“It is a call from within…,” he pauses for a minute and adds, “All these changes are part of that. It is an evolution…you know...,” says Shahabaz Aman, talking not just about the changing phases of his musical journey, but also his looks. Dressed in a white and green kurta and with his hair all tied up, the composer-singer says he is in an interesting phase of his career, taking the Sufi route.
In 2014, he debuted his Malayalam Sufi rock band, KEF 1126 (named after the registration number of the jeep in which he used to travel with his friends for football matches), with a live show in Kochi. He renamed it ‘KEF 1126 – Malayalam Sufi Route’, “with ‘Route’ referring to the jeep’s journey,” a year later.
Interacting with MetroPlus after a workshop for children at the Goethe Zentrum in the city, Shahabaz couldn’t stop talking about his new love – Sufi music. “I don’t know when the thought of trying Sufi music struck me, I just know that it has now become a part of me,” he says.
It has little to do with the religious education he received during his childhood spent in Malappuram, he asserts. “Music was there all around me. Even the muezzin’s call to prayer was musical. Music, to me, is something more deeper and spiritual,” he explains. His travels across the country, and to places such as Mecca and Medina acted as the catalyst. Perhaps somewhere the music and mystic thoughts blended and KEF 1126 was born.
Shahabaz has become one with the genre to such an extent that composing music for films no longer enthuses him. “I feel this is my true calling. I have a long way to go with this. Meanwhile, I am continuing my ghazal concerts and am also singing for films, though the number has come down. I am happy that I have left behind some memorable songs as a composer and singer,” says Shahabaz, who has songs such as ‘Ee puzhayum’ ( Indian Rupee ) and ‘Mazha kondu mathram’ ( Spirit ) and albums such as 'Sajini', 'June Mazhayil', and 'The Soul of Anamika in Black and White' to his credit.
KEF 1126 has independent translations of Rumi’s poems and verses written by Shahabaz himself. The album has five songs and he is planning to do the audio release later this month, along with a video of one of the songs.
However, he knows the path he has currently chosen to tread is not an easy one. “Right now I have to coordinate with musicians and singers in such a way that they don’t have other commitments. Instead of coordinating, I am looking forward to travelling with a group of like-minded people.”
He is confident that the music of the mystic will reach out to more people, having seen the audience grooving to his songs at the Kochi Muziris Biennale.
“It was overwhelming to see people from all walks of life, including artistes, social activists, and celebrities dancing to the songs. I am very confident about taking KEF 1126 to a huge audience.”
Meanwhile, he has sung for upcoming films such as Double Barrel for Prashanth Pillai, Loham for Sreevalsan J. Menon and Pathemari for Bijibal.
