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Music stuck at frontier:
Junoon tour on hold
Jul 13, 2002
New Delhi : PAKISTANI band Junoon will not be able to perform in India for some
time to come. And the strongest indicator of it was the postponement of their
concert in Hyderabad, scheduled for New Year’s Eve. Other concerts planned with
Indian musicians in Delhi and Mumbai in January have also been postponed
indefinitely.
Junoon’s last performance in India was in Delhi, in May last year, to generate
funds for the Gujarat quake victims.
Performing at a string of concerts held in different cities, the group had
rendered songs with Indian bands like Silk Route, and Euphoria in aid of the
quake victims.
But for now, even as musicians from both sides of the border have been trying to
bridge gaps and promote solidarity, the new freeze in diplomatic relations
between India and Pakistan has turned the wheel backwards. Artists fear that not
only concerts, but even productions may suffer for a long time.
Venkat Vardhan, managing director, DNA Networks, the event management company
organising the ‘postponed New Year show’ confirmed the freeze in cultural
exchange with Pakistan: "We had to postpone the event for security reasons. The
situation is not conducive and all performances have been put on hold."
"We are not even sure when we will be able to do it. But we hope it happens
soon," he added.
For Junoon, the cancellation came at the last moment. All set to reach India,
the three member band was informed about the cancellation of concert on December
29. Band members — Salman Ahmed, Ali Azmat and Brian — by then had planned
celebrating the New Year with friends in Goa and had to scrap it at the last
minute.
Said Ahmed, also the spokesperson for the United Nations for 2001-02: "I had to
call up friends and cancel the holiday. It doesn’t feel just as good to be here
now."
The band is still waiting for confirmation regarding its other concerts
scheduled for January but has been asked to hold planning anything. Said
Shahnaab Alam, it’s representative in India: "As and when time and circumstances
allow, we are hoping to hold the concert."
Meanwhile, despair runs high in the cultural fraternity even as communication
between individual performers continues. The general feeling, as artists both
sides put it, is that of ‘helplessness’.
"It is a huge blow. There is little that the common man can do even though it is
they who have kept the bond going despite the rift," said Ahmed.
Describing the situation as a ‘needle stuck on a record’, he added: "This is
like building a wall between people. The lesser people see the other side, the
greater is the fear that sets in. We need to dispel these fears."
Cultural exchanges, Ahmed feels can help a great deal in improving relations:
"Artists in the sub-continent have greater responsibility. I have seen people in
India revel in our music and spirits. Both artists and the audience have helped
strengthen ties."
Mohit Chauhan of Silk Route agrees. Having staged four concerts with Junoon and
projects planned for this year, Chauhan said: "Everything has been put on a hold
for now but we have to work towards getting over our differences."
"We have had good performances with Junoon and were to visit Pakistan early this
year. It’s a pity that our wish to interact with people there has been
postponed," he added.
Chauhan further confirmed that Silk Route will soon take up a collaborative
project ‘Peace Quest’ with Junoon that has already been approved by the UN
agencies.
The project involves mobilising students in schools and colleges through
concerts and lectures for the "need of peace in the sub-continent and looking
beyond the current situation".
Speaking about the project, Ahmed said: "It is the young who hold hope for the
two nations and we wish to work with them to propagate peace. I would want to
perform in educational institutions in India for the same." Ahmed plans to take
up similar exercises with Indian artists like Remo Fernanades, Sonu Nigam and
Palash Sen, talks for which are underway and "should materialise very soon".
Junoon is also scheduled to perform with Silk Route in US later this year.
Ahmed, in his efforts, has also written a letter of appeal to UN Secretary
General Kofi Annan, Pakistan president Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee,
asking: "A war between India and Pakistan at this stage would have catastrophic
effects on our entire region. It is imperative that the people of South Asia,
constituting one-fifth of humanity, must demand peace for themselves and their
future generations."
Claiming that "the New Year resolution for both countries should be to make
peace not war", Ahmed, meanwhile, is working on a project with his friends in
India. The project includes a song pyar hai zindagi, pyar hai bandgi, which
Ahmed plans to perform at the Line of Control (LoC) some time soon. He has
already submitted his proposal to both the Indian and the Pakistani goverments
and is awaiting permission.
Until then, however, music buffs both sides of the border will be deprived of
good music and camaraderie amongst artists from India and Pakistan.
expressindia.com
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