Nearly two thousand excited music lovers danced their way into Saudi Arabia’s cultural history. Banded together in their love of music were Pakistanis, Indians and a lavish sprinkling of Saudis who tapped until their heels hurt as Pakistani and Indian leaders met half a world away to declare there is no going back on their resolve for peace. Music had never been a better unifier.
They couldn’t have chosen a better occasion to show their good will toward each other and to Saudi Arabia. It was Saudi Arabia’s National Day and the evening’s theme was rightly peace.
It was the evening Junoon came to town with a bang.
Ali Azmat of “Junoon” — Pakistan’s biggest rock band — with some brilliant and creative singles to its credit, had the crowd dancing at the rare performance at Mersal Village, 50 kms from Jeddah recently.
Junoon, referred to as “The U2 of Asia,” commands considerable recognition internationally. They have received the Best International Band award from Channel [V]. They also got peace awards from UNESCO and the BBC.
Attending a Junoon concert is quite an experience. The group’s young fans are no less enthusiastic about them than the followers of many popular bands in the West. And it was not just the young men — Junoon’s female fans too were tuned in quite enthusiastically.
Cheering, dancing and clapping to the bass-driven rhythm, the large crowd showed how much they enjoyed Junoon, the band known for its singles on patriotism and peace.
The young group that had slowly tapped their way to the front rows lent color to the proceedings with their impromptu and unique gyrations while waving Pakistani and Saudi flags. Organizer-cum-anchor Amir Muhammad Khan thanked the Saudi government for granting permission for the show. Famous Saudi poet Omer Salim Al-Adroos recited some couplets praising the Saudi government.
Consul General of Pakistan Masood Akhtar, under whose aegis the program was organized, in his address congratulated the Saudi government on the National Day and highlighted the bonds of friendship between Pakistan and the Kingdom.
Akhtar said: “Saudi Arabia is second home for every Pakistani and the relations between the two countries are fraternal and time-tested.”
The cultural part of the evening, designed to show solidarity with Saudi Arabia, began with some local artistes presenting their folk songs and other popular and varied numbers to set the tempo for the evening.
Enter Pakistani pop singer Salim Jawed with the atmosphere charged and the livewire provided the spark to energize the crowd. Saleem began with “Tu Hai Pakistani,” and sang a few Pakistani and Indian popular numbers to wild cheering and clapping from the audience. The crowd gave a rapturous applause when Salim rendered the hit number “Jugni.” It was time for the tune to echo and reverberate in the hall with the whole crowd joining in. The leading Pakistani keyboard player Imran Sajan treated the excited crowd to a brief melodious interval of instrumental music. Sajan’s flashing fingers belted out lilting popular hits that had the crowd humming. Till Ali Azmat, the lead vocalist of Junoon, took the stage. And he took the crowd by storm.
Already pumped up by the plethora of numbers that had them rocking and grooving, Azmat from his opening number, the ever-popular “Garaj Baras Sawan”, got the audience going.
As the song worked up the crowd, the young “Junooni” (crazy) fans made a mad rush toward the stage and the crooner welcomed them, egging them on with every number, to provide the accompaniment to his Urdu, Hindi and Punjabi songs.
His “Dewaana” was followed by “Pappu Yaar Tang Na Kar” but every body, including myself, were waiting for his hit number “Sayoneen”. However, Ali kept everybody waiting with some new numbers, including “In Lamhoon Ke Peechey and “Tere Bina”, and despite the audience repeatedly screaming for their “Sayoneen” they were to be disappointed on this score.
For about an hour, Ali had the crowd in frenzy, living up to the band’s name, as folk, rock and even some haunting slow numbers by him were matched by the crowds’ mood swings to a rhythm.
It was Ali’s raunchy and upbeat songs that had the crowd automatically tapping out a rhythmic tattoo on the floor while younger elements merrily swung and swayed in front of the stage.
It was a wonderful experience to see people from Pakistan and other South Asian countries appreciate one of the biggest shows to come from that part of the world since the late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.
Ali’s transformation from a long haired guy to a pate shorn off hair was also a sign of the star staying in tune with the times. With most of the singers opting for a more clean look to the rather shaggy appearance of the nineties, Ali, with his new look, still exudes the same flair and finesse as he goes from strength to strength in the music world. He has proved time and again that he is an extraordinary entertainer. Rather, a born entertainer, Ali can make the crowd go wild. And on Sept. 23 evening he did just that — entertain.
Ali was also very excited about his first-ever appearance in Saudi Arabia. He said, “It was a wonderful experience. I enjoyed the connectivity with the crowd and every bit of the show.”
Junoon as a band has been around for 14 years, and they have managed to single-handedly define an entire genre of rock music. And in doing so they have captured the imagination of many, who were tiring of the thoughtless music and stale lyrics that had invaded the rock scene.
The 1990s signaled the revival of rock and Junoon brought with them a fresh beat and unique lyrics. Also their penchant to belt out their numbers in three different languages provided them a wider ambit and thus their fan base grew as did their popularity. With the decade being dominated by rock majors like Mettalica, Guns & Roses, U2 and R.E.M and the electric guitar taking a sound of its own, Junoon blew everyone’s mind in the subcontinent as they brought about a blend of sound and lyrics that are unique to the region — thus defining their own “sound of music”.
The Junoon “sound” is simple but it is the lyrics and verses that lift the tone and tempo — sometimes to incredible levels where the fusion is mind-boggling. Though the lead and base guitars dictate the music, it is percussion — the rolling beat of the drums — that provides the band with its own inimitable brand.
Junoon’s lyrical content also contributes to the popularity. Salman Ahmad is the man wielding the pen and is a very talented songwriter. His lyrics, highlighting the problems of an era of people disgusted with the prevailing conditions, struck a chord with the masses as the band provided the people a type of collective escapism.
Ali’s raspy voice blended excellently with the music and the intrinsic lines thus evolving a genre that was quickly received by the multitudes. The music, words and the representation may, at first blast, not impact the listener, but they slowly worked their magic as one begins to empathize with the ethos.
That is why today Junoon has a varied and large fan base — as the music and songs linger and reverberates in one’s mind.
One of the band’s fans says, “You could listen to it for as many times as you might, and never really getting tired of it.”
Perhaps the name Junoon is rather appropriate. Junoon does, kind of, stand for passion and frenzy in music, and this fusion is what the band has brought about extremely well.
They also rekindled interest in the fusion of folk and rock, spurring a whole new generation of bands and musicians to follow. They are also responsible for the re-emergence of rock music in the subcontinent.
Huma Qasim Naqvi excitedly said she was “lucky enough to see Ali Azmat in a concert for the third time.”
“I’m a big fan,” she said, recalling the first time she saw Junoon at age 15. “Junoon is really good ... It promotes a lot of Pakistani pride.”
Another music lover Saad Bin Nazar said, “Junoon is one of the biggest bands in the world. Their music is mix of Pakistani folk and Western rock. And they certainly have the ability to captivate audiences.”
Belal Hamid said, “They are a pretty inspiring band.”
Shaima Mohsin, 16, and her brother Shaan, both said they had a great time and have recently became Junoon fans. “You just feel the music,” Shaima said. Shaan agreed that “they’re the No. 1” band in Pakistan.
With this new frenzy of interest in them, Junoon are likely to keep on taking the world by storm, just as they did in the Kingdom.
