“I did not send any clothes or participate in anything there” — Indian deisgner, Ritu Beri, whose clothes were featured in one of the entertainment sections of ACWC awards held in Karachi.

Bring together a performance by an ethnic Sri Lankan dance troupe, a classical-fusion performance by Nighat Chaudhry, a playback performance by Arif Lohar, have two designers feature their collections to an audience predominantly composed of those from the sporting and corporate communities and conclude it by a performance by the renown Amjad Sabri Qawwal, and you have the ‘entertainment’ section of the Asian Cricket World Cup (ACWC) awards.

It was an interesting, albeit odd mix of genres to entertain an audience with. What is somewhat shocking is the use of two fashion shows — one of the designers, as mentioned, had no idea she was even participating — listed under the ‘entertainment’ section of programme.

However, Frieha Altaf from Catwalk which organised the event, pointed out that the show predominantly showcased the culture of the two countries (Pakistan and India), and therefore contained an assorted mixture of outfits displaying such.

Held at the Mohatta Palace, itself a breathtakingly beautiful venue to have an event at, the awards function started several hours late. The programme was hosted by former cricketer and current cricket commentator, Rameez Raja and Indian actress Suchitra — both seem to have a natural, comfortable chemistry on stage and often corrected the now and then mispronunciations that our local models, when giving out an award, would often do while taking the names of the winners.

The first to take to the stage was a Sri Lankan dance troupe which came armed with traditional masks accompanied by three men on Sri Lankan percussion instruments. Although I thought their introduction on stage was slightly abrupt, but at the end of it all they were very entertaining and reflected the culture they were trying to represent. Freiha pointed out that since the three major teams in the matches were India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, the entertainment was designed to reflect the culture of each of these countries.

One of the two designers who showed their collection that very windy night was Saadia Mirza. Undoubtedly one of the most talented people working in the industry, the designer showcased a collection of heavily embellished formals and bridals. The colours she played around with were predominantly earthy — from hues of brown, blue and turquoise she also showed some of her work in white. The collection itself was very sophisticated and graceful. Two of the models who walked the ramp were flown in from India.

Ritu Beri from India was the other designer whose outfits were featured in the show. Starting off with the Khuda Kay Liye soundtrack of Allah Hu by Saieen Zahoor and finishing off with Khwaja Mere Khwaja from the soundtrack of the Hrithik-Aishwarya starrer, Jodhaa Akbar, the song-selection was received with mixed feelings as I didn’t quite know what quite to make of it: Fusing fashion with spirituality, perhaps?

Ritu Beri’s collection — one doesn’t know whether to call it that since the outfits didn’t seem to gel into a singular theme as such — was predominantly composed of saris with embroidery and embellishments lining the pallu. The difference in craftsmanship was noticeable since this designer also fused some of her saris with a cover of the same material as the sari. However, when I asked the designer about the collection, she seemed to be unaware about her outfits being showed and responded: (quote) “I did not send any clothes or participate in anything there!” (unquote)

Both confused and confronted with that response, I asked Freiha how she managed to get the Indian designer ‘onboard’ for the event to which she replied: “I got to know Ritu Beri’s brother through a photographer when I went down to India with Nilofer Shahid in 1995. Ritu did not make a collection of outfits for the show, it was an assortment of outfits she sent — I had asked her to send something that was very Indian. She was very worried about how it was going to turn out. Every designer who wants to launch him/herself in Pakistan is very particular about their collection.”

Where Freiha’s statement clarifies the lack of theme in the outfits, it still doesn’t quite explain the response we got from Ritu Beri herself. Since the outfits were sent especially for the show, they’re not available for purchase in any outlet here.

But most importantly, since when did fashion become a part of the entertainment at a show? Does this imply that designers/models may be hired to showcase collections the same way musicians are hired to perform at a concert? I thought fashion was traditionally supposed to be an expression of a designer’s creativity or rather, their statement/contribution of how local cultural aesthetics were to evolve? And that same model of expression is showed (traditionally) in a spring/summer or autumn/winter show. I never for once assumed that a collection could be hired for entertainment, that self-expression in fashion art was commissioned at will, most importantly, to ‘entertain’. Apparently, at the ACWC awards, it can and it did.

Nighat Chaudhry performed a fusion dance number with Wahab Shah and I was pleasantly surprised because it turned out rather well. The choreography was light and seemingly fun, and not over the top. Arif Lohar also performed that night starting off with his rocked up version of Jugni. The music was loud and came on strong, but the initial performance didn’t. No fault of Lohar’s, he performed on playback without a band to back him up and didn’t quite create the visual impact that the song creates. He did, however, seem to make up for it by walking off the ramp and trying to encourage some of the guests to dance with him…and some willingly did.

The night’s entertainment finished off with Amjad Sabri Qawwal performing Bhar Do Jholi and O Lal Meri amongst others. Personally, I didn’t quite appreciate this particular touch to the event. Being an avid fan of qawwali, there is a certain respect and norms that any such performance demands. With half the audience missing, including the teams since they had a match the next day, and the other half alternating between the dining area and the performance area, I didn’t see how any of those norms were being observed. Moreover, featured after an assortment of dance, singing and sashaying down the ramp, a qawwali performance simply didn’t gel in. But then again, so didn’t the rest of the featured entertainment.

Having said that, pulling off any event in a mere span of 10 days including having to accommodate a lot of foreign guests is no mean feat in itself, and one has to give credit to Freiha Altaf for trying.

A heart-to-heart with the band on their recent trip to Pakistan to perform at a local music awards function.

“Destiny, I guess,” says Palash Sen, the lead vocalist and front-man for the Indian band Euphoria, when asked about how they managed to (finally) come to Pakistan to perform.

Perhaps one of the rare pop outfits to break forth from the Indian entertainment industry, Euphoria, from the time they came out on mainstream television in 1998 — most Pakistanis were exposed to them via the wonders of satellite television — with their first single Dhoom (which is also incorporated into the title of three of their albums), garnered as much of a fan base in Pakistan as they had in India. Subsequent hits such as Kaise Bhoolay Gi Mera Naam and the all-time classic, Mayeri, has reinstated their status as Pakistan’s much-loved pop act import.

Despite everything, in the 10 or so years that they have been in the mainstream media (the band was originally formed in 1989) they had never managed to perform in Pakistan till recently, when they were invited by the ARY Digital Network to perform at The Musik Awards. At the ceremony, they performed for a whopping 50 minutes, more than any other act in that very, very long night.

Courtesy of ARY and The Musik, Images was given exclusive access to the band for this interview. The Euphoria line-up currently consists of Palash ‘Polly’ Sen, Benjamin ‘Benny’ Pinto, Debajyoti Bhaduri, Hitesh Madan, Ashwani Verma, Rakesh Bhardwaj and Prashant Trivedi.

“We never thought that we’d ever be in Pakistan after the way things have been over the years,” said Palash, adding, “but at the same time there was so much exchange with so many Pakistani artistes coming to India. Plus, we play with Pakistani artistes in India as well as all over the world. I guess it was bound to happen, one way or the other. I was pretty vocal about the fact that if it is a peace (and friendship) process, it has to be two-way. You cannot keep hosting people in your country and not get hosted in theirs. I guess somebody heard!”

Euphoria reaffirmed that even though they had wanted to perform in Pakistan, getting a visa was the biggest hurdle they faced in the past. “It’s another thing that we got a visa only for Karachi, and that too only for seven days. And we had to report to the police station!” laughs Palash.

I couldn’t help but wonder whether there were any requests for autographs? “It’s actually kinda funny. The guy at the immigration first took our autograph and then said: “Sir, aap jaa ke C form le kar aaiye.” With this the band broke into another fit of laughter — something which they did every now and then during the course of the interview.

But did they have any idea of how popular Euphoria is in Pakistan? “Yes, we have an idea,” says Hitesh. “For the past three or four years we’ve been getting numerous mails and emails from our Pakistani fans. Also, we’ve been getting invites for a lot of shows over here. The only hurdle was the visa.”

“And we know there are a lot of bands here that have covered us,” adds Palash. “When we get to meet musicians from other bands, they speak about songs from our first album, which means people have taken it very seriously. But I think it all came to a stop that night when we were at Bilal’s house and we saw the kind of support we had.”

Bilal Maqsood and Faisal Kapadia of Strings had (sneakily) hosted a get-together at his place and invited most of the musicians present in Karachi at that time, which included the likes of Nusrat Hussain (ex-Vital Signs), Rohail Hyatt, Ali Azmat, the Noori brothers, Omran Shafique from Mauj among others, and surprised them all by having Euphoria make an appearance later that night. Needless to say with so many musicians under one roof, an improvised jam session was inevitable with almost everyone performing one song or another, including Euphoria.

Referring to that night Palash says, “Popularity is transient. We saw the love that night. It had nothing to do with popularity, we felt that love!”

“That love and the respect,” adds Hitesh.

“Everybody got up in the end and gave us a standing ovation,” recounts Palash. “For us that was our dream in Pakistan and we saw it.”

The band has recently launched an album titled (not surprisingly, they’ve carried a tradition forward) Re-Dhoom. Why is it called that? “Because we just completed 10 years. The journey started with Dhoom, went on to Phir Dhoom, to Kalli, Mehfooz and now this. Re-Dhoom has 12 songs from the last 10 years of our journey.”

With a decade behind them which they refer to as a journey, how do they feel after completing it? “Extremely grateful, accomplished and content that it has happened. Honestly, none of us really thought that this was actually going to happen.” Palash says referring to the dinner/jam session at Bilal’s place again. “When we were driving back to the hotel from Bilal’s house I told Ben because he’s a huge believer: ‘Just say a prayer to God and just thank him on our behalf’. What we have experienced and what we are experiencing from everywhere, any band in this world would like to sample it, especially an Indian band.” He pauses before referring to the categories in the TMAs, “There were awards for the best guitar player, drummer, bassist, etc, in Pakistan. There is nothing like that in India.”

Considering that most of what we hear here is film music from India, how is the pop industry faring there? “Actually the pop industry is not really there. It simply does not exist,” responds Hitesh firmly. “We see so many Pakistani bands such as Strings and Junoon doing the kind of music that they would like to do as artistes, and not do music which is completely based on a film. It’s really very heartening that such kind of a system exists over here. Back in India, Bollywood dominates everything. I think Euphoria is probably the only Indian band doing mainstream stuff.”

“We’re mainly the only artistes doing it,” reiterates Palash. “Actually the thing is what Hitesh just said about Pakistani bands, that’s exactly what we’ve done. We’ve always made music for the sake of music — whether somebody was listening to it or not. In fact, it was so amazing to see so many bands play at Bilal’s place. You can’t even see that number in India.”

Euphoria’s music itself is an eclectic mixture of just about everything: There are local percussions fused with the drums, with Benny — the wild child of the band — holding it together on the keyboard and the mandatory lead and bass guitar also incorporated into it, coupled with the desi-sounding tunes they come up with.

How would they describe their music philosophy? “It’s very simple,” affirms Palash, adding, “everything that we do in our day-to-day lives… For example, you could be dressed in any clothes, but your heart is Pakistani. That’s your base, your root. The same thing is with us. Hum jiss bhi bhasha mein baat karenge aur phirange, the heart is Indian. I also think that is what our music is about: A little bit of this and a little bit of that. That’s what we’ve become, slightly westernised but still the roots are still strongly Indian.”

Perhaps what he means to say is that it is the urban side of music? “Right. But I would say it’s the experimental side of life. It is very important for us to portray what our roots are, and yet tell the world that this is the new voice,” Palash pauses for a moment. “And we tried to do it till that voice changed to Himesh Reshamiya!” (he and the other band members laugh).

Often Pakistani bands, when gravitating towards the Indian music industry, are accused of literally selling their souls to Bollywood. Their music is re-vamped and made more film-friendly. What does Euphoria have to say about that? “It’s not only the case in Pakistan. It’s the same thing in India as well. For example, Woh Lamhe. Nobody had heard the song till it was made into a remix dance number. It is quite amazing how the song’s fate changed once it was disco-ised and it became something else,” says Palash.

But have they as a band ever felt that kind of pressure? “I’ll tell you what: the pressure is always there. But you know if I as a band leader succumbed to it there wouldn’t have been a band called Euphoria today.

“I’m pretty arrogant about our music, life and the band, and I’m very strong-headed. When we started out, the first thing I was told was that ‘chooro band ko, become a solo artiste instead.’ That’s the first temptation I avoided. So if you avoid the first temptation which primarily involves you, you automatically become a team man. If I could set that example for the band, the band would follow likewise.” Reinstating his point further, Palash adds, “There is always pressure. There will be pressure not to have a band, then not to have this kind of music and then to join films.”

Ah, but Palash did ‘join’ films. He acted in a Bollywood production titled Filhaal that also featured Sushmita Sen and Tabu. How was the experience? “It was amazing to act with someone who was 2.5 inches taller than me. I’m proud I worked in that film. The nicest thing was that I got to work with Gulzar saheb more than anything else.”

And how did the rest of the band react to his acting in Filhaal? “I know one thing, we had a blast watching the premiere,” says Hitesh. “We were all in splits watching it.”

“The funniest thing is that it’s a very serious film. I think we all sat over there and made it into a comedy,” adds Palash with a laugh. Considering how the rest of the Euphoria band members have seemingly responded to Filhaal, have they ever taken Palash’s acting seriously? “They’d better. We have to do music videos. But then he becomes slightly serious, “The reason why we never did a film, as Hitesh said, was that we never wanted to design for a certain kind of situation. A film recently came our way in which the director wanted our sound our way, our lyrics and our thought. He made a film around it.”

So is it a Euphoria film or a story inspired by it? Says Palash, “Its storyline is inspired by our songs. There’s a song in it called Jiya Jaye. It’s not in the new album, it’s an independant song. It’s very exclusive and we’re hoping good things will come out of it.”

The biggest night in music is back!

The Musik Awards (TMAs) are back and they’re bigger, better, bad-er and bolder than before. Undoubtedly the biggest night in music, the TMAs, from the time they were first held in 2006, set a new standard in how local award shows should be executed.

They say that the backbone of any award event the world over is its credibility. You can spend millions in hiring the right talent to execute a brilliant show, but without a credible jury all that the award function is going to be is just a good show.

Unlike the other award shows geared towards celebrating excellence in fashion, the jury so far for these music-focused awards has largely remained unquestioned — the one for the previous TMAs comprised veteran music composer and principal of Napa Arshad Mahmud, former Vital Signs band member Shehzad ‘Shahi’ Hasan, Nayyara Noor (who won the Lifetime Achievement Award in this year’s ceremony), gifted writer-cum-lyricist Anwar Maqsood, acclaimed director Asad-ul-Haq, celebrated stylist Tariq Amin and long-time music and culture critic, Nadeem Farooq Paracha. This year the jury was limited to only four members which included Rohail Hyatt, Salman Alvi, Asim Reza and Nayyara Noor.

Due to the socio-political disturbances in the country and because of the fact that the TMAs have always flown in at least one act from abroad to perform (the last TMAs marked the comeback of Alamgir, the man responsible for introducing pop music into the local music circuit), the award ceremony couldn’t be held last year. Hence this year’s ceremony was a culmination of both which lasted a whopping six hours and featured over 10 acts.

Held at the Expo Centre and organised by Reema Siddiqui, Jalal Salahuddin and Omar Satti of J&S3, a Lahore-based event management agency, the sheer amount of work that was put into the event was evident from the moment one walked into the hallway designated as the waiting lounge which opened into the main performance area.

After multiple security checks, I entered the lounge area which also served as a Hall of Fame featuring blown-up posters of previous awards winners while music from the current list of nominations blared through the speakers. Meanwhile, the who’s who from the music, television and fashion industry gathered together for a pre-award function chat.

With the sweltering heat and humidity that we’ve all fallen victims to this summer, it was especially pleasing to note that the performance area was comfortably air-conditioned. Thankfully, the stage and the surrounding area (sponsors take note) was free of intrusive branding. The increasing the number of logos that can be seen at an event these days does not amount to better adveritising but only serves as annoying, visual clutter. Except for the left side of the stage where the Telenor-TMA branding was visible, it was nowhere else to be found.

The stage itself was offset by large life-size screens that displayed all that happening on stage for those sitting further off. It must be mentioned here that in terms of ambience the TMAs, overall, have consistently managed to maintain a level of sophistication in ambience and design, unlike other events.

The performances at the TMAs managed to blow off all previously held records of event-based shows. Paying tribute to music through and through, the performances consisted of the best in music, where performers such as Hasan Jehangir were brought back from obscurity. Adorned with an Elvis-like look courtesy Nabila and her team who did the overall looks, styling and wardrobe of all of the performers, he opened the show with a rendition of what else but his classic number, Hawa Hawa.

Ali Azmat surprised all by appearing on stage in what shall henceforth be referred to as the Bobby Brown pants (Whitney Houston’s husband who, during the course of his short career in music, was famous for wearing the baggy Sindbad pants that bunched up towards the end in a similar manner to the local chooridar pajama) and a Mohawk which he described as “the new wave.” He was assisted on stage by male dancers flown in from India courtesy of Rajeev Surti and his team.

Another performance worth mentioning was by the new line-up of Fuzon. I didn’t particularly fancy their velvet coats as they looked too hot for comfort, and not surprisingly most of the band members could be seen without them once they got off stage. And there was a definite improvement in Rameez’s performance. They performed to Balima, a song off their new album, Journey.

Noori came on stage and performed a rocked-up version of Ye Jawani Hai Dewani by the late Bollywood playback singer, Kishore Kumar. While some disagreed, I found their version highly entertaining. Other performances include one by Sajjad Ali who was backed up by dancers dressed in Cholistan-inspired western-infused outfits, and a performance by Annie Princess on her newer, more trance-oriented number. I wouldn’t give any points to the song itself, but the performance on a visual level was entertaining — she arrived on a throne that was carried on stage. Unfortunately the CD skidded several times during the course of her performance and the dancers would freeze every time it happened, recovering from it beautifully to the effect that it almost didn’t seem like a glitch.

Where one appreciated the finesse with which La flamenco, a dance troupe from London, danced on stage, their performance didn’t quite go with the high-energy acts that preceded them. Rahat Fateh Ali Khan performed his Naina Thug Lenge from the soundtrack of the Bollywood blockbuster, Omkara. He has always been a powerful and versatile performer, capable of holding his own even without the dancers that came to assist his set. Dressed in Cholistan-inspired outfits, they danced a more pop version of the classical Kathak which is currently the rage among Indian youths. Saeen Zahoor performed in the wee hours of the morning in a set that was designed by Ather Hafeez.

Taking the cake in live acts was the Indian band Euphoria. In an interview that was conducted later for Images, the band members mentioned how they had wanted to perform in Pakistan for the longest time but had previously never been invited. With songs such as Dhoom and Mayeri increasingly popular in Pakistan, they seemed like an ideal band to feature from the neighbouring country. Their performance was as loud as any Overload performance any day. With seven band members dominating the stage, they started off with a short instrumental and went on to perform classic numbers such as Dhoom, Kaise Bhoolay Gi Mera Naam and of course, Mayeri. Needless to say they had the audience on their feet and singing along with them.

Where the awards themselves are concerned, they were as follows: Best Ballad — Chale Rein Day by Sajjad Ali (a personal favourite in this category was Tere Pyar Mein by Kaavish); Best Album — Charkha by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan; Best Pop Song — Armaan by Siege (Roya Re by Shiraz Uppal was expected to win in this category and rightly so); Best Bhangra Song — Mahi Ve by Josh; Best Rock Song — Paheliyan by Mauj.

The Best Live Act (Solo) went to Shafqat Amanat Ali who, while accepting his award, said he would be back next year winning one for his solo album due for release this year. The Best Live Act (Band) went to the Mekaal Hassan Band, Best Music Producer went to Rohail Hayat for the album Charkha by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Best Lyricist award went to Anwar Maqsood for the song Akhri Alvida by Strings. Shallum Xavier won the Best Guitarist award for the second year in a row. Now where one is all for Shallum’s guitar-playing, one felt that Faraz Anwar, who was also nominated in the same category, should have won. He is a well-respected guitar virtuoso in his own right.

The Best Drummer award went to John Loius Pinto (Gumby) for the second year in a row and Khalid Khan bagged Best Bassist which was, frankly speaking, took a long time coming. Emu won the TMA for Best Keyboardist. The Outstanding Contribution to Music award was given to (surprise, surprise) Ghazanfar Ali of the Indus TV Network.

The Best Song award went to Chalte Chalte by Jal; the Best Video to Ahsan Rahim for the video of Ali Zafar’s Sajania. Sajid and Zeeshan won the Best English Song for Have to let go sometime. The Best Original Soundtrack TMA was Ali Noor’s to have for Sherdil by him and Waqar Ali. During his acceptance speech, Ali Noor recognised the sheer amount of work his contemporary had put into the song and dedicated 99 per cent of the award to him.

The Most Wanted Male TMA went to Atif Aslam while Annie bagged its female category counterpart. Strings won the Most Wanted Band. The Pepsi Rising Star went to Khawar Jawad (the award should have been Ali Khan’s as his popular song, Saathiya, still comes out strong from amongst the newer lot).

Giving credit where it’s due, those from the ARY team who contributed towards making the TMAs a success were Salman Iqbal, Arif Hussain, Danish Khawaja (show producer), Faisal Rasheed, Adil Malik, Ali Memon, Annas Faheem and Ahmed Zakariya.

Nomi’s nostalgia-laden collection is the first to break the ramp at the Runway Store.

The Designer’s Runway Store has finally been broken in. With a winding glass ramp running across the length of the outlet, the idea is to have small-scale, impromptu fashion shows whenever the need or the occasion arises.

Last weekend it finally saw the launch of its first-ever showing to a select audience of individuals from the fashion fraternity and the Press. The partitions separating the different designer collections had been moved to accommodate seating space for the invitees while the ambience was intimate, warm and somewhat cozy.

It seems like only yesterday when Nomi Ansari was the hot new thing on the block — he arrived with a splash of colours wowing local fashion aficionados with his vibrant sense of creativity. Rewinding to 2006/early-2007 and every other person at a social event seemed to be dressed by him. Nomi was everywhere and while many drawing room discussions argued whether he was avant-garde or tastefully commercial, there was no denying that his designs gained popularity. He is one designer who knows how to have fun.

One has to give kudos to Nomi for doing an independent show this season. Everything from the choreography to the theme — for those who haven’t been able to figure it out it centres round the Lollywood industry — was a reflection of the designer’s off-beat sense of humour. His choice of models to walk down the ramp weren’t just restricted to those belonging to the fashion industry, but also incorporated young television actresses and assistants to event managers as well.

One could see how an attempt was made to make the collection more relatable, perhaps by enlisting endorsements by well-known and lesser-known personalities. With songs ranging from the Pink Panther theme at which Anoushey walked down the ramp acting the part of a Lollywood actress complete with shades, blonde wig, exaggerated walk, waves and flying kisses at the audience, to Laila-o-Laila, Mehbooba, Bebot (by the Black Eyed Peas) to the finale song of Om Shanti Om — during which Nomi danced through his models to the front — every little detail seemed to be well taken care of.

The hair (painstakingly worked on wigs carefully weaved into the models’ hair) and make-up was done by Sab’s Salon and each model came forth as a unique creation. Going wild, perhaps beyond the confines of the theme of the show, the hair was just as entertaining as the clothes and the choreography. For once, a desi blonde in the form of Anoushey did not look tackily done up and the Mohawk that Nadiya James S. Abidi sported (for, perhaps, Nomi’s only western-inspired shirt) gave her a fierce, more edgy look than what is the norm.

And finally, the collection itself. The best of what Nomi has to offer can be summed up in one word: Nostalgia. Shirt lengths grew longer (aren’t they everywhere), the peshwaz was brought back from the late-80s/early-90s along with the chunri ka dupatta. Playing with circular patterns, patchwork and pairing pieces of outfits with colours that don’t traditionally go together to some combinations that were as colourfully loud as they could possibly get, the first part of the collection was definitely fun as well as being very characteristic of Nomi’s own design philosophy.

It was only during the second part of the collection — the formal to the requisite bridal — that the collection just didn’t seem to work. The heavy, full-length embellishments have already been done to death. There was really nothing new to it that night, including the bridal that Vaneeza modelled towards the end. Enough said about that.

So do we think Nomi played it safe? Perhaps a little. But there was a tiny bit of creative spark peeking out from here and there during the first-half of the show that was his prêt-a-porter collection.

Has Nomi compromised on his identity as a designer for say, a more blatantly safe and commercially viable collection? Not really.

But will his clothes sell and/or be as popular as before? You bet! Aunties who spend their money on designer joras don’t do it to look like enigmas walking down the street as a reflection of a designer’s obscurely creative vision. Does the Runway Store have the capacity to host further shows by independent designers? After this showing it clearly does.

Marking the end of Jami’s two-year haitus is the String’s video of Hamsafar

Some people might say that Jami shoots with a photographers’ eye. He is known for the frames that he works in and his often, almost abstract concepts (look closely at the videos he makes and every second carries a hidden meaning waiting to be explored and discovered). On a visual level, every single frame is a masterpiece — his videos are truly composed of ‘moving pictures’.

So where does Strings come in all of this you wonder? To begin with, Jami and the band go way back. When Faisal and Bilal made their oft-remembered comeback, Jami shot their title video of Duur. Years later, the duo is still working with this director and from its current album, Koi Aanay Wala Hai, has managed to drag Jami out of his almost two-year sabbatical from music videos to shoot the video of Humsafar, a song from their current album.

In our last interview with Strings, (No strings attached, published on May 19, 2008), Faisal Kapadia had mentioned that “the second video, Jago, is a fun song and we’ve shot it in Karachi with Jami. It’s still being edited. The third video we shot with Jami in Moscow.” The latter is now complete and is slated for a release on the airwaves soon.

For this sneak preview Images ventured into Jami’s crayon-coloured (artwork courtesy his children) editing room to see what he had to offer. And we weren’t disappointed. A fan of post-war, black-and-white French cinema, Jami chose to shoot the video of Hamsafar in Moscow, taking advantage of the colonial architecture predominant there. Featured in the video as the protagonist couple is Anatoly and Jane, the model duo imported from Russia who are slowly but quietly carving a niche in the local fashion industry.

The story within the video is fairly simple at first. We see Jane waiting in a café and she is visibly upset. Anatoly arrives at the venue, he and Jane quarrel and Jane leaves. She is then seen crossing a street and the next shot is of her visibly horrified expression as she turns around to face the (expected) vehicle crashing into her. Anatoly soon arrives at the scene of the accident and is (obviously) devastated. Love quarrelled and in the end it lost.

But just when you think you’ve seen it all, we’re taken back to the café and the story repeats itself in somewhat of a loop. Each time we’re shown a little more, extra clues and another detail to the story is revealed, and this goes on making the time frame of each repeating story a little longer. It culminates to reveal a completely unexpected and very different ending initially assumed. A spoiler would be to compare it to the Nickleback video of Someday.

A band once mentioned that they like their videos to be complex because every time he/she sees it, the viewer finds something new, another interpretation that he/she can take back with them. Considered a creative individual, the same can be said of Jami’s visual interpretation of Strings’ Hamsafar. There is something new to be found every time. The video is expected to go on the airwaves around the time this article appears in print.

From mainstream to the burgeoning underground scene, here’s a short look at what our music industry has to offer.

With the music industry picking up after last years’ complete inactivity, there is a lot to look forward to in terms of album releases and projects in 2008. Perhaps on a non-commercial level, what is refreshing to note is the spurt and growth of local underground bands in both Karachi and Lahore.

If one delves into the history of current mainstream pop music artistes in Pakistan, most of them were the product of the burgeoning underground music industry from Lahore. Several examples include the likes of Ali Azmat, Ali Noor, the co-Ven boys aka Hamza Jafri, Sikandar Mufti and Sameer Ahmed, Fahad Khan, Ahmed Ali Butt, Shahzad Hameed (who, despite making several attempts to go mainstream, is still very much underground), etc. As a result the current growth of underground music in Pakistan can safely be seen as a positive sign.

Underground bands are slowly but surely amassing a strong cult following the likes of which include the Aunty Disco Project (the band has made several attempts to break into mainstream media but hasn’t quite been able to despite the release of a music video on TV and several appearances on radio), Taal Karisma, a product of the National Academy of Performing Arts who produce breathtakingly beautiful fusion music and the increasingly popular Faisal Gill band (one doesn’t know what else to call it as Faisal seems to perform with a slightly different line-up each time).

From Lahore, a Beaconhouse National University band known as Simt is currently making waves. Its lead vocalist, Haroon Shahid, is popularly known as Haroon5 because even though he sings in a mixture of Urdu and Punjabi, he tends to emote the style of Adam Levine from Maroon5. Haroon is also known for his striking physical resemblance to Ali Noor. Once this band goes mainstream, I see many product endorsements for Haroon from Simt in the manner of Ali Zafar.

All that aside, Simt recently came out as the winners of a recently-held Rock Club event, a competition held amongst underground bands in Lahore at the Peeru’s Café, presided over by Fahad Khan and endorsed by almost all of the mainstream musicians in Lahore. With their Punjabi pop-rock song, Pyar di Ganderi, growing increasingly popular, one envisions that they just might be the next big thing to come out of the city. They’re currently in the process of recording their debut album.

Still on the mainstream, we’re hoping that this will be the year that Mauj, the band Omran Shafique founded from Houston and incorporated the co-Ven boys into, will finally see an album release in the country. They have also managed to amass a following by performing on a somewhat regular basis (although in the past couple of months they haven’t really performed all that much) in both Karachi and Lahore, and are also featured as the upcoming act in a popular fusion music show currently on the airwaves.

It is by now no secret that Ali Azmat plans to release his second solo album, Klashinfolk, this year. Although it still needs to go for its final mastering, the album is expected to be released in the next couple of months and is perhaps one of the most-awaited albums of 2008. After listening to the album it is quite clear that the ‘Ali-en genre’ — the crooner likes to classify his music as such — is a product of the kind of music that desi pop-rock would have been today had it been allowed to flourish and continue with consistency.

Klashinfolk embodies a maturity of sound and composition (both musically and lyrically) the likes of which are not predominant in any other local album, and understandably so since none of the bands that became mainstream during the late-80s/early-90s are functional today, and hence no other pop musician is as ‘evolved’.

The Mekaal Hasan Band was expected to release their fully-recorded second album, Andholan this year. However, in a recent conversation with Mekaal himself, he mentioned how the band is considering releasing another, intermediary album before Andholan itself. The intermediary (now expected to be the second album from the band) will most likely follow in the footsteps of Jhok Ranjhan. It will still carry the classical/pop fusion music that MHB is known for, but perhaps in a lighter, more easily ‘digestible’ way.

From the land of Jutt and Bond, aka Ahmed Ali Butt, it was recently revealed that Rubberband is also hoping to release their debut album this year. One can still remember the parody songs they released a couple of years ago (most notable Makhiyan, a take on the immensely popular Fuzon song, Akhiyaan) and looks forward to this album. The band, which also incorporates the likes of Waqar Ali Khan (popularly known as Wacky), Salman Albert and Muhammad Abid Khan, is still undecided about whom to release their album with.

If conditions allow, the music industry is just waiting to flourish in its full capacity. Where this is a medium in which it is not only important to be able to express yourself, but it is just as imperative to be well-versed and well-practised in your chosen instrument of choice and/or vocals. Seeing the glitz and the glamour that the media offers musicians today, there are many out there who dream of being rock stars, but aren’t willing to put in the sheer amount of hard work and dedication needed to earn that title. A flourishing underground music industry, and especially live performances, are important since they give aspiring musicians the practice they need and help to develop and hone their skills so that when they go on to mainstream media, they can contribute well-rounded pieces of work.

I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the albums mentioned above (and many more unmentioned ones) manage to find a release, predominantly because it is important that an artiste’s work be released in the time-period in which it was conceived. Delaying it may only serve to make it sound outdated. Secondly, it is important that the growth of musicians/bands be documented and that can only be done when they continue to successively release their albums. Here’s hoping that bands that have their material recorded and ready for release, really do.

Recognising those who made headlines in the past year.

Fashion

Of fashion and other demons

Other than the fashion shows doing periodic rounds, the biggest newsmaker in the industry was the breakup between two design and/or retail houses.

Perhaps the one industry that has managed to withstand and survive the sociopolitical drama that the country went through in the past year is the fashion industry. The activity within the industry may have suffered a momentary setback due to the imposition of emergency in the country and after Benazir’s assassination, but it bounced right back on track soon after. The fashion shows that were held off were rescheduled and held in both cities — and continue to do so on a somewhat regular basis.

Of these, the most prominent during the past year have been the Giorgio Armani fashion show held in both Lahore and Karachi and the Ensemble Midsummer Night show held earlier this year. Both were corporate-sponsored group shows, showcasing work by designers old and new. More importantly, both of these shows served to highlight the emerging talent that we have budding currently in the fashion industry. These include the likes of Maheen Karim, who comes out with a limited but strong, original line of work every season; Sadaf Malaterre who is, technically-speaking, making a comeback in the industry after a hiatus of almost a decade by displaying a more bohemian style in her design philosophy; and finally, it marked the launch of Kamiar Rokni as a solo designer and the beginning of his individual stamp on local fashion aesthetics.

With so much happening and more, what really made (and continues to) generate news are the two high-publicised design/fashion house breakups. A Geri Halliwel in fashion was pulled not once but twice — both times seemingly on professional grounds. Kamiar Rokni caused jaws to drop and tongues to wag incessantly when he parted ways with the fashion house he helped establish, Karma.

Both Kami and Maheen Kardar Ali claimed that the breakup was on strictly ‘professional’ grounds. With Kamiar considered as the main driving force behind the design label, Maheen Kardar Ali was hoping to assert her creative input in Karma by launching her Kami-less Karma collection at the Pakistan Fashion Week (which for reasons unknown and disputed never managed to happen).

Kamiar, on the other hand, maintained a low profile, beginning his solo career by taking relatively smaller steps — first by stocking his collection at The Boulevard in Lahore and then at The Ensemble in Karachi, and then he created a bang at the Ensemble Midsummer show. What’s more is that now he’s diversified by hosting his own talk show on Dawn News called No Reservations, ala Koffee with Karan style, but in a very ‘Kamikaz’ manner.

Vendetta, victory, Vaneeza, V9, V-Lawn… who knew the letter V could inspire so much trouble? Right on the onset of this year’s lawn season — the fabric was immensely popular in the design community this year with over eight lawn fabrics being designed by prominent local designers — Vaneeza parted ways with Mohammed Farooq Textile Mills, responsible for taking out her eponymously-titled V9 lawn prints.

What is interesting to note about V9 is that from its very onset it glamorised perhaps the most casually worn fabric in the country’s summer season. Lawn had an ambassador and that ambassador was a local supermodel. It was now officially cool. By and by, Shehryar Sumar, the person reportedly responsible for encouraging Vaneeza’s foray into the business of fashion, also launched his own I (heart) KHI/ISB/LHR t-shirt collection which quickly amassed a cult following.

The parting of ways was a big deal predominantly because even though conceptualised as her being the fabric’s identity, she had no right over the V9 brand name and hence couldn’t use it on her own. But by now, being well-versed in the lawn business itself, she decided to launch V-Lawn. The only question remaining was that with both V9 and V-Lawn doing the rounds at the market, will customers be able to differentiate between the ‘real’ Vaneeza lawn and ex-lawn?

It seems like the issue was also very much on the minds of both these individuals: Both of them launched massive marketing campaigns outlining each others’ fabric territories complete with billboard and print ads and cable-TV advertising. Vaneeza also went on numerous TV shows clearly stating her disassociation with the lawn mill giant and introduced the launch of her own lawn brand, V-Lawn. In short, Vinnie was everywhere.

But just when lawn season seemed to near a close, Shehryar retaliated by going to a section of the press and attacked Vaneeza’s personal life, stating his reason as (to quote from the article): “She’s had puppets from her fashion camps go on air and trash my designs and fabric…”

It must be mentioned that both these individuals are truly creative and in their own way have infused new blood into the industry. One looks forward to the work that they will produce in the future. Having said that, breakups whether personal or professional, happen all the time and with individuals who have to literally live under the media glare, it becomes difficult to prevent disputes from getting out of hand. Where all is fair in love, war and lawn, dealing with an on-record professional breakup by attacking someone’s personal life is just plain nasty.

Music

A bittersweet symphony

For the music industry the past year was when literally nothing happened!

Let’s face it: Socio-political disturbances and/or uncertainty in the country affects the music industry first and foremost. Where aunties, no matter what, are unwilling to compromise on their designer ka jora, people in general are not in a mood to celebrate by, for example, attending a concert. Musicians in the local industry only manage to generate income from concerts and/or product endorsements (which only a chosen few have the luxury of doing). They do not (repeat: do not) make money from record sales.

Keeping that in mind with the Lal Masjid crisis in Islamabad, the imposition of the emergency and Benazir’s assassination coupled with rising inflation rates has been perhaps, the bleakest year for the music industry since the new media boom.

Given the level of uncertainity in the country and the lack of proper infrastructure (though one can see a visible development) can one blame local artistes from hopping across the Wagah Border in search of a better fortune? Regardless of whatever is said about local artistes selling their souls to Bollywood, the truth is that artistes will gravitate to wherever there is demand and a sustainance of that demand.

From bands such as Mizmaar and Suroor to emerging artistes such as Shiraz Uppal and Annie, to music giants such as Najam Shiraz, Ali Azmat, Jal, Atif Aslam, Strings, etc, have managed to carve a niche for themselves in the Indian film industry with many more fervently hoping to follow in their footsteps. Our very own Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (RFAK) seems to spend more time in India than in Pakistan.

Come 2008 and we saw releases from bands and artistes such as Mizmaar, Yasir Jawed, Jal, Atif Aslam, RFAK and most recently, Fuzon. This may make it seem like the industry is bouncing back to its pre-2007 depression phase but the truth is that these albums haven’t been able to sustain the hype or buzz that surrounded their launch.

We will argue on the quality of work within these albums in another article but having said that, album launches are ideally followed by concerts and a successive release of music videos, consistent appearances on television and radio and so on; that is something that none of these bands have been able to do.

The second album of any music act is considered the most critical since it determines whether the band is a one-hit-wonder or whether their music shows a definite creative growth. With this year marking the launch of the seconds by prominent bands such as Mizmaar, Jal, Fuzon and RFAK, followed by a post-album launch silence, the question now is: Have these bands managed to grow beyond the second album taboo? If not, then can that be attributed to lack of consistent promotion, album content or simply the mulk kay halaat?

One band that arrived with a much-awaited bang and seems to be return again and again with newer content is Strings. The buzz surrounding their launch had been going on since…well, forever. They launched their album Koi Aanay Wala Hai with a City of Angels-inspired storyline video by an Indian director for the title song, concerts in India and Dubai with local concerts in the pipeline and a massive ongoing promotion campaign. They’ve recorded several videos slated for releases as and when the last one has done its share of rounds on the airwaves. In short, the band has done its homework and on the surface it looks like its paying off. It also doesn’t hurt that the band also has a tons of product endorsements to help them along the way.

Finishing off, another much-anticipated album just itching to be released is Ali Azmat’s (also his second solo album) Klashinfolk. Expected to be one of the high-profile releases of 2008 along with the Strings album, one can only hope that with its release (hopefully in the next couple of months) it will manage to create as big, if not bigger, a bang as Koi Aanay Wala Hai. — Bandbaji

It’s high time our people understood that fashion, as an industry, is more than just a bunch of people getting together to play dress up!

Being predominantly a textile nation, fashion design and the business of fashion is not just an increasingly imperative portion of our fabric and related industries.

Provided that we’re able to follow the global business model of exporting fashion on a global level via a local fashion week, it could also serve to generate massive revenues for local industries (‘In 2004, New York Fashion Week generated an astounding $253 million. Last year during the Spring/Summer Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week, apparently 160 local and foreign buyers had been registered, many of whom carried hefty budgets of over a crore of rupees’ from The economics of fashion: The great ka-ching published in Images on April 06, 200 and utilise local talent, those who are both skilled in urban fashion tailoring and local, ethnic designs.

The past couple of years have seen an increasing number of fashion shows being held by local designers in the country. The media boom has also facilitated a massive increase of activity within the local fashion industry. There are now so many newer ‘designers’ wanting to break in and take a piece of the fashion pie that it’s difficult to keep track of who could potentially be the next big thing — there are just so many to chose from.

We might not have enough of a local market for designers to host bi-annual fashion shows (spring/summer and autumn/winter being the convention abroad, scattered with a few ‘holiday’ and ‘resort’ shows in between), however, with shows being held on a regular basis throughout the year, local fashion ‘seasons’ are beginning to take some kind of shape. And most of the designers who do show are taking it very seriously.

But even with such positive growth and development taking place on a local level, one cannot just hope that we will, as a textile nation, eventually manage to break into global fashion as an industry (and not as individual designers who have managed to introduce themselves). Having said that, it comes as a great disappointment when, despite everything that is being done within the industry and after having the bar raised when it comes to local shows and designs, there are individuals out there who tend to treat fashion as nothing more than a mere form of entertainment.

Fashion is a form of art, where self-expression in design and commerce is skilfully balanced, and it deserves to be taken seriously. Fashion shows are not held for models to sashay down the ramp as mere eye-candy for the attendees. They showcase designs that are a reflection of the designers’ influences, the statements he/she is trying to make which could potentially result in a shift or an evolution of local cultural aesthetics.

An invitation was received last week for a fashion show being held at the Frere Hall lawns. However, on reaching the venue, I genuinely believed I was at the wrong place. There was a shoddy ramp set up several feet higher from the ground, there was not a single person from the local fraternity present and the seating area was full of families accompanied by screaming children, who in the first place had no business being there as late as around midnight. The stage carried an entire music band setup and despite the presence of the police, there was no ‘real’ security to speak of. Any random person could walk in, walk out, walk backstage (conventionally a big no-go area for anyone other than the management) and literally do whatever pleased them.

Backstage, the first thing I came across was the models sitting outside the changing room. There was no electricity or air-conditioning in the changing room for them to actually stay inside. The three or four senior models were angrily looking around for someone from the management; and rightly so as everyone from sweepers, usherers and catering personnel were constantly coming up to them to get photos taken while the models were still in the process of preparing for the show.

A chat with the make-up artiste, who was absolutely livid at the lack of organisation, revealed that the models had been prepared and ready for the show since noon (it was close to midnight when I spoke to her)! Investigating further, I found out that there was no choreographer, the make-up artiste was not told what outfits she was preparing the models for (she still managed to do a fantastic job) and to add insult to injury, none of the models knew what outfits they were modelling. Inside the changing room, there were no tags on the outfits to indicate which model was wearing what first, and no one there had a clue.

The outfits themselves were nothing to write home about, other than being heavily embellished that is quite the norm at Gulf or Kehkeshan in Clifton. There was one outfit that simply stood out — a white ‘gown’ with a layer of starry net (the kind that was all the rage in the early ’90s, and every girl’s mother made her wear it at least once on Eid) over it which frilled at the hemline and was held up by tacky-looking roses in the same net!

Stepping outside for a breather, I saw children dressed up in flower costumes stepping on stage. It turned out that they were going to perform a tableau for the audience. The next thing on the itinerary was an extremely sleazy item number by a very generously endowed female dancer, followed by an item number by three male and one female dancer. An acoustic performance by a group of local underground artistes followed.

Going backstage again, some of the models asked me about what was going on on stage since no one was willing to tell them. With several hours over the aforementioned time on the invitation card and with no signs of the fashion show commencing till then, and having examined the clothes up close and the backstage conditions, I decided to leave the ridiculous circus that the event was.

The skills, expertise and experience of professional fashion choreographers and event managers exist for a reason. In any other case, there is so much that can (and will) go wrong as was the case in the event mentioned above. A singular event such as this not only serves to undermine efforts but also compromises the professional reputation of the models, make-up artistes participating in it. In short, it gives fashion a bad name.

How does one ensure that standards are met when organising a fashion event? Is it the responsibility of the two fashion councils to define the benchmark and keep a check? Your guess is as good as mine for now.

Saqib Malik spills all on his latest creative venture, the video of the Zeb and Haniya song, “Aitebaar”.’

Six months ago, in a previous interview (Genius in waiting?; November 10, 2007) Saqib Malik had said: “I am in the thought-process of a video right now for Zeb and Haniya. I love their music. I think they’ve got a fresh sound — it’s very modern, paired down, very cool and it just comes through very directly. I’m very excited. And I think it’s going to be different than my other videos because I want it to be something straight up and simple. It’s not going to be an elaborate setup.”

He has delivered on his promise. Saqib is back in the circuit after having completed the music video for Zeb and Haniya’s Aitebaar. Slated for a release on local television soon, it sees contribution by Tariq Amin on hair, make-up and styling, wardrobe by Deepak Perwani and Omar Rahim on choreography.

Every director has a quality that makes him stand apart from the rest, the defining characteristics of his work. When it comes to Saqib Malik, it can be said that his defining characteristic would be the concepts for his music videos. His video for Rushk’s Behti Naar was conceptually brilliant but rendered in a somewhat grainy, home-produced manner.

Moreover, it explored different facets of our society and selves: Internal conflicts, oppression leading to rebellion, women empowerment, male submission and sexuality. Then came Fuzon’s Khamaj, a visual delight that explored an unspoken, unfulfilled love between a director and his star. With Ali Azmat’s Na Re Na the interpretations are simply never-ending.

We are back at this avant-garde director’s Karachi apartment, and after having previewed the video it’s quite clear that despite the simplicity of set and design, the Aitebaar project explores yet another facet of love — reconciliation at the end of it all. Beautifully choreographed by Omar Rahim, who is joined in by Joshindar Chaggar (otherwise known more for her Bollywood dance lessons), we see the duo moving from room to room engaged in a dialogue within their dancing.

Shot at Saqib’s old family home, the movement of the dancers is perfectly synchronised and appears to almost tease the viewers. The camera switches from capturing them moving within a single frame, ala Stanley Kubrick, to showing a visual perspective of the other from the subjects’ point-of-view (in a similar manner to how the Herb Ritts video of Ain’t it Funny by Jennifer Lopez was shot). The band, like the clichéd voices-in-the-protagonist’s-head, fades in and out.

“After the film (Ajnabi Shehr Mein) didn’t take off there was a big void, and I wanted to do something interesting,” relates Saqib about how he initially came to hear Zeb and Haniya’s music. “Umar Amanullah played it for me one day and I instantly fell in love with it. I told him I wanted to meet these girls. I kept hearing the song over and over…. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with it.

“I met them a couple of months ago and it was then that I understood their aura, the way they are and how they communicate, their body language, and what they are as musicians and as people,” he adds.

The fact that this is Zeb and Haniya’s first music video was taken well into consideration. “They’re going to launch themselves with this video, so there has got to be an image for them. They are divas in their own right — they’ve got great voices, they’re very intelligent and they sing from the heart.”

About the concept of the video, Saqib says, “After I met Zeb and Haniya, they told me that Aitebaar is about a relationship ending in a very mature way. Here is somebody who is reconciled to the fact that it’s over and they’re at peace with themselves. They can now think back in retrospect and deal with it in a very different way.”

The music video was shot at Saqib’s ‘heritage’ house. “I use it for shoots and it’s empty. I always believe that location has a huge role to play in the soul of any video that you’re doing. The entire idea for Khamaj came one day when I was at Eastern Studios. I looked around the place that was so full of history and I constructed the idea from that. Of course, the real inspiration came from Guru Dutt. For Na Re Na, it came from the haveli and the same is the case with Zeb and Haniya’s Aitebaar video.”

One of the things that sets the video apart from the rest of Saqib’s work so far is that it is almost entirely composed of dance. Choreographed by Omar Rahim who also choreographed the fifth LSA and worked on the choreography for the Hollywood production, The Guru, how did Saqib manage to rope him in?

“I’d wanted to work with Omar Rahim. In fact, he was supposed to be the choreographer for Ajnabi Shehr Mein which never happened. Then I wanted him to be involved with Ali Zafar’s Dekha video and that didn’t work out either. So I just called him up and he said he’d love to do Aitebaar.” Considering that Omar would need a partner in the video, Saqib assured him that he had the perfect person in mind: Joshindar Chaggar. “I had met Josh (Joshindar) a couple of times before and I thought ‘she’s such a spirited person…sweet and yet so strong’.”

But considering her background and inclination towards Bollywood-inspired choreography, how did he manage to tame her down? “I saw something in her. She’s got a great, very expressive face and technically she knows how to dance. Omar interpreted my idea into dance and both he and Josh slogged it out. I gave them the house to practise in and for two weeks they were at it. We would meet after every two days to see what they’d rehearsed…it all went off quite smoothly.”

Since the set, design and artwork of the video is extremely simple and considering that Saqib wanted ‘mood’ lighting, that in itself became an issue. “It was a very tough job because it’s all mood lighting. I didn’t want flat light; I wanted the glimpses of light to highlight the emotions. When you do that it’s very difficult to hide lights. So we had to find all kinds of corners to hide them in. At the same time I suggested that we make Josh a photographer and if you really study it, there are paintings, pictures, cameras, and there is light all over.”

Choreographers in the past have complained that inadequate editing of their filmed dance sequences often ruins the sequence of the story that they are trying to relate through dance and/or the music does not end up being perfectly synchronised with the movement. Keeping that in mind, I ask Saqib how he dealt with the editing of the video. “We planned it out. There was a lot of work that went into that. I decided what parts we were going to have for the singing. We shot the whole dance in real time. I filmed with several cameras and from several angles. Of course when I was editing there were certain moves that were redundant or didn’t work, so they were edited.”

Coming to Zeb and Haniya’s appearances in the video, they seem to be the voices that haunt the protagonist as she dances her way through different memories in different places in the house. “Now I know these two can’t act to save their lives. But what they do brilliantly is sing, and they really get involved with that. They have a style of their own where they really don’t communicate with each other, and yet there is synergy between them.

“I wanted them in there, to be the voice of the dancer’s subconscious or what’s going on in her mind. So really, in a way, Zeb and Haniya are narrating the story.”

As a nation we are not used to interpreting dance, or any art form for that matter that is not literally spelt out. Considering the metaphorical nature of how Aitebaar was filmed, does Saqib think people will be able to figure it out? “I think people are really smart. and I think people also expect something a little obtuse from me. When they see something that isn’t so clear and upfront, they want to see it again and again, and they want to put their minds to it and figure it out. To this day people are obsessed with trying to figure out Na Re Na.”

How much has he had to compromise on this video? “In retrospect, there are certain things I would have liked to do, things I’d have liked to make clearer now that it’s all put together. But I don’t think I’ve compromised much. I had a free hand to do what I wanted to. I had five days which is a real luxury in this field and I had the best team in the world. What more could I ask for?,” he asks.

Kamiar Rokni, the designer-turned-talk show-host tonight on Dawn News.

After his much publicised ‘divorce’ from Karma — the fashion label he helped establish and define with Maheen Kardar Ali some seven odd years ago — Kami has maintained somewhat of a low profile… till now. Once quoted as saying that he’s dedicated to making everyone’s life “fabulous”, Kami had decided to take his fabulous self on television with his very own talk show on Dawn News.

“It was Selina’s idea and we’d been talking about it for over a year,” says Kami about his initial plans about doing the show, “we pitched the idea to Dawn News and they loved it, and we started to work on it.”

Considering that this is his first venture into television, how did he receive it? “Initially I was a little nervous but eventually I slipped into the role. It feels nice to extend one’s repertoire and I’m exploring new mediums through which to express myself now.”

Kamiar Rokni is pretty well-known within the fashion fraternity and his is a familiar name with fashion aficionados as well, what kind of response is he expecting? “People have expectations, which makes me nervous but I haven’t really thought about it,” Kamiar replied, confidently.

The show called No Reservations is based on 13 episodes per season and sees Kami in the interviewer’s chair having candid conversations with some of the popular and notorious celebrities not only from the fashion industry but also from sports, politics, et al.