 After 2009 when everything got cancelled except for Fashion Pakistan Week that went ahead as planned and Coke Studio which is a televised event, 2010 saw events pick up once more. On ground activity is so needed to boost the industry and life in general. Instep takes a look at the highlights with the hope 2011 takes off in similar style…
Coke Studio
If there is one show that has been steady and consistent in delivering hits, it is Coke Studio. In the summer of 2010, the show returned with a third season and what a season it was. The artists who participated this season say it all. A few have fumbled while others have been pure knockouts.
But together it leads to one conclusion: Coke Studio has set a standard of performance that has never existed before. From the sound to the studio itself, the visuals to the house band and the scale of production to the musical ideas that flow, it’s a standard that is unmatched.
This year Coke Studio reinvented Arif Lohar with ‘Alif Allah Chambey Di Booti’. The song which garnered over 2 million hits on YouTube has been a monster hit. And it wasn’t just Arif Lohar who shone but also Meesha Shafi, who was the breakthrough star of this season. Her other single, ‘Chori Chori’, the haunting version of Reshma’s classic hit leaves no room for further discussion.
It was the season where Zeb and Haniya introduced us to Afghanistan’s ‘Bibi Sanam Janem’ and Turkish delight ‘Nazaar Eyle’ while Noori longside their mom Noor Zehra introduced the instrument Saagar Veena and an old tune, a rendition of Hamid Ali Bela’s ‘Hor Vi Neevan Ho’.
 Amanat Ali remembered Noor Jehan with a soft rendition of ‘Ae Wataan Ke Sajeelay Jawanon’.
Tina Sani returned to a studio after over a decade and reminded us why she is still one of the greats. The inimitable Abida Parveen created mystic charm with ‘Ramooz-e-Ishq’ while Arieb Azhar re-introduced the art of spoken poetry to trippy, hypnotic sounds. So what if Karavan didn’t create that much magic, there were plenty of artists who were purely brilliant. Rizwan and Muazzam brought their brand of qawali while Sanam Marvi charmed us with her voice.
Musically, 2010 has been a sad year. With few album releases and even fewer shows, it was the arrival of the third season of Coke Studio that created everlasting musical magic.
Lux Style Awards
After a no-show last year, the Lux Style Awards returned this year. It was the Emmys and the Golden Globes all rolled into one. After the scaling down of last year’s event to a photo-op where the winners posed for pictures and met the press, the expectations from the show were low. But the elegant set up in the Crystal Ballroom, the minimalist stage and the sit down dinner made for a pleasant experience.
The hosting duty went to comedian Sami Shah this year. And Sami did a fantastic job, making light moments with Meera and keeping the show going at a steady pace.
The music categories were dominated by Mekaal Hasan Band who had a fabulous run at the LSAs this year. Led by ace guitarist/producer Mekaal Hasan, the band went onto win Artist of the Year, Singer of the Year and Zeeshan Parwez picked up Best Music Video award, also for Mekaal Hasan Band’s ‘Waris Shah’. Another great musical moment was when producer Rohail Hyatt picked up the award for Best Music Producer for Coke Studio Sessions.
Come to films and so far, the revival of cinema hasn’t really happened. This year the recipients of film award were the usual suspects, namely Shaan, Saima and Syed Noor for the film Nach Ke Yaar Manana.
On the television front, the legendary Roohi Bano was given the Lifetime Achievement Award. The montage shown of her work was just one sign that she is one of the greatest actors Pakistan has ever produced. The standing ovation she got was definitely a high point in the show.
The glamour world too came together in honor of fashion and the night belonged to the Teejays - Feeha Jamshed who has reinvented the brand made famous by her father, Tanvir Jamshed was also given a LSA lifetime achievement award in 2007. Experience seemed to win out that night with awards in fashion going to Sana Safinaz for Luxury Pret, Hassan Sheryar for Menswear and Deepak Perwani for his sixth LSA, but his first for womenswear. The highlights of the evening was the candid and funny banter between styling greats Nabila and Tariq Amin, clearing the air between them. Iffy Zafar was a sure shot to win this year and his portfolio and commitment to modeling made the award for Best Male Model a worthy ode to his success. Fayezah Ansari won the Best Dressed woman of the evening and she took home the award for Best Female Model. Also in theme with the awards for the pioneers in fashion, the award for Best Retail brand went to the aptly named Generation and Best Hair and Makeup to Rizwana Khan. The Lifetime Achievement Award in Fashion went to photographer Mirza Khursheed Masood for his dedication and service to photography. His work is highlighted by portraits of politicians and commercial projects.
The Lux Style Awards are the ones that the industry waits in bated breath for all year long. It’s the recognition and appreciation of one’s peers and an event at par with the best international award shows. The entertainment and fashion industries join hands and there is nothing more exciting than the LSAs year in and year out.
Fashion weeks
With the business of fashion being the buzz phrase in the industry today we have a lot to thank fashion for this year. Fashion has become the platform to raise the image of our country showcasing Pakistan going towards a new direction. The remarkable ability to bring journalists from international press, giving them a taste of our multi-cultural and many splendoured country, was done through fashion. Which other art form or event could have invited this sort of dialogue between our press and international journalists? For the first time Pakistan was covered in the September issue of Vogue and our designers will be given a chance to work with the Fédération Française Prêt-à-Porter du Féminin. Fashion weeks became a platform for not only young designers to enter the market and veteran designers to take their creations abroad but to raise awareness through any means on the issues plaguing our country. The year 2010 was the one that fashion grew leaps and bounds in.
Fashion Pakistan Week and PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week were the two seasonal fashion weeks that had the country buzzing. Though continuous drawing room debates are held on whether the two fashion weeks should join hands or not, their individual efforts cannot be denied. Just when the year was drawing to a close J&S brought to the public Bridal Couture Week and reasserted the belief that the strength of our fashion industry lies in bridal wear. If this year was exciting then next year is giving us more to look forward to with Islamabad Fashion Week as well as a fashion week in Peshawar and more from Karachi and Lahore.
Catwalk’s 20th anniversary
The Grand Dame Frieha Altaf celebrated her 20th year in 2010. The event at Mohatta Palace was a gathering of friends and well-wishers coming together to support the woman that breathed life into an industry many thought wasn’t even possible to exist in Pakistan. For her 20th anniversary, models such as the legendary Aliya Zaidi had traveled half way across the world to show her support to Frieha by walking the ramp. The 20 year celebration of Catwalk was a flash back into the company and into the fashion of the past two decades. After reliving the best of fashion the attendees were treated to a concert with Strings and Ali Zafar which set the audience in a party mood.
Frieha Altaf was the original supermodel and didn’t face a downfall after her modeling years were over, she became a business woman and reinvented the very definition of fashion. Catwalk was a company born out of necessity; everything that entertainment events and fashion lacked was answered by Catwalk. Not only did she bring the red carpet to Pakistan, Frieha gave us one of the most prestigious entertainment award shows, the Lux Style Awards. The Lux Style Awards brought much needed recognition to the arts including film, television, music and fashion. Frieha Altaf’s company also runs a modeling agency, Cats, along with her event management company and Catalyst that handles PR. She’s also the show director for PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week.
It is not easy for any woman to gain success in an industry but Frieha not only epitomizes success, she is a pioneer in her field and continues to wow us with her stellar events.
The Sound of Hope concert
2010 didn’t see a lot of big live music events, and Coke Studio doesn’t count, as it’s not open to public. What 2010 did witness was one of the biggest, and perhaps most smoothly pulled together concerts in Karachi in a long while, called Sound of Hope, organized by the Indus Valley School Of Art And Architecture student council. The show featured some of the biggest acts in Pakistan, and getting them all together under one roof, that too for an on-campus gig, was pretty fantastic.
The line-up of artists for the night speaks volumes of the quality of the show. There was Mauj, at its funky best, Ali Azmat, being the rockstar that he is, Mizraab, with Faraz Anwer’s spectacular guitar playing, and it almost feels like they deserver a drumroll; Noori. Omran Shafique played with all the acts that came onstage, as did Gumby, so for fans of both, the night was a treat. But what, or rather, who really brought the house down was Noori.
Having been only seen in that Cornetto song recently, it seems we as an audience had forgotten the immense charm and talent the Noori boys possess. Not to forget that this is one band that knows how to work any crowd.
Thrown into the mix for good measure and to smooth out any wrinkles was Sami Shah, who hosted the show, and in the process managed to make everyone crack up too.
Being set on the IVSAA campus was a plus, as there was plenty of grassy space around the stage for people to stand, sit, lie down on and generally chill out in. This is one event we’d definitely like to see more of in the coming years too
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