© 2006 Pukaar. Rights Reserved. |
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The Band
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| Members of the band together with Arshad Mahmood, September 2004. Arshad Mahmood is a Lollywood star from Pakistan. |
Below you will find a brief description of the band members and their role
within the band.
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Romail Gulzar
Romail is from Pakistan, with a huge heart for music.
It is Romail's passion and vision that keeps Pukaar going, and his traumatic
but inspirational history that produces much of our music. Romail is a
songwriter and has been making music worldwide for nearly 10 years. Romail
likes to dabble on any instrument he can get his hands on, but plays the
pivotal role of MC during Pukaar gigs. He may start on stage, but he nearly
always ends up amongst the crowd, spurring us all on with his moves! Pukaar
is Romail's life.
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| Barry |
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Barry Upton
Barry is a very successful hit songwriter, arranger, musician and producer
of various forms of popular music. He is also an accomplished studio engineer
and stage performer having appeared around the world in various capacities.
Some of his original work includes Cheeky Flamenco - Top 30 hit
with the Cheeky Girls and we would be proud to boast that he is the man behind
Steps Gold - Number 1 Greatest Hits Album with the hit single
5, 6, 7, 8. He has joined Pukaar as DJ and a singer. He and Romail are
working very closely to create some more magical tunes. Wallah! |
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Nirmal Singh
Nirmal (who better likes to be known as Johnnie) is a
very talented Indian drummer. From the age of 7, much of his spare time
has been spent studying numerous Indian drums such as the dholak, tablas,
dhol and congas. Now a well-established musician, Nirmal plays with several
bands nationwide. When you see him on stage, look out for the amazing
speed of his hands as he plays the Dholak!
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Charles John
Charles has had full training in semi classical music
from Pakistan Arts Council, Lahore and is inspired by renowned artists
such as Akhtar Hussain Sadiq and Azhar Manzoor. He has over 30 years of
experience in producing music. He has produced over 20 Gospel albums and
has performed and produced music for Pakistan Television and Radio in
Lahore. Being a maestro of Keys he has performed with top artists from
Bollywood to Lollywood. He has had the honour to work with some great artists including Anand Ji, Bappi
Lahiri, Ghulam Ali and Arshad Mehemood. He is great at vocals and can also play the Guitar, Harmonium, Accordion, Piano, Drums
and the Tabla. His experience and talent as a musician, sound engineer
and a teacher is a great asset to Pukaar.
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Billu Gandhi
Billu is a very exciting percussionist mastering the
art of Tabla, Congo, Bongo and Dhol. Born in East Africa, he has been
involved in fine arts from a very young age. His first performance was
at the age of 5. His work has included working with the pioneers of bhangra,
Alaap, originally called Sangeet Sangarm. The band was founded by Billu’s
older brothers, Harjit and Channi. Alaap’s first Album-Teri chunni
de sitare was a hit all over the world which resulted in their first
tour to Africa, Canada, America, Singapore and Australia. Since then Billu
has performed alongside top musicians with the likes of Bollywood legends
Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle, UB40, Robert Palmer, Jaspinder Narula,
Abhijeet and Babul Supriyo. Billu is a very gregarious individual and
he always has a tip or two on percussion. He is heavily involved in regular
music workshops. So don’t miss him in Pukaar’s next workshop. Having joined
Pukaar in December 2005, it has been a pleasure having him on board. |
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Moise Ichama
Moise! Yes this man has a wonderful talent just like his name. He is the latest
addition to the band. Moise has joined us in March 2006 as a dynamic Bass Guitarist. Lets make some Moise!!! |
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Jeanpy Bembwana
Jeanpy is from Congo. In April 2006 he joined Pukaar as a solo artist. Music has guided him through his life and various experiences. Sounds of his guitar and melancholic voice represent his culture.
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Ajmal Mughal
Ajmal is a talented musician from Pakistan and he has been playing sitar for last 30 years across Asia and Europe and now is serving local community in Southampton. It is a pleasure to have Ajmal on board with Pukaar.
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