lifestyle
made Ali Azmat iconic for a whole generation looking for rebellious role models.
The wanderer from downtown Lahore was suddenly selling cd's faster than you
could say Bulley Shah; not just in Pakistan but across the border, where the
celebrity stakes were even higher. It was the 1990's and Ali Azmat and Junoon
had arrived - with ethnic kurtas, defiantly long hair and a monster hit called 'Sayonee.'
But fortunes are bound to fluctuate in a fickle market; the world is no longer
Junoon's oyster. Trouble appears to be brewing in the band with Brian
O'Connell's departure and dwindling sales for the last few albums. Yet Junoon
remains a cornerstone of Pakistani pop; everyone wants them to recover and
rejuvenate their act again. But Salman Ahmed and Ali Azmat's forays into solo
territory just add fuel to the fire. Is this the end of Junoon as we know it?
Widen the picture. Junoon and Ali Azmat may well be able to live side by side.
Certainly, Ali's new album, 'Social Circus' is not trespassing into Junoon
territory. The sound is uncompromisingly new, the production radically
dissimilar and the spirit looks like it belongs to a different body altogether.
The first solo album from Junoon's devil-may-care lead vocalist is steeped in
what he calls "bittersweet" self-dialogue. The mood is reflective;, the tone is
dark. This is not a young album; it is laden with experience and layered with
disillusionment. Has Ali Azmat, renowned Lothario, original wild-child and
Pakistani pop's proverbial enfant terrible finally come of age?
'Social Circus' is original, depressing, challenging. Some may attack it as too
much of a good thing or just too much to handle in one listen, but Ali is
convinced that the "switching channels" approach is productively edgy. It is
above all a courageous album, venturing into areas most pop songs rarely
explore. But can an audience fed on pop-corn bear the emotional burdens of
'Social Circus'? Has the Pakistani listener, like Ali Azmat, finally gone beyond
the momentary lapses of teenage heartache? Or has Ali Azmat left them far behind
in his quest for musical ingenuity? The future of Pakistani rock-pop, even at
the best of times is unpredictable but if any album is worth a serious listen it
is this one. It has the potential to rattle preconceived notions and make you
shift uncomfortably in your seat. I for one find that wildly exciting.
So here I am sitting in Ali Azmat's fab pad listening to the orchestral
manoeuvres of 'Deewana' the first single from the album. And apparently Jami is
in the editing studio giving the video its final shape. Ali's slip-sliding
vocals and the glamorous, sonorous arrangement seem to fit like yin and yang. It
is a heady, intermittently raucous but strangely undulating mix. In other
numbers, such as the eerie 'Teri Parchaiyan' (produced by the reclusive Rohail
Hyatt) Ali's vocals plunge suddenly into undiscovered octaves and mess with your
mind as he snarls his way through rejection and ruination. 'Na Ray Na' asks
questions you may not want to answer, but it is both soulful and stirring - for
now it is the song I want to listen to repeatedly despite the fact that it drags
me down each time I do. 'Dil Ki Sera' takes an unexpected jazzy twist with a
saxophone refrain that is tempting, seductive. The album in total explodes with
overwhelming inner energies. None of this is clear on a first listen; 'Social
Circus' will grow on you; it reveals new facets even when you feel you've
finally figured it out.
Ali and I talk. And then we talk some more. And then some more. In between Ali
packs a suitcase for a trip to promote the album in Mumbai. Finally, we end up
at Boat Basin at 3 a.m. in the morning sharing chops and paratha and still
talking. I've known Ali for about 15 years now through life's highs and lows. He
hasn't lost some of his innocence; he hasn't lost some of his arrogance. He has
gained a few insights into himself and he doesn't seem to feel the pressure to
be as brazen and outrageous as he was in the old days. His swanky home reflects
the new mood. "This is more furniture than I've ever had in my life!" he laughs.
There is contemporary art on the walls; an infinite array of comfortable
statement furniture and his man Friday can even whip up a decent coffee. The
days of Ali Azmat living like a gypsy with a mattress on the floor it seems are
over. "Hey, it's a low Japanese style bed," points out Ali. "It's still the same
concept you know." That's what I like about Ali Azmat. Wherever his head may be
at, his feet will never be too far from the ground...
Q. Are you a really bad boy?
A. Can I disappoint you and say not really? My friends in the media from day one
advertised me as a bad boy and the stigma remains. If you go by what people like
to think of me I'm a very, very bad boy. If it works for you then believe it -
I'm not going to shatter the image.
Q. Brian is out, Salman Ahmed and you are both doing solo projects. Is Junoon
alive and well or dead and buried?
A. All I can say at this point is that I am alive - and as long as I am alive
Salman Ahmad will make sure that Junoon is alive. I might stray but he keeps me
focused. Right now I'm tired of touring. It's a complete emotional disruption in
my life to always be traveling from city to city. It's emotionally
dysfunctional; you're in two different airports every single day. I'm at that
stage where I need to feel alive about my own music. But my base is playing live
music and Junoon feeds that thirst. I like singing my heart out to people. I'd
like to keep Junoon alive as long as I can, but in the end it all depends on
creative juices. You have to feel alive when you're playing the music. And yeah
I still feel that so I guess Junoon is still alive.
Q. How much of Junoon's success has been due to you?
A. As much as it was due to anyone else at that time. That's the politically
correct answer.
Q. What are you hoping to achieve with your solo album? How different is it from
Junoon?
A. I want to change the sound of the music people are listening to. We did it
with 'Sayonee' and I want that to happen again. I've put my heart and soul into
this album. Nothing on it sounds like Junoon. The music is fuller and more
mature.
Q. 'Social Circus' is a very dark, angst ridden album - where is it coming from?
A. 'Social Circus' is an album of bittersweet symphonies. It is full of double
meanings and contradictions. It comes from a time in my life when I was giving
up and living in denial. It was a tumultuous, changing time in my life. There
was a lot happening in my relationship with my band members, my friends, my girl
friend. I thought that everything around me was changing and that I couldn't
keep up but it was I who was evolving. It was a big maturity shift; I realized
my needs had changed but they were no longer being met. All the emotions of the
32 years that I have lived came to the fore in one go. And these upheavals put
everything in perspective. I had hundreds of questions to ask of life – and
'Social Circus' has all these questions and some answers; it's a dialogue with
myself.
Q. Do you think that people will be able to absorb such an intensely personal
dialogue?
A. 'Social Circus' has emerged out of a deep, hidden place inside me that people
don't know about. I've used music and words to elaborate on it and understand it
for myself. I've just shared the upper crust of what there is. People don't need
to understand me to understand the music. It will touch different people in
different ways and maybe become part of their own dialogue with themselves.
Q. They say you have had more girlfriends than any single guy in Pakistan. So
what's the total so far?
A. (Smiles) I'm a lover not a mathematician.
Q. Does love mean anything to you?
A. Love is everything. It's what the universe revolves around. Our miserable
conception of life hinges on love. It is the opium of the masses. We need to
create these supports in our life. But it's just another excuse to further
ourselves for someone else's cause. Love is an eventuality but an unpredictable
one. We all find it in some way or the other but not necessarily in the way we
thought. As for meaning - we might never know the meaning of it.
Q. So have you loved and lost?
A. Many, many times. At least you come up with albums like this when you have
loved and lost. So it's not an entirely bad thing.
Q. Is the album dedicated to Vinny (model Vaneeza Ahmed)?
A. (Laughs) No way, I've had a lot more heartbreaks in my life after that. The
greatest gift is letting go. You always have to leave. Once you let go life
becomes more bearable. That's what the album is about; these crisscrossing
moments that you live through. Life is too vast - nothing is about one person.
Q. Has life left any visible scars on you?
A. Girtey hain shehsawaar hi maidaan-e-jang may (Only soldiers die on the battle
field). I don't have deep scars. Most of my life has been a constant struggle.
People think the struggle must have stopped because Ali Azmat has made it. But
it never stops. The only time it stops is when you die - and I don't plan to die
anytime soon. If God has other plans that's different.
Q. Your friends used to kid you about being the Pakistani Jim Morrison, but
you're still alive and rocking at 34?
A. I'm definitely not Jim Morrison. I'm my own person. I've set a pace for
myself in life. When people are young they do certain things and you can't judge
them on the basis of that for the rest of their lives. Having said that, I'm
still the same wild child - or should I say wild budha (old man) I once was. I'm
not going to wait till I'm 52 to enjoy life. I'm going to work and party my ass
off.
Q. What's your dream woman in 3 words?
A. Intelligent, funny and pleasant looking. And I mean pleasant not beautiful.
Beauty doesn't thrill me. She should be the kind of woman you look at first
thing in the morning and don't want to run away from. So you say okay darling
I'll stay a little while longer, maybe even a few years and have a few babies
along the way...
Q. So why are still single?
A. 'Cause I'm still ready to mingle!
Q. Somehow it's difficult to imagine Ali Azmat as a dad. But you say you want to
have kids?
A. Oh yeah definitely. I've always loved kids. They're like an extension of
oneself. You understand life more when you see it through the eyes of your
child.
Q. What kind of relationship do you have with your parents?
A. Very cool. There is absolutely no emotional pressure. We share everything.
They are possibly the best parents any guy could wish for.
Q. What gives you happiness?
A. Playing music. Anything I do for others and not just for myself give me
happiness.
Q. From curly mop to clean-shave, it's always been an extreme hair statement for
Ali Azmat. Which one is more you?
A. Both are me at different ages and times of my life. If I looked the same
today as I did in 'Music '89' I'd be worried. Having hair was not interesting to
me anymore so I cut it off. Going to a hairdresser just didn't fit into my
schedule. So I thought better shave it all off before it decides to go on its
own.
Q. You grew up on the wrong side of the tracks in Lahore and now you're on top
of rich kids' guest lists. How does that feel?
A. It doesn't feel special or anything. Once you get onto the rich kids' guest
lists you realize that they have nothing to show or say for themselves. The guys
from the wrong side of the tracks at least have their scars. Actually, all the
poor kids I used to hang out with have done amazingly well for themselves. They
are engineers and car dealers now. They had the hunger; they wanted to be
somebody and they did it. I haven't forgotten those guys. I'm still in touch
with them.
Q. Do you think you're arrogant?
A. Anything but. If I were arrogant I would never have come this far.
Q. How much attitude do you have?
A. When it's needed lots of it. Listen, you can't cater to millions of people
one on one. I've seen huge stars that are pretty normal when you meet them
informally and then when the camera and lights are on they put on a performance.
Your attitude changes with the situation. Everyone wants a piece of you and you
can't always just behave normally in an abnormal situation.
Q. If you ran for office what would be your political manifesto?
A. If I were there for five years I would have co-education as a first on my
list. We need more interaction between men and women. I think the lack of
fraternizing between the sexes is a great hindrance to any kind of development.
We don't like women thinking for themselves; it's a great disease in our
society. Next, I would want to change the police. There's no real law and order
for the common person and I believe that every man and woman has to have that
right. You can't call yourself a civilized country without it. I think
[President] Musharraf has shown that there is a way forward already; that it is
possible to open up and not be so narrow-minded.
Q. When you want to look sexy what do you wear?
A. Nothing!
Q. What warms you up in winter and what cools you down in summer?
A. Somebody's genuine laughter will always warm me up in the coldest winter. And
the same goes for cooling me down in summer. When I see a genuine emotion it
makes me truly happy. I'm a very happy person inside.
Q. What's your most lethal seduction weapon?
A. My sense of humour.
Q. What is your favourite chill-out spot?
A. Home. It's where my heart is.
Q. How would your ex-girlfriends describe you?
A. As an asshole.
Q. What's the one item of clothing you couldn't live without?
A. Underwear.
link :
http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/jan2005-wee...2005/instep.htm
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