Ali Zafar talks being beyond industry rivalries in latest interview

The actor-musician talked karma, the changing music industry and his fourth album 'Husn' on ‘The Epic Show’

Musician and actor Ali Zafar recently sat down for an interview on The Epic Show to candidly discuss his philosophy on life and experience in the industry and aspirations at large. 

Life lesson

The musician, who was awarded the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz last year, explained that he believes that all humans have the power to manifest what they truly desire into their lives. “We use our brains to a very small extent because we’re still exploring the human mind, but when you get into it, you start to find out that the human mind is such a powerful tool. If you start to truly believe in your preferred reality with no doubt over whether it will actually happen, that gives you the power to manifest,” he shared.  

“When I talk about this power of belief, it sounds very bookish, but if you research with an open mind, without any bias, because bias does not allow for a fair inquiry, then you see that these are very interesting things. If you go into quantum physics, you start connecting that Einstein, Tesla, Bruce Lipton, Herbert Spencer, our religion, they were all saying the same thing.”  

Ali, a seemingly strong believer in karma, explained that he believes the good and bad you do always comes full circle. He explained, “In common language, people will say that kisi ko dua lagi hui hai [someone has been blessed with prayers], this is the belief people have in prayer. That’s why they say that when you do something good for someone, the feeling that it generates in people’s hearts for you, it doesn’t go to waste. In the same way, when you think negatively about someone and treat them negatively and try to harm them, then that, as per the laws of the universe, will come back and affect you just as badly. So, for me, it’s about how I can give back to all these millions of people who have done so much for me. This is the least we can do.”

More music 

Ali shared that while he has been steadily putting music out, a fourth album is all set for release as well. Explaining how the music scene has changed over the years, Ali said, “Back then albums were more popular. After that I started doing films, so ended up creating albums for films, for example in London Paris New York and Total Siyapaa, and then I kept releasing singles and doing songs for Coke Studio, so it’s not as if my music hasn’t been reaching people. Even recently, I’ve released singles. But, I’ve made an album, and it’s a very different one.”

Sharing details of the upcoming release, he revealed, “The name of the album is Husn, and I was about to release it last year but then Covid happened. So I figured what’s the point if you create an album and then are unable to tour and perform your music.” 

Peace out

After the interviewer questioned Ali about how he feels when it comes to comparisons with other industry A-listers such as Atif Aslam and Fawad Khan, he responded by saying he is beyond industry rivalries. The Tere Bin Laden actor elaborated, “I keep telling people that insecurity is a wasted emotion. I won’t take names, but I had this conversation with a very famous artist friend of mine who was upset with me. We had a very big project in which they replaced him with me, and I felt that the friendship was there but he wasn’t engaging with me. So, I took him to the side and told him that I recently saw Alamgir and Mohammed Ali Shekhi on TV and they were embracing each other and crying saying that in their time, they had such a fraught relationship due to their rivalry. They were regretting it. For me, people from the industry should be warmer towards each other because we all face similar trials and tribulations.”

Speaking about how he feels relationships within the industry are more “formal” now, Ali shared, “Back in the day, people would meet each other without any sense of ego in the way, but some walls have been built since then. I suspect that social media has a big role to play here because everyone is so conscious of their image and the repercussions of being seen with someone. Suddenly, that causal sort of gathering has become a lot more formal.”  

On his younger brother, rising musician Danyal Zafar, who is 15 years younger than the Channo singer, he said, “When Danyal was born, I was 15. He grew up in front of me. I have a greater association with him because of music.”

Elaborating on the role Ali had to play in the upbringing of his younger brother Danyal, he shared, “Back in the day, I gave my playlist to him and that 10-year-old kid ended up listening to Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Lenny Kravitz and John Mayer. So, I have always seen great potential in Danyal. His challenge is that his face resembles mine a lot and so people instantly label him as my younger brother. But, I know that his talent and potential is so much that he could leave me in the dust as well. He’ll make a place for himself.”