Does anyone remember the beautiful rendition of national anthem, that a 9 year old sitar playing boy did last year? Well let me take you to 2016, when Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan (Xulfi) music producer for Nescafe Basement (Season 4) and came up with the idea of doing a rendition of national anthem for Pakistan Day.
The rendition features two brothers playing sitar, and humming th strings to the tune of our beloved Qaumi Tarana.
Rendition of the Qaumi Tarana/National Anthem is very tricky. Since it is close to every Pakistani’s heart and soul and holds extreme sentimental value, working on it (both for the audio and the visuals) require precision and creativity.
Produced by Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan, directed by Murtaza Niaz and performing on sitar and tabla are Ahmed and his brother Muhmmad Afandi, that particular rendition was indeed beautiful, gave everyone goose bumps and brought tears to the eyes of many.
Looking back at the simple, yet creatively shot video, made me unintentionally compare it to the rendition released by Coke Studio to mark the beginning of it’s tenth season, and I came to simple conclusion of how talent triumphs over fame.
Watch National Anthem Rendition from Nescafe Basement Below:
Coke Studio marks it tenth season this year and starts of by releasing an awful rendition of the national anthem. Strategically nothing could’ve been better, but the national anthem’s rendition as both the 70th Independence Day of Pakistan and Coke Studio’s season ten episode one sort of coincide.
But unfortunately what could’ve been a soul touching and wonderful rendition, turned out to be absolutely awful and it left many wondering what they had just heard. The video basically aims at introducing the artists and music producers involved in the performance and making of Coke Studio season 10.
All of artists involved are known for being one of the biggest artists around the country, but sadly their performance has clearly missed the mark.
Fans took to social media to express their displeasure of Coke Studio’s performance, with some saying flat out how Coke Studio has “butchered” the national anthem.
