Yet another melodious voice has been discovered in Sindh – though less famous but it has all the ability to become a household name in the coming days. Shamroz Dibai attracted music lovers as well as social media users by singing poetry of his father Maher Dibahi just ahead of local body elections, forewarning the masses of the consequences of voting for a feudal lord or a politically incapacitated person who would bring nothing but misery and agony to them.
The video of his song went viral and was watched by several thousands of social media users – including this scribe, who later interviewed Shamroz.
He was born in Nawabshah- Shaheed Benazirabad district of Sindh on the 5th of March 2007 to firebrand poet of Sindh Maher Dibai, who is known for creating mass awareness across Sindh against feudalism and social injustice through his poetry, speeches and awareness sessions.
Sharing his profound attachment with music, Shamroz recalls the day when he was humming a Sindhi song at the age of 10 as his father heard it and applauded him. “As my father came to know about my talent, he would take me to different public gatherings where I started singing Sindhi national songs as well as songs of other renowned Sindhi and Urdu singers of the Subcontinent”; he mentions. And he adds that social media had played a vital role in helping him gain popularity. His family had migrated to Karachi in search of more opportunities.
Talking about the idea of promoting himself through the medium of social media, he says, “One of my school friends advised me to develop a page on Facebook and a channel on Youtube that will help me promote my singing skills. I acted upon my friend’s advice, and now I post my song videos on my page that is watched by scores of social media users.” It also seems quite surprising that the 16-year-old singer has learnt playing the harmonium and guitar by watching Youtube videos without getting regular training.
“I asked my father to buy me a harmonium that I learnt how to play without anybody’s guidance – as I was able to use Youtube to learn it!” he says.
The young vocalist has mostly sung the songs written by his father. Besides that, he has sung the poetry of renowned Sindhi poets including Sheikh Ayaz, Ustad Bukhari and Shanker Sagar. It was his father who was instrumental in promoting his son by allowing him to perform in massive public gatherings and musical concerts, as he is of the view that the medium of art and culture – if used rightly – can bring visible change in the society.
About his decision to resort to poetry for content to sing, Shamroz Dibai says that he had always appreciated the poetic message of unity, struggle and love. He says that he was very inspired by the singing of iconic Ghazal singers Ustad Mehdi Hassan Khan and Ustad Ghulam Ali. He takes the name of both music maestros by keeping his hands on his ears in respect and taking a deep long breath.
The emerging singer aims at doing a diploma in music from the National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA) in Karachi. “Our young generation should strive and play their part for dragging the poor masses out of crisis,” says Shamroz.
