With the launch of the music video, producer Frieha Altaf opens up about the concept behind the movement and why she feels the Lux Style Awards were the right platform to unveil it.
Karachi: With social media taking the lead in almost every affair in the current era, reaching out to a large audience has become easier than ever before. And if you wish to spread a message that has a social cause attached to it, a simple hashtag can do wonders. It not only helps in promoting the cause but also has the power to bring people from different corners of the world together on a single platform.
A recent example in this regard is the #MeToo movement, followed by the ‘Time’s Up’ campaign, in Hollywood that was born in light of widespread sexual harassment – particularly at the workplace.
Issues pertaining to sexual assault and harassment are universal; it is just that people aren’t very vocal about it here. However, a sexual assault incident in Kasur that claimed the life of an innocent young girl called Zainab paved way for dialogue on similar lines to take place in Pakistan.
It began when industry veterans like Frieha Altaf, Maheen Khan and Nadia Jamil took to social media and shared personal stories of child sexual abuse. In the aftermath, a movement called #MeinBhi, to further the cause and conversation, was launched by Frieha Altaf at the recently held Lux Style Awards.
Taking it a step ahead, the official music video, titled ‘Mein Bhi’ was recently released and the launch event in Karachi was attended by a combination of actors, singers, models, designers and many more. Among them were artists such as Zhalay Sarhadi, Ahsan Khan, Ayesha Omar, Asim Raza, Kami Sid, Natasha Baig, Lyari Underground, Asad ul Haq, Amir and Huma Adnan and Maheen Khan, among others while the British Deputy High Commissioner, Elin Burns was the special guest at the event.
The ‘Mein Bhi’ music video, featuring a wide lineup of artists, takes its lyrics from Shehzad Roy’s ‘Kya Darta Hai’ and speaks against human rights violations and the need to raise voice against social injustices. It has been recreated by a 40-piece orchestra while the video has been produced with the help of Scribbles, Audio Link and Mind Map. Artists who have lent their vocals to the ‘Mein Bhi’ song aside from Shehzad Roy include music group Kashmir, Fuzon, Natasha Baig, Pindi Boys, Fareed Ayaz and Abu Mohammad qawwal, Shani Hyder, Lyari Underground, Humaira Channa, Mikki Murshed, Zoe and Rachel Viccaji, Aima Baig, Mohsin Abbas Haider, Gohar Rasheed, Sanam Marvi, Amanat Ali, Fakhir, Ali Gul Pir, Fareeduddin and Raziuddin Ahmed.
Speaking of the significance of such initiatives, producer Frieha Altaf shared with Instep, “The issues that are being highlighted by this campaign – the importance of human rights, the importance of preventing child sexual abuse and other forms of abuse, the importance of equality for men and women – have universal value. And if movements like ‘Me Too’ and ‘Time’s Up’ tell us anything, it’s that these issues exist all around the world. It is actually brilliant to see an initiative like this here in Pakistan that’s homegrown, giving a voice to those who have been voiceless for so long.”
‘Mein Bhi’ is the brainchild of Frieha Altaf, who concretized the idea with the Mad Decent Block Party in Islamabad earlier this year. At least one million rupees raised through the gig were donated to Sahil, an NGO working against child abuse. This was followed by two segments dedicated to the cause at the 17th Lux Style Awards in February.
Reflecting on the idea behind ‘Mein Bhi’, Frieha shared with Instep, “I thought of having a local name and movement working towards raising voice against social injustices and that shouldn’t be limited to just child abuse or sexual harassment because that’s a very western thing and Pakistan has so many more issues (child abuse, rape, murders, child labour, domestic violence, etc.). A lot of people think I am a copycat but that doesn’t matter to me because it is about getting inspired and taking it a step forward.”
The launch of ‘Mein Bhi’ movement at the Lux Style Awards attracted mixed reviews as many people felt that it wasn’t the right platform for a social movement. When asked about it, Frieha responded: “Everyone has their opinion but I totally disagree with it. I watched the Golden Globes, the MTV Video Awards and then I watched the Grammys, and these three big award shows had a song by Logic, which is all about suicide and featured the survivors wearing the hotline numbers. We also have a hotline number that we have featured in the video as well so if anybody is in trouble, they can reach out for help. Also, music is a powerful tool and that too in our national language has the potential to reach out to a large audience, so I felt it was the right approach.”
On how she plans to take the movement further, Frieha revealed that she is aiming for a big fundraiser concert as there are so many musicians she couldn’t take on board and so much that she couldn’t do at the awards due to lack of time. She also informed that she will take up one of these issues and would like her friends and colleagues to each take one up so that everyone can work on their levels on various issues simultaneously without taking the importance away from any of them.
Coming back to the event, the video launch was followed by live music and good food but the fact that the event began hours later than the scheduled time once again proves that tardiness is an industry trait, one that must be done away with.
Sharing his views on ‘Mein Bhi’ initiative, director Asim Raza told Instep, “I really hope and pray that we see more than just events or getting together and partying around. We should make some efforts in terms of making our masses realize its importance as well and not limit it to a certain group of people. The whole society has to start thinking about it; we have to go massive and paint the town red with this idea so that it gets bigger and better.”
The ‘Mein Bhi’ video has been running on various channels ever since it launched at the event and aims to spread the message far and wide. According to Frieha, there are no copyright issues so the video can be promoted on as many platforms and channels. Whether it culminates into something bigger remains to be seen.
