Hit People

Radio opened the world to Ajith while he was growing up in Kerala. “In the days before television, radio was a window on the world”, he says. “It was a big thing, we used to listen to BBC and Radio Australia for me”. Living in Kerala the only way you could get to hear rock & blues music was on the radio.

Ajith moved to Dubai in 2004 after being headhunted to help launch Hit 96.7.

A lifelong passion, music fills Ajith’s work days as well as his free time, going to concerts or listening to his favorite bands at home.

Ever wonder who it was that enthralled the listeners with his refreshing new voice and his guitar every Thursday at 8.15am on the Big Breakfast Club? That is Jasim, the latest member of the Hit 967 family!

Jasim has been in the UAE all his life, did his schooling in Abu Dhabi, followed by graduate studies in Information Systems and Management from Manipal University, Dubai, his full time job is that of an IT executive at ARN.

How did an IT guy end up on the Big Breakfast Club then? Thanks to Nyla who spotted his innate talent and coaxed him to join the band wagon, thousands of listeners now have a chance of listening to his this rare musical genius. (And those who have seen him live on stage will swear by his superb dancing skills too.)

Surprisingly Jasim has had no formal training on his partner-in-rhyme… The Guitar!!!

Websites like YouTube was initially his main source of guidance and training.

If he were a vegetable he’d be a chili because it’s small yet spicy, his celebrity idol is Ludwig van Beethoven and his life’s biggest achievement to date is playing at the Royal Albert Hall in London. He’s also played Wembley Stadium. Riyaz, head of production at Hit 96.7 is clearly a man of many layers.

A musician from Kerala who inherited his talents from his father the renowned musician Mohammed Shah, Riyaz plays the drums, guitar, piano and traditional Indian tabla. Before he came to Dubai in 2004 to work for Hit FM, he was touring the world with the likes of musical legends such Dr K.J.Yesudas, Shanker Mahadaven and Shiva Mani. But all those years of touring weren’t good for his health so when he was offered the job at Hit 96.7, it seemed like a great opportunity as well as a chance to spend more time with family. And it was, says Riyaz, who loves working with the close-knit team at Hit 96.7. Still though, music fills his whole life and in his spare time he’s usually composing and playing in his home studio – being a true 24/7 Music Designer.
Riyaz’s life motto? Live like a bamboo shoot, strong yet gentle.