is gulping down a glass of water as he talks for the nth time about his new solo album Infiniti. Of course, the conversation veers off in a predictable direction, the break up of his immensely popular band Junoon. Ahmad has obviously been fielding uncomfortable questions from journalists and lets in diplomatically, "Junoon will never fade into oblivion, but yes, we have all moved on."
While Brian O'Connell was the first person to move out of the band due to personal reasons, Ali Azmat, the band's lead singer moves at a hectic pace between Karachi and Mumbai in a desperate bid to gain a foothold in the Indian entertainment industry. Ahmad, meanwhile, has gone back to New York.
"I recorded my album Infiniti in New York and yes, though our band has parted ways geographically, we still continue to get live shows," confirms Ahmad. The song on which the video has been picturised is called Ghoom Tana and features well-known Indian singer Shubha Mudgal.
"It's my ancestral home in Patiala where we shot the video," says Ahmad. The video was ready almost two years ago "but I didn't", he says, "want to release it as a single". Which is why he went back to New York and recorded the rest of the songs and came up with a 13-song album that has been released by Universal Music in India.
While music takes much of Ahmad's time, he is also attached with the UN and works for the cause of HIV. What's more, besides wielding the mike, Ahmad is adept with the camera and makes documentary films on a regular basis, some of which have also been shown on BBC Worldwide. From mike to movies, looks like Ahmad is certainly in the mood to experiment.
