The UBC Centre for India and South Asia Research (CISAR), in collaboration with Sargam UBC & UBC Asian Studies Department is pleased to present “Intiha: An Evening of Conversation with Ali Sethi”, an intimate event featuring celebrated Pakistani-American musician Ali Sethi. In a moderated chat, he will share his personal journey with classical South Asian music and how it continues to influence his approach to popular music across different genres. Together with our discussants—Naveena Naqvi, Arafat Safdar, and Kiran K. Sunar—Ali Sethi will explore the power of music as a bridge across geographical borders, connecting communities, identities, and generations throughout South Asia.
This event will offer unique insights into Ali Sethi’s creative process, his commitment to preserving and evolving classical forms, and the challenges he has encountered along the way. Aspiring musicians and attendees will have the chance to learn from Sethi’s experiences and hear his advice on crafting a path in South Asian music. With the audience including UBC students, faculty, and staff, this event promises an enriching experience for those interested in music’s capacity for cultural exchange and expression.
Supported by the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts and presented in conjunction with Ali Sethi & Nicolás Jaar’s performance at the Chan Centre on Friday Nov 22.
About the Speakers:
Ali Sethi is a New York-based writer, composer and performer best known for his ‘ragaton’ blockbuster single ‘Pasoori’, which topped Spotify’s Global Viral chart in 2022 and was declared Google’s most hummed-to-search song of that year.
Blending traditional South Asian melodies with global beats, and drawing on “folk” and “woke” iconographies to tell powerful tales of identity, Sethi’s work is “stealthily subversive” (The New Yorker) and earned him a spot on TIME’s 100 Next list. His music is praised for showing that “differences of culture, language, religion and gender do not need to be antagonistic; they can, and always have, enriched us, and given us some of our greatest works of art.” (TIME)
Naveena Naqvi is Assistant Professor of Persianate Islamic Cultures of South Asia at the UBC Department of Asian Studies.
Arafat Safdar is an alumnus of the UBC Department of Asian Studies and a student of Hindustani Classical Music.
Kiran K. Sunar is Assistant Professor of Punjabi Language, Literature, and Culture at the UBC Department of Asian Studies.
