Pakistani cinema is well on its way to ‘revival’, and we can’t help but ask: when’s the same happening for our music industry?
We posed the question to musicians Ali Noor and Shiraz Uppal on the LSA red carpet, and it turns out they have completely differing views on the matter.
For Shiraz Uppal, the music industry is already set on the path to revival. Uppal’s one of the most sought after composers in the film industry with soundtracks of 3 Bahadur and Karachi Se Lahore to his credit. And he’s spending the current year doing the music for the above film’s sequels, and projects like Nadeem Baig’s Main Punjab Nahi Jaoongi. It’s no wonder that he thinks that film is the answer to every musician’s woes.
“Today, there are many companies and directors making movies. The revival of music will happen through them. The more opportunities we have, the more the music industry will grow. There is no shortage of talent in Pakistan. More talent will come, as they will have a platform to showcase their work.”
Although Noori contributed to Shiraz’s soundtrack of Karachi Se Lahore, front man Ali Noor laments the fact that more and more artistes are focused on making music for films and TV dramas.
“We have to get out of this jungle of self-preservation, this mindset to make music just to survive. Music is not meant to made with any consideration. You don’t even write music to be famous. Musicians feel certain things, and then write songs about them. That’s how it should be.”
Noori took a decade to release their most recent album, Begum Gul Bakaoli Sarfarosh that won the LSA.
“This year, I want to support people to believe in themselves, and to encourage them to do [the music they love] themselves. That’s the way forward,” he said.