The 18th Century Gobindgarh fort in Amritsar is an unlikely venue for a headbanging concert. Much less at the Sacred Amritsar music and poetry festival, where the evening acts typically cover Kabir couplets and renditions of devotional poetry and folk and classical songs.
So, when Kashmiri singer-songwriter and composer Mohammad Muneem, took the stage, dressed in a black suit and trousers, his feet bare, audiences had no idea what to expect. “How many of you have heard us before?” he asked the crowd. Only two hands went up.
ONE'S STRUGGLES OF BEING OR NOT BEING A KASHMIRI DON'T MATTER. EVERYONE EXPERIENCES STRUGGLE, VULNERABILITY, ABANDONMENT
It didn’t bother him. Muneem goes by the stage name Alif and is the founder and vocalist of Alif, a four-person band that also includes pianist Aditya Bhandarkar, drummer Kabeer Singh and guitarist Shivam Pant. They perform rap, rock and Kashmiri folk music in Urdu, Koshur and Hindi. For the next 90 minutes, they got right down to it, playing songs about women’s hardships, the rat race, grief, college memories, hope and love. Mun e em occasionally translated a few lyrics from the Urdu and Koshur songs in his deep baritone. The audience started out clapping along, and ended up, yes , headbanging.
This story is from the April 1, 2023 edition of Brunch.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the April 1, 2023 edition of Brunch.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Let's tri all the angles
BFFs falling for the same girl, kidnap twists, murders, bromances. These 10 three-way love stories play with geometry and our feelings
Should you Q up for this?
Audi's luxury SUV, the Q8, has had a refresh. But a sleeker grille and headlight tech don't make up for what's still missing
How to plan a great escape
It's getting colder. It's already hard to breathe. Why not plan a winter vacation that's a world away but not too far away?
Kababs, yes, but khandvi too
Mughlai cuisine has as many vegetarian dishes as meaty ones. A new translation of a 16th century manuscript shows how we ate, and why modern labels are pointless
I can be your hero
Gurfateh Pirzada, only afewroles old, is the green flag we didn't know we needed. He's learning from women. He wants to be more thana lover and a fighter. He's hoping we all do better. No wonder everyone's crushing on him
Meet the export experts
Khadi crop-tops in Spain, faux-leather hoodies in London, fairytale wedding gowns in the UAE. See how some desi labels are killing it on foreign shores
Why we're all feeling Blue
Coco Mellors's new novel is about grief, sisterhood, and of course, addiction and unlikeable women. How does she make it work?
This week, we're...
Changing the momo game, listening to kids, starting a new business, and supporting pro waxxers
Rohit Chawla
Photographer, artist, @RohitChawlaPhotography_
Congratulations, it's a goal
Lakeside vows, pastel palettes, bayous, backyards and boats. These celeb weddings are what modern fairytales are made of