Interview with the winner of Rap Hookah Battle and Blind Hookah Battle

Today we talked with a hookah master from Kazakhstan, who took first place in two Hookah Battle projects – Timur from Team by Jar Nili. LETS GO!

— HI, TIMUR, YOU RECENTLY BECAME THE WINNER IN TWO EVENTS – RAP HOOKAH BATTLE AND BLIND HOOKAH BATTLE (SCORING HOOKAH BLINDLY), WITH WHICH I CONGRATULATE YOU! AND BY TRADITION, WE NEED TO INTRODUCE YOU TO OUR READERS, TELL US A FEW WORDS ABOUT YOURSELF – WHERE ARE YOU FROM, WHERE DO YOU WORK, HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE INDUSTRY?

— Greetings to all readers and fans of the hookah industry. My name is Timur Salimov, I am 21 years old. I live in the south-west of Kazakhstan, in the city of Aktau. Our city is famous for its location on the coast of the Caspian Sea, it is also known as the oil capital of Kazakhstan.

— ANOTHER QUESTION ABOUT HISTORY – HOW DID YOU COME TO THE INDUSTRY AND HOW DID YOUR PATH AS A HOOKAH MASTER BEGIN?

— My way as a hookah man began upon arrival in Aktau. I myself come from Zhanaozen (2 hours drive from Aktau). I got into the hookah industry by accident. But over time, it caught on, and I got a lot of motivation to develop, because I saw myself in this field. Marat Sarsekenov (founder of the Jar-Nili brand) helped me in my development and growth, and to this day he helps me, for which I want to express my great gratitude to him.

— TELL ME, YOU PREVIOUSLY PARTICIPATED IN THE PROJECT “Mix AND Story” AS PART OF THE Raim Raketa TEAM. IT WAS A VERY COOL JOB, EVERYONE CHECKED OUT THE REFERENCE TO IT IN THE TRACK FOR RHB. TELL ME HOW YOU GOT THERE AND WHAT YOU REMEMBER MOST FROM THE FILMING.

— Rayymbek and I have a very warm relationship since my childhood. You could say he’s like an older brother. We often consult with each other, share knowledge and ideas. In principle, we have a lot in common, especially the hookah sphere, which I am grateful to him for. He shared with me the idea of the plot and offered to take part in the filming. Of course, I agreed. According to the script, I was supposed to be thrown off the yacht into the water. We had a hard time over it, and decided to do so. But when we started shooting it was cold, and we simplified the task. I was hooked by the process of shooting, I was just enjoying the moment, it was interesting and cool to watch it, and, at the same time, to take part. And when I saw the finished work, I was blown away.

— YES, PARTICIPATION IN PROJECTS OF SUCH A SCALE AS THE BATTLE IS ALWAYS A HUGE WASTE OF ENERGY AND NERVES. TELL ME, WHAT WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT THING FOR YOU DURING YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE LAST PROJECT DEDICATED TO RAP?

— The most difficult thing was to come up with an idea and implement it. To correctly build a reference from Rayymbek’s victorious video “Mix and Story” and convey it to everyone, as it was conceived in my head. I wanted to pay special attention to the meaning of the text and plotting. Aidar Kairanbayev helped me in the implementation of the video series, for which I want to say a huge thank you to him. Cool cameraman and editor!

—  A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO IT WAS DIFFICULT TO IMAGINE THE SITUATION IN WHICH THE INDUSTRY WILL FIND ITSELF TODAY – WORK RESTRICTIONS, SEALING OF ESTABLISHMENTS. IT IS INTERESTING TO HEAR HOW THINGS ARE GOING IN KAZAKHSTAN. HAS IT AFFECTED YOUR WORK IN ANY WAY?

— At the moment, in principle, there are no global problems with this, we work the same way, we adhere to quarantine measures.

—  WHAT NEW HEIGHTS ARE YOU GOING TO CONQUER NOW?

—  I plan to participate at the HOOKAH BATTLE WORLD CUP 2022 and become the world champion!

RESPECT! AND NOW THE BLITZ:

— 3 TOP FLAVORS DISCONTINUED.

— I started getting interested in hookahs not so long ago, at the end of the 18th year. So, you can safely refer me, as it is fashionable to say now, to the “new school”. Therefore, I did not have a chance to find tastes that were in the top, and subsequently discontinued. But, I know that the chief has a few packs of old stuff lying around. I hope he reads my interview and corrects the situation;)

— WHO WOULD YOU HAVE BECOME IF YOU HADN’T GOT INTO THE INDUSTRY?

— Probably, I would have continued to go to my dream of becoming a barber.

— THE WORST FLAVOR OF 2021.

— Duft x Morgenstern, both tastes.

— BURN or DARKSIDE?

— BURN

— IF YOU WERE JUDGING RAP HOOKAH BATTLE, WHO WOULD YOU VOTE FOR?

— ALIEV BAIRAM(Russia),Yunus Olgun(Turkey).

THE END