On the sidelines of a Chand Tara Orchestra interview, Instep spoke to Omran Shafique, a veteran Coke Studio player, about the show’s enduring success and the possible resurgence of Mauj.
We’ve entered another New Year and every year brings with it curiosity about the upcoming music season at large. What will it be like? What corporate shows will return? Who is releasing new singles, music videos, EPs, albums and who will land the gig of producing Coke Studio? While that remains a question that will be answered in time, it is, as I’ve said before, almost akin to a national pastime, to dispute/debate about all things Coke Studio.
And though debate is one constructive method of moving forward, it is also true that the reaction to an average Coke Studio song is much more strong, strange and hate-fueled as opposed to reaction to an average bad song (that is not associated with Coke Studio). All this gives the appearance, if not absolute proof, that despite the years and the novelty having worn off, the music series still matters or there is some interest in it.
No one knows it better than Omran Shafique who – in addition to his brilliant super group Chand Tara Orchestra (CTO) - has worked on the show under all three producers (Rohail Hyatt, Strings and Ali Hamza-Zohaib Kazi).
But as Omran Shafique told Instep, during the CTO interview, reflecting on Coke Studio: “The curse of Coke Studio was that all bands that appeared on it eventually broke up. Coke Studio 11 is the first season where bands (SOK, CTO, Mughal-e-Funk, The Sketches, Khumariyaan) came and they still exist.”
As Omran Shafique noted, he is often approached by aspiring/upcoming musicians on how to get on Coke Studio.
“It [Coke Studio] became more popular than we had envisioned it to be so people look at it purely as a platform to good exposure that’ll get you worldwide exposure, which it does.”
He adds: “People still ask ‘how do I get on Coke Studio’ and I say stop worrying about getting on Coke Studio. Get good enough that Coke Studio calls you. If Coke Studio is calling you, it means you’ve done something to warrant that. But our work [as artists] is to make music.”
CTO will continue its journey, having released an album, but with Omran Shafique having played a dynamic show as Mauj at Lahore Music Meet 2018 as well as with Salt Arts last year, albeit with a new line-up that now also features Anas Alam Khan and Aziz Kazi, it does bring up the question of whether Mauj is resurging.
Noted Omran Shafique: “We’re writing new stuff, we’re trying to. We stopped doing live shows just because I don’t want to play 15 year old songs, I feel tired of playing songs that I don’t feel a connection to anymore. So I was like we’ll write new songs and let’s start playing but even that’s when I get time; Ahsan Bari is helping out with the lyrics; Babar Sheikh may make a video.”
In the meantime, CTO is scheduled to play at Lahooti Melo 2019 that takes place next month. “Our style is open-ended but from get-go, apart from all the musical ideas we have, we’ve known we’re not going to let expectations guide us. It’s going to be the guys in the band and as long as we’re happy in the direction we’re going…”
As for the immediate future of music in Pakistan, Omran Shafique is optimistic. “It’s cyclical, it’s exciting that if you are inclined and you’re sitting at home, you can make music in your bedroom or you have the option to go to a studio. Some people prefer the former, some prefer a producer. There’s no right or wrong way to do anything right now. Just do it.”
