Real as it gets

April 24, 2016

Singer-songwriter Shehzad Roy talks to Instep about artistic inspiration, fatherhood, the shifting music landscape and why he doesn’t suffer from a guilty conscience.

Real as it gets

instepprofile

It’s been four years since I last interviewed musician/activist Shehzad Roy for a cover story. The last time we spoke at length, Roy had remarked that he wanted to bring reform through activism and music. Though some things may have changed, Shehzad’s ideals, four years later, remain the same. More to the point, he has delivered. From getting a horrific law changed to transforming government school(s), to being an active citizen, Roy’s story is a triumphant tale of a man, who has risen from the ranks of just another pop star to a thinking artist, an education and social activist, who understands that altruism and action is the only way forward; shooting unnecessary posts on social media is not.

Of course, it’s easy to watch Roy accomplish his ideals via his songs. He never plays the self-righteous card and lets humour pave the way. It’s palatable but more than that, it makes you think and wonder without it ever converging into an unbearable diatribe.

To know more about Roy’s return and movie star-esque avatar, I headed to his house for a meeting and learned that fatherhood and marriage have simply added to his fierce ambition of bringing about real, manageable change.

It’s close to 8pm as Roy walks into the room, wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of black tracks. Sipping his green tea, Shehzad Roy is, in many ways, the same man. I ask him if he’s a health nut, given the green tea like many of his contemporaries who have shunned junk food for healthy choices. Roy laughs heartily and confesses, "When I’m playing PlayStation with friends, junk food is part of the process."

Of course, looking at Roy you can’t tell. He’s tall, muscular and though that impish charm is very much intact, he looks fits as a fiddle with biceps bulging through his t-shirt.

"I exercise and I go running, it’s something I’ve been doing for a long time," he confesses.

These days Roy, who moonlights as an education activist, is back in the spotlight with not one but two new songs and has also announced his plans of working in a film.

Roy’s brand new single, ‘Jind Jaan’ also features singer-songwriter Zoe Viccaji and sees him enact a bad boy routine with conviction, running around in fancy cars and guns alongside a cast that includes supermodel-turned-actor Iman Ali and fashion designer and art enthusiast Yousuf Bashir Qureshi. "‘Jind Jaan’ was recorded a year or so ago. I thought it would be a lot of fun if Zoe sang in Punjabi. It was a very interesting experience," recalls Roy as he discusses his new work.

Zoe, says Roy, would remind him on text messages about their unreleased collaboration. "Everybody thought it would never see the light of day because I had recorded so many things," says Roy. "Then I thought I’ve done several political songs, plenty of shows so the timing felt right."

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Fans of Roy’s music know very well that ‘Jind Jaan’ is a departure from his politically and socially charged songs/videos. The themes running through the song and video, according to Roy, are about love and betrayal. "You keep trusting a person, you know he will betray you but you have faith anyway. It’s denial."

What’s remarkable is how excited Roy sounds about his new video and how it allowed him to play around in beautiful cars including a Mustang 65, a lifelong dream.

The video, albeit briefly, also showcases Roy’s flair for acting. As he gears up for a film, I ask him about the transition from music videos to the big screen.

"If I only wanted to act in a film, I could’ve done it earlier. But because I am a musician, it has to be more. See, in a music video, we have 3-4 minutes to tell a story and I’m involved in all aspects of it. But when it’s a film, we can tell a story in an hour or two. In those two hours, so much can be said."

In other words, Roy’s film, like so many of his videos, will invoke his own beliefs and will not be him simply acting out a role. As I push Roy to reveal more details, he smiles and says, "I have not talked about the film nonstop because until I don’t have something concrete, I want to refrain."

Articulate, headstrong with his feet firmly planted on the ground, Roy often sounds like the guy next door instead of the super popular pop star with two decades in the business that he is. He quotes newspaper headlines, knows exactly what’s going on and doesn’t shy away from presenting his point of view without shoving it down your throat.  "Our ability to agree to disagree, that is important as a society to move forward," observes Roy.

I remind him that the last time we sat down, it was somewhere in 2012 around the time Wasu Aur Mein was making waves on national television and reminding us of the chequered, forgotten, neglected political history of this country. "After Wasu Aur Mein," notes Shehzad, "I did Chal Parha on a motorbike. It combined my two passions: education and bikes. As a result of that show, the law for corporal punishment was changed. It was passed unanimously in the National Assembly."

In Roy’s story there lies a tale of redemption for all of us. Unlike many who complain about the ground reality in Pakistan, Roy is a man of action. Through Zindagi Trust, not only has he put the issue of education front and centre but has managed to take it to the next level by transforming SMB Fatima Jinnah Government Girls School in Karachi.

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Mustang Sally: In ‘Jind Jaan’ Roy enacts a bad boy routine with conviction and flair. The song, he told Instep, is based around the themes of love and betrayal and gave him a chance to hang out in an eye-popping red Mustang 65.

"Action is necessary. The biggest issue I noticed was that we don’t have thought-provoking books in our language. So, what are you going to teach children? All books written for children are based on Rote learning instead of problem solving. So the questions being asked are very silly and when they come from educationists, it’s disappointing. In Fatima Jinnah, we questioned this very system. Then we focused on the fact that children are being beaten. This fueled the drive for getting the law changed for corporal punishment."

Musical Notes

Coming back to the arts, Roy, who has been making music for over two decades, has evolved as an artist in a way that’s been fascinating to watch. From average romantic ballads and pop-rock flair, Roy has evolved into a name whose altruism, humanity and humour envelope his work.

I ask Roy, whose 2005 hit ‘Saali’ had a fan in the late Parween Rahman, about his anxieties as an artist and Roy responds with a smile.

"A lot of people don’t know that I’m a guitarist. The transition, transformation you’re talking about, in terms of music, the way I see it, the change happened in 2006-2007 when we reformed a government school through Zindagi Trust (founded by Roy). In the process of changing things, the experience fueled my music. It made me realize that one should make songs that encompass what you see around you."

In short, Roy skipped the fantasy-filled romantic notions that drove his earlier works and let his surroundings fuel his musical work. "Prior to 2005-2006, I didn’t have that understanding. Obviously, music is self-expression but it wasn’t as if I was writing songs about my own love story etc. But Qismat Apnay Haath Mein encompasses things that I experienced, observed and felt."

In terms of music Roy is always working on something or the other. And unlike some of his contemporaries he is not one to get caught up in social media frenzy or stay fixated on staying in the headlines endlessly without a valid reason.

The times, as they say, are also changing. The landscape of music has shifted online as music channels diminish from the horizon and news, dramas and cricket fuel the ratings battle. And with few record labels operating and inspiring hope, other initiatives have stepped in, be it Patari, Taazi or music shows like Coke Studio, Nescafe Basement, indie online labels, etc.

"In music, there are certain basics. Worldwide there is always a music company that promotes music. All other parallels will come and go. The other option is cinema through which music is popularized. I think, with the rebirth of cinema in Pakistan, music will pick up. The coming years will determine if film music can surpass pop music or not," says Roy and adds that it is infinitely more difficult for newer artists to make a mark.

Shehzad Roy’s new tune, ‘Jind Jaan’ is directed by Saqib Khan and features Zoe Viccaji, Iman Ali & Yousaf Bashir Qureshi.

"Right now, artists such as myself face fewer difficulties because a sponsor will step in. Sometimes its Ufone, sometimes it Telenor. My last song was sponsored by Toyota. But again, what will you do besides sponsorship? For instance, ‘Jind Jaan’ with its bad boy theme has no sponsor. So, we’re releasing it on social media."

A fan of Nescafe Basement, Roy maintains that though corporates have stepped in place of music companies, they cannot replace the need for music companies. And though you can find Roy’s music on several social media platforms, he is not one to obsess with this consistent battle for visibility.

"When you do something, you should get an intellectual kick out of it. To give nonstop interviews for the sake of visibility without backing it up with concrete work sounds a bit dangerous to me," says Roy who admits that his Instagram account is barely days old as I tease him about whether he will develop into one of those stars who take endless self-portraits via the thing that destroyed photography - the selfie - and he laughs and says not happening.

While Roy’s professional accomplishments stack up, his personal life is just as rewarding. "My wife went for her Masters to Harvard. Right now, she’s in Singapore pursuing another degree. So that period is honeymoon for me as I go back and forth. She’s back in May. And my son, Sikandar, is 21 months now so when they’re back here, that’s when life will settle down."

The feeling of fatherhood, says Roy, is something you truly experience when you have your own child. "People always say it’s a wonderful feeling but you feel it when it happens to you. The thing I will do for no one, I think I can do it for my kid," confesses Roy.

As the interview comes to a close, I ask Roy about parenthood and the threat under which all our children live and whether it will drive him out of this place. He responds in his trademark do-something-about-it fashion and says, "I’m fighting with this, not only through education reform and my music but also other measures. We have an organization, CTAC (Citizens Trust Against Crime) that includes several notable members of society and we have tried to fix law and order situation in Karachi. I’m playing my part in whatever capacity I can so I don’t suffer from guilt that I’m sitting at home and doing nothing. This is not my job, to fix law and order, to be honest but I do what I can. As for the rest, I want to live in Pakistan and raise my family here."

Real as it gets