Coming from a conservative family that shuns music, Aki learnt the art from friends outside Kashmir
Ishfaq-ul-Hassan
SRINAGAR: A whiff of ‘fresh air’ after the controversy over Pragaash – an all-eve band in Kashmir.
Battling social boycott threats, Kashmir’s lone DJ (disk jockey) Athar Iqbal Mir aka DJ Aki is coming up with the first hip-hop remix album of Kashmiri songs. The first of the six songs ‘Yar Chum…‘ is creating quite a buzz in the musical circles in the Valley.
Coming from a religious family, DJ Aki was a born rebel. Music for the family was a taboo but he did not give up. His love for music even become a bane with family and relatives allegedly ostracising him for his art.
“I am not allowed to attend marriage function. I am not invited to family functions. The reason is my work. They (family and relatives) say music is waste of time. They say Kashmir is not meant for this kind of thing,” DJ Aki said.
Despite facing problems, DJ Aki has not lost hope. He works at a call centre in night and during day he practices his art in the local studio here. “For the last 12 years I have not visited my relatives. But I am a hard nut to crack. I will not give up,” said the 25-year-old DJ.
With no formal training, he learnt the art from his friends and acquaintances outside the state. For years he struggled in wilderness with nobody coming forward to help him. Enter first fashion show in 2009; DJ Aki got an offer to give the background score to the show which later became an instant hit.
“I got support from two young singers – Irfan and Bilal – who allowed me to practice on the DJ console in their studio. It is the only studio in Kashmir which has a perfect DJ instrument. Had they not allowed me to practice, I could not have come up with the DJ remix album,” he said.
Lack of sponsors has demoralised him to the extent that he wants to leave Kashmir to become the assistant to some DJs to hone his skills. “I got offers from DJ schools but I cannot afford training there. Sponsorship is a big problem in Kashmir. Now a friend has offered me accommodation in Mumbai so that I can live my dream,” he said.
But before moving out, DJ Aki is working hard for his first remix album. “The album will have six songs. One of the songs is complete and people have liked it a lot. I have got offers to perform at concerts because of this song. Now I am working on five more songs and I hope the album will hit the market soon,” he said.
Khalid Bashir, Secretary J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, said it (DJing) is a new art and they have the mandate to promote local art and culture. “If he would have come to us we would have seen what we could have done. I do not think he has approached us,” he said.
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(DNA)
