Decolonising the creative process and using art to heal from trauma; Nadia Tehran collaborates with Furmaan Ahmed on the video for her new single, ‘Down’
Image by Veronika Vidø, styled by Ella Lucia
Words & Interview by Dalia Al-Dujaili
“The diasporic perspective is like a secret language that we have, it’s like sending smoke signals.”
For Nadia Tehran and Furmaan Ahmed, the creative process is a form of healing from trauma. Inspired by a dream Furmaan had, the two came together on their second collaboration to create the striking and enchanting video for Nadia’s 2019 single Down, directed by Marco Stoltze, with creative direction by Nadia and art direction by Furmaan. Their first collaboration was in Stockholm where Nadia invited Furmaan to exhibit their art at Nadia’s exhibition centred around her album, Dozakh; “I wanted to create an exhibition where I could further explore the themes of my record other than just through musical dimensions”, she explains.
Nadia’s practice is based on collective collaboration and connecting to her Iranian diaspora. After meeting Furmaan, she says, she felt they were spiritually connected: “we had many things in common, both in terms of artistic ideas but also through our histories. Furmaan connected to Dozakh so I invited them to explore the themes and interpret their version of what Dozakh means. That work was directly inspired by my music, that was when the seeds of this video were planted”.
Dozakh, meaning ‘hell’, takes on many different forms of meaning throughout the album. Through strikingly dark and sultry visuals, an air of strength and the beauty within pain emanates from the video. Copenhagen-based Stoltze, who also directed the video for Nadia’s ‘High’ and ‘Afa Poem’, often explores themes of otherness and is known for his experimental process. For this video, he states “I’ve known Nadia for quite a while now and our relationship has brought forth a lot of understanding of complex issues. But there are things that can be hard to communicate in conversation, and which becomes more clear when working together. So this project became an intimate arena for me to understand Nadia’s trauma on another level. She really exposed herself and her history - and I’m very grateful for experiencing that.”
Furmaan, of a South-Asian diaspora themselves, explains that creating the work was a life-changing moment for them; “Things aligned so well. I was around people who really understood me, who understood the experience I had with my family and heritage. It was a turning point where I was able to come to terms with who I was and what I needed, who I should be in the world”. I ask Furmaan to expand; “It was a feeling of not knowing who you should be, a constant battling between two places and two states of being, your being in this flux of change”. It’s a feeling diasporic individuals know all too well. Furmaan explains that listening to Nadia’s music helped them understand where they were in their life. “Nadia talking about dozakh and what it meant to her”, says Furmaan, “the idea of heartbreak, was an important thing for me to grow as an artist, so I'm very thankful for that”.
Furmaan has always made ideas of transness and fluidity central to their work which includes collaborations with the likes of Willow Smith, SOPHIE, Sasha Velour and many more talents. Furmaan’s work consistently exudes other-worldly mysticism, dangerous allure and a meeting of dreams and nightmares.
Nadia states that the whole purpose of making the record was trying to navigate “a patriarchal and white music industry and trying to explain being so othered, trying to explain that to the environment I was in”. She says that on the day of the album’s release, “we had created a safe space and it was not about the white gaze, it was a ceremonial moment where we could rejoice in our stories and really celebrate that”, which she claims was really rewarding after a long and tiring process; “It was really like we gave birth to Dozakh in that collaboration”.
Being part of the diaspora, I wonder how this affects both Nadia and Furmaan’s creative voice. “What’s always in the back of my head is remembering where you’ve come from,” Furmaan tells me. Being a second-generation migrant in the UK, Furmaan claims that not many people in their community had the opportunities they’ve had. “I’ve been very lucky to have the space to create very freely”, they explain, “in all my film work and world-building that we do, the most important thing running through it is always thinking about the others that never had a chance to do this”.
Image by Veronika Vidø, styled by Ella Lucia
Nadia agrees, stating that for her, growing up lacking a sense of community or connection to your own history is the reason why she started making art in the first place. Nadia elaborates that the diasporic perspective on her artistic process “is everything. It’s like a secret language that we have, it’s like sending smoke signals. You put out this work and then someone else catches it in a different part of the world but they know exactly what you're talking about”.
“It was therapy for all of us”
I tell Nadia and Furmaan that what they say resonates with me; when I see diasporic art, no matter what heritage the individual making the art comes from, it always speaks volumes to me because I can relate to the foundational human emotions that they're expressing. Nadia tells me that seeing your perspective reflected in other art can help you begin healing from your own trauma. What exactly does that mean for the pair? How do they think art is a useful tool to heal from trauma?
“I’ve been thinking about this a lot”, Furmaan tells me, “in my work and just in general. I’ve been thinking about the most joyous times creating art and it’s always been with a large group of people. Everyone on this set was completely entranced and connected, it was like a mycelium of people feeding off of each other’s energy. That magic is so healing”.
Nadia explains that it wasn’t only the final product but the whole process of making the video which was the performance itself. “Growing up and having challenges in my mental health and bodily health as results of older trauma which we inherit, revisiting panic attacks in a setting like that gives me a chance to explore pain in a more controlled and spiritual way. When you're in a panic attack you can’t see yourself from the outside but recreating it in an artistic way feels like nursing a wound. Being in it together was very powerful for me. When we were done destroying the mound we built, it was such a sense of victory, we all went through something together”.
“It was therapy for all of us”, Furmaan echoes.
I wonder if exploring panic attacks and mental health were the main motivation behind the theme of the video. But Nadia says that the idea of the video really takes a starting point in accepting a loss, how to mourn and heal from a fundamental loss. She tells me that “the speaker talks about losing a lover but there’s an idea of this ‘lover’ in a wider, more ambiguous sense. It could be a loss of anything that is fundamental to you”. Nadia elaborates that “if you hold onto hope that what you’ve lost will come back, you slip into melancholy. I talk about dozakh as this state where you’ve been separated from your lover. Furmaan and I talked about how melancholy is that place, then Furmaan had this dream about the mound…”
“I had a dream where I was in this place and there was dirt around me”, Furmaan further elucidates. “I was trying to get to the top of this mound and I was encircling it. I kept trying to run away but I kept coming back to the centre of it. I woke up and messaged Nadia. We talked about the ideas more from there and it all started to come to life”. Furmaan explains that in their personal life, they were going through a lot more changes and it was the first time they were finding a lot more autonomy. “Heartbreak for me was more connected to a loss of self, a change in my trans-ness and my body, understanding being in a state of flux. This change of self reflected falling in love and out of love, the notion of not coming to terms with losing someone or something.”
“I’m just in a very playful state right now.”
Finally, I’m keen to know what we can expect in the future for Nadia and Furmaan.
“I think we're just opening the doors of what can be explored”, responds Furmaan.
“It’s an honour to even know Furmaan and to work with them” says Nadia. “I know the future holds many more collaborations and we’re just scratching the surface.” With a beautiful air of liberty, Nadia states, “I’m just in a very playful state right now. I’m trying things I’ve never done before. I’m not on a schedule. I don’t have a structure of where I’m going.”
Nadia announces that she’ll be doing a performance at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London this summer; “And Inshallah me and Furmaan will keep crossing paths.”
I know I speak for many people when I tell Nadia and Furmaan that I can’t wait to see what’s next for both them and Marco.
Watch the video for Down here:
Director: Marco Stoltze
Creative Director: Nadia Tehran
Art Director: Furmaan Ahmed
Exec. Prod: Maximilian Mayrshofer
Producer: Gabriella Votta
1st AD: Anne Gunver Hyttel
DoP: Mikkel Ulriksen & Troels Rasmus Jensen
Focus Puller: Kasper Weg
Gaffer: Veronika Vidø
Grip: Rune Wedel-Heinen
Set Designer: Furmaan Ahmed & Mikka Gro Nielsen
Stylist: Ella Lucia assisted by Caroline Lindeneg
Wardrobe: Tara Hakin
Hair & Make-up: Steffanie Mery
VFX: Kitty Shcumacher
Editor: Marco Stoltze & Nadia Tehran
Grader: Nicke Cantarelli
Prod. Ass: Chresten Hartman Jørgensen
Still photographer – Veronika Vidø
BTS photographer – Gloria Moreno
Listen to Nadia’s album, Dozakh here: