Kashmiri folk-fusion artiste Aabha Hanjura, perhaps best-known for her viral hit ‘Hukus Bukus’ that was featured in the web series, The Family Man , is back with a new track, ‘Nundbane’ (translates to ‘apple of my eye’ in Kashmiri).
Released on July 9, the fifth single of her upcoming album Sound of Kashmir is a folk number by renowned Kashmiri poet Mahmud Gami made contemporary with Aabha’s distinctive sound.
Stating that she wanted to devote her first album entirely to Kashmir from where she hails, Aabha, who is based in Bengaluru, says: “I try to bring my own self into every single song but with an original touch. ‘Chalo Chinaro Ke Gharon’, part of a two-part track, spoke about how anybody who is away from their home would want to return one day. This is my story and the story of thousands of Kashmiris.” This childhood nostalgia also reflects in ‘Hukus Bukus’.
“With ‘Nundbane’, I wanted to pay tribute to love. There was a time when every single romantic Bollywood film was shot in Kashmir. Every artist has always sought inspiration from Kashmir; it is filled with love, I think, ,” she says.
“It is something that we have grown up with and Mahmud Gami saab has woven in Kashmiri visual metaphors into the song beautifully. It was my way of talking about love but also marrying it with my style: the rustic folk of Kashmir comes together with a very modern folk-rock sort of ensemble.”
Culturally sound
Aabha laughs as she says she managed to get only about two hours of sleep before the shoot for the accompanying video. “We performed at the Jaipur Lit Fest this year. So, after the gig, we got a few hours of sleep before waking up at the crack of dawn for the shoot!”
As for why the chosen location was Jaipur, she says, “The backdrops are so culturally vibrant in Jaipur and it has that Indian folk ‘ khushboo’ .”
On being asked to elaborate on “striving to be the voice of Kashmir.” Aabha says, “I had a successful corporate career before getting into music. But there was something missing in my life. I felt that void very strongly at one point. I went to Kashmir searching for inspiration and it came to me when I visited a home we used to own.”
“I realised that there is pain looming in the environment, everywhere. That pain really moved me, awakening the artiste inside me. I am just trying to create art that will change the dialogue in my own way. I am not trying to be the voice or anything; if it happens, it is incidental,” concludes Aabha.
