Omran ‘Momo’ Shafique denies leaving Pakistan ‘dejected’ and ‘hopeless’

"I never use words such as “dejected” or “hopeless” to describe my feelings on the Pakistani music scene," he shared on Facebook. "I am only humbled and grateful for having had the privilege of making music in Pakistan as a career for 15 years. I am not interested in pursuing a full-time career in music anymore for myriad personal reasons but that is in not an indictment of said music scene."

He went on to add how the move was planned years ago, before the pandemic happened. "Although the current pandemic and economic crises may have accelerated the decision to repatriate, the movie itself was planned a few years back and I am in no way disgruntled with my tenure here. Words such as "discouraged" and "exhausted" do not paint the correct picture I have been "exhausted", quite happily, working on projects (try learning and tracking 3 albums worth of material in 3 months for 11 years back to back!)," he added, "I was "discouraged" when I first landed in Pakistan and was met with assassinations and suicide bombings and live shows drying up and TV channels shutting down and dealing with record labels' ineptitude."

Shafique shared that, "All those years and all those setbacks and still I consider myself lucky and fortunate to have had this music career in Pakistan. I am proud and grateful for being a part of the scene."

Earlier on Wednesday evening, Shafique’s friend and bandmate Babar Sheikh had shared a photo of the two together in masks, revealing that the guitarist is leaving Pakistan.

"Yep. Momo moved back to his hometown in the US clicked this hour before his departure three days ago. So wishing my dear friend/bandmate / creative partner in tons of ventures Omran Shafique the very best for the future," Babar said. Adding on, Babar talked about how Omran's departure is a bittersweet moment for him.

"I promised myself this will be a positive post and not a sad one, even though the void that will eventually open up after Omran’s departure from the Pakistani music scene will be hard to fill up, but let’s celebrate his unprecedented work and presence in the contemporary music scene of the Subcontinent," he said.

Later on, when The Express Tribune reached out to Sheikh for further details, he said that his friend had left the country because he was exhausted by the local music scene.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Babar revealed that Omran was in a state of despair as he left Pakistan for good. "He was emotionally exhausted and discouraged by the state of musicians in Pakistan. There was no consistency in terms of opportunities even for a musician of his calibre. He is gone for good," Babar told the publication.

After the story was published The Express Tribune had reached out to Shafique for his version for which he asked for time till he settled in the US.

Omran is one of the most sought after guitar players in the country. He was a regular member of the house band at Coke Studio, rendering his services as a guitarist for more than eight years. With Ali Azmat he had been playing the guitars since 2006. Omran known as Momo in close circles was also part of Junoon's touring line-up ever since the reunion back in 2018. Additionally, he was also the main songwriter and producer for the band Mauj delivering hits such as Peheliyan and Khusfemi while also being the lead guitarist of Chand Tara Orchestra alongside Babar Sheikh.

EDITOR'S NOTE:

We at The Express Tribune Lifestyle would like to regret to Omran Shafique for assuming his emotional state and printing an article that we realised wasn’t in line with his stream of thought. We appreciate his concern and patience in this regard. The Express Tribune acknowledges his immense contribution to Pakistan's creative industries and wishes Omran and his family more success in the future, both here and abroad.

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