Documentary ‘the journey within’ screened

Islamabad

For its monthly comparative cultures programme, the Asian Study Group (ASG) screened the documentary, ‘The Journey Within,’ directed by Mian Adnan Ahmed. In its newsletter of the month, the ASG blurb about the programme said, ‘Coke Studio is one of the most inspirational Pakistani cultural initiatives of recent times. A large portion of TV viewers tune in regularly to enjoy its unique fusion of Pakistani and international cultural experiences and musical genre but its humble beginnings have been nearly forgotten. ‘The Journey Within’ has truly captured the spirit of the artists and producers like Rohail Hyatt, who put Coke Studio together and continuously improved upon their inspiration over the past decade. It tells their tale through a lively mixture of music and dialogue, wrapped in an aesthetically pleasing production.’

Head of the ASG sub-group, Comparative Cultures, Paul Lundberg welcomed the audience and introduced the three members of the team who were present - Director/producer Mian Adnan Ahmed; Mian Nauman Ahmad Kakakhel (DIT/Technical Lead) and Adeel Babree (sound recording/transcriber) - and saying a few words about the documentary and the production before it was screened. The show focuses on a fusion of the diverse musical influences in Pakistan, including eastern classical, folk, ‘qawwali’, ‘ghazal’, ‘bhangra’, Sufi and contemporary hip hop, rock and pop music

The film starts by showing flashing, negative images of Pakistan and explains why the music programme came at the right time to counter the allegations being made by the international media. Opening with ‘Noori’ the band singing one of their CS renditions and classical dancer, Amna Nawaz interpreting it, the film has artists like Sain Zahoor; Arf Lohar; Tina Sani; Meesha Shafi and many others who participated in the first six seasons, generally giving much needed information about their instruments and the philosophy of Sufi thought. “If a singer is singing, the song should have the fragrance of the land they belong to,” says Akhter Channal Zehri, a folk singer from Baluchistan.

Clips of well known personalities from the world of art and culture voicing their opinion about the show are also shown, as well as the hopes and fears of its success expressed by the corporate entities involved in its production. There are interesting scenes of how the programme was planned and executed - from the choice of artistes to the building of the stage around a central space and the general bonhomie that existed during the rehearsals and recordings.

During the Q&A session, when asked how he came to make the documentary, Adnan said he came across Coke Studio for the first time when he was in Film School in the US. “I saw ‘Aik Alif’ and was really affected by the music and refreshing narrative that the show was giving about Pakistan at a time when people in the west were looking at the country from a very narrow perspective, focused only on the extremism scenario” he said. “For me and many other listeners, Coke Studio become more than just about the music - it allowed us to embrace our identity and reclaim our musical heritage.”

Adnan went on to say he always wanted to do something related to the local music scene but was not sure how it would come about. Fortunately sometime later, he was approached to make a film on Coke Studio itself. “Given the opportunity, I wanted to go back to the beginning of how the show started and convey the feeling that I had when I was in film school - in the film’s narrative as well - where the show was more than just a music show for so many Pakistanis and others,” he said. “And since there are hardly any music documentaries made in Pakistan, I wanted this film to also serve as a documentation of this important period, with a focus on those at the helm and the more cultural and traditional artists of our country.”

The film has been shown at 20 international festivals, winning the coveted ‘Best of Fest’ award at its 2015 American premiere; the ‘Best Film of the Festival,’ Full Bloom Film Festival 2015 and Silver Remi at the 2016 Houston World fest, while other accolades pour in every time the documentary is shown at private screenings at home and abroad.