Review: Coke Studio Season 4 Episode 1: Akhtar Chanal Zahri & Komal Rizvi, Daanah Pah Daanah
Well, here’s a track that a lot of my friends were interested in, as it is an older tune, but I had no idea existed. Another song review without preconceived notions on how it should be :P and no prior knowledge of the artists, NOW we’re getting into unbiased territory! Heheh, anywho, from the setup it seemed the Coke Studio team was looking to extend the success they achieved from the electric chemistry of Arif Lohar and Meesha Shafi from Season 3. It’s hard not to make that parallel on the surface, but as the song starts, I realize I am mistaken.
The speaking monologue at the start really pulled me out of whatever frame of mind I was in and dropped me on a dirt road in rural Pakistan. Akhtar Chanal Zahri actually reminds me of the work Saieen Zahoor did. Not sure how similar they actually are when you drill down to the details, but it felt like they have some common threads. Komal Rizvi enters with confidence, nails the chorus with an energetic delivery. I have heard her name in the past, but can’t recall hearing anything by her yet. Her voice supports Zahri’s quite well, the overall sound is quite pleasing and makes for a great chill track. I like the rhythm of the song as well; both singers did a great job in enhancing by bringing their characters into the performance. Really enjoyed Komal’s dynamic style, especially at the 3 minute mark when she says “Jeeeee-o” and steps away from the mic. Made me smile at how much she and Akhtar Chanal Zahri were enjoying the performance :)
The second part of the song steps back to the tried and tested ‘laal meri patt’, or whatever its official title is. Here, Komal gets a chance to put her talent on display, as Zahri slides into the supporting role. She belts out the lyrics with emotion, and the house band is completely enthralled in the classic track. The beat switches to funk quite abruptly, which kind of caught me off-guard. Little time is given to dwell on it however, as Zoe and Rachel Viccaji put the finishing touches on the contemporary soundscape, for Zahri to bring it home. If you heard the first 30 seconds of this track and the last 30 seconds, you would never guess they were from the same song. Somewhere in between, Coke Studio managed to sew a folksy tune that traveled the country side, met a classic along the way, and ended up in the city.
By the end of the track, I kind of feel happy that they added this ending, as it really completed the fusion CS tries to achieve with its songs. Akhtar Chanal Zahri’s voice fits right in with the Superstition-ish groove, and completes the fusion experiment. As Coke Studio seems to feature completely new artists each episode this time around, we may not get to see these two singers work together again, so perhaps it was best to throw it all in one track. Overall, a great track that may not have been anticipated as highly as some of the other performances, but perhaps used that to its advantage. Full of life, experimentation, and talent. Great work Coke Studio!
Strings, “Mein tou Dekhoonga”
Feel good song for the time being. Here’s an established band, known for their humanitarian efforts and social commentary via their product. Now, in my opinion, featuring poor kids in a music video is a very tricky feat to successfully accomplish. Basically, how do you keep it from being viewed as a gimmick? There has been a recent video which featured children as well, which I won’t name because I feel their intentions were good. However, watching it felt kind of like a drag because it came off as gimmicky to me. The children were just used as a backdrop or as props.
So as this video started, and the little girl comes up to the band and sits down, I thought to myself, “here we go again..” and waited for the vocals to kick in. Also at this point I’m wondering, is that a Fender or Gibson harmoonium? :P
Immediately, there is something different about this song, compared to the one mentioned above. The song is cheerful, positive, and most surprisingly, focused on the children! The lyrics are simple, the delivery is easy to follow, and all these sentiments are followed by the body language of the artists. They are performing for the kids, and the kids alone. They are no longer reduced to being a backdrop.
This is a sentiment we need to start implementing in our lives. As much as we do, we don’t do enough to live our lives for the betterment of not just our own children, but all children that we influence in our daily lives. If we start by having a more positive outlook on our country for starters, then maybe our kids will want to go back in summer vacation, or not think of leaving the first chance they get. Thank you Strings, for releasing this song and video; one day Inshallah we will make your vision a reality :)
On a side note, this song made for some great studying music for me last night. Made me more positive about the 5 tests I had to tackle :P Mein bhi dekhoonga!
