During her teenage years, Mother played the Afghani Nagara, with her grandfather present during her performance and, in his own way, guiding and instructing her. She followed the musical piece of her era beat-by-beat; rhythm and tempo were on the spot. Her grandfather praised her, saying, "You are playing it just like my father—your great-grandfather—used to play.”
It is absolutely accurate that my mother's great-grandfather did not play the song at that moment; it was my mother who performed for her grandfather in that space. Nor did she play the same song that her great-grandfather used to play in his era. However, there was a connection between both performances that her grandfather felt at that exact moment. It wasn't a connection in terms of the music, rhythm, or beat, but rather a link between the two performances that her grandfather felt while he heard her playing the Afghani Nagara. He admitted this by praising her and saying, "This is how you should play contemporary Afghani Nagara" and "This is how my father—your great-grandfather—used to play."
Here, her grandfather praises both the past and the present, not to suggest she is following old music, nor does he imply that her great-grandfather had the power to see the future or make predictions. The aim of this story is not to discern who played which melody and when, or how the past (great-grandfather) played the future melody (the melody mother played that day). Instead, it's about how mother performed and played the Afghani Nagara by infusing her own feelings and presence in that moment, within the cultural context of Afghanistan around 1975, 76, 77 or 80, and during that musical gathering—making it her contemporary artwork in its own way.
Now, the past is behind us, and the future is also a thing of the past. In this present time and space, it is my turn to engage with my own contemporary feelings, thoughts, and ideas in the realm of playing the Nagara of art. It is a challenge, filled with hurdles, but as an artist, I must play, and I am playing.
As an audience, you may observe in my artworks that I express, in my own way, the new concept of contemporary art, blending Afghan art imagery with ancient history and incorporating the characteristics that new media offers. It's not concealed that a significant portion of my work originates from the roots of my Afghan heritage, but the viewer can sense that the flowers and fragments are interwoven with a modern and contemporary human flavor.
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