Ukhrul: With the purpose of resurrecting tribal music and showcasing the unique history of the tribal Nagas through chant and song, blending current riffs with ancient melodies, Featherheads Haokui, a folk-rock band from Ukhrul district, continues to reign in the region’s music industry, especially in tribal music.
Established in 2012 in Delhi, Augustine Luiyaiwoshi Shimray, the founder and frontman of the band, returned to his birthplace of Ukhrul to stay close to his people and reconnect with his roots. At home, Augustine reunited with his cousins Ura and Kuikui, as well as his wife Soreichon, and the group released their debut single in 2018.
Unfortunately, in 2021, Augustine lost his guitarist and cousin, Kuikui, and simultaneously, Ura, the bassist, also resigned, leaving a huge vacuum in the group. Despite the challenges, the band, with its new lineup, continues to create music purely inspired by their roots and nature.
Sharing the journey as a musician and the importance of safeguarding dying traditions and culture, Augustine shared that it is imperative to do this because the arrival of Western influence is displacing their culture and tradition, and if they do not promote and preserve their traditions and culture, they are in danger of disappearing.
“Our music is a blend of modern genre music and remakes of original folk songs that are made after cultural research and intricate detail. Additionally, Featherheads’ music consists of tribal Naga chants and tunes, which reflect and identify the Tangkhul Naga culture and identity along with the rich, vibrant attire of our tribes,” said Augustine, the male lead vocalist and a father of two.
Over the years, the band has released a couple of music videos and performed at various festivals and events across cities and states in the country, including the recent Ashtalakshmi Mahotsav in New Delhi.
Recently, the band unveiled their animated music video titled OhHei, the first Tangkhul animated music video, which was inspired by the rich folklore of the Tangkhul Naga tribe.
“OhHei is an original folk song with a gripping story and tragedy of a century-old folksong that is recounted through our comprehensive storytelling and the creativity of our animation artist, both of which are deeply ingrained in our culture and history. It took us exactly 12 months of exhaustive labor, presenting knowledge and stories orally and utilizing the imagination of our creative artist Hokhuimi Vashi,” said Augustine while the team continues to celebrate the success of the animated music video.
This latest animated video highlights the commitment and passion of the band in preserving and safeguarding culture and traditions through innovations and modern mediums.
Challenges
However, Augustine also lamented that there are very few elders who have passed down folk songs and stories, making them exceedingly hard to find.
The young ace musician further shared that managing a band is also quite challenging because live concerts are not in great demand in Manipur due to the state’s unstable status. However, by seeking help and reaching out to a few loyal fans and friends, for whom they are thankful, they are able to produce their music and music videos. They also need to update their equipment to the best of their abilities, but financing is a major obstacle, he added.
“There are a few local audiences who are actually astounded by what we are doing for the good of our tribe, and they have complete faith in us and are proud of us. For example, we periodically meet strangers on the way who applaud us and advise us to persevere in whatever we are doing because one day we will certainly succeed and make them all proud. As of right now, despite the fact that the majority of our songs are in our tribal tongue, we have received extremely favorable feedback from audiences wherever we have performed, which has been mostly outside of the state,” he shared.
While expressing concern over the fading history and culture, Augustine stated that we need to remind ourselves that we are nothing without our roots, culture, and traditions. The daily application of abrupt customs and rules is also required to maintain oneself in that loop, he added, while calling the attention of the government and civil society organizations to come up with steps and measures to attract more people to their culture in order to preserve fading and dying habits, as the band has been actively working to do.
“No force on earth can separate the tribal spirits that are in our hearts and bloodline; we only need to remember and honor our heritage and be proud of our identity as children of nature,” said Augustine.
Upcoming Projects:
Talking about the pipeline project, he further shared that the team has been working on a new song which was written by his late grandfather and will be released very soon.
“Our grandfather, Awo Changkui Shimrah, who passed away two years ago at the age of 93, wrote the lyrics to a new song that we have begun recording. He penned the lyrics, which rebook the tribal energies of the past using terms that are rarely heard or spoken. With harsher tribal genres and riffs, we are also working on and modifying the tribal song musically,” said Augustine.
According to him, the new music video, which will feature colorful tribal dances and costumes, will be shot by Horzak Zimik, better known as Sopkai on social media, one of the Tangkhul’s top cinematographers.
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