It’s been quite a week for the Pakistani music industry, with a bunch of unknown rappers releasing a laugh-out-loud worthy music video, to a renowned actress debuting into music with a nursery rhyme-esque single. But the question is, why?
Why has the industry come to the point that being viral is accepted as being successful? This awful trend of breaking the internet and being ridiculed isn’t the first time someone has used for fame; Taher Shah even made his way into the Indian media with his disastrous music videos.
Viral videos are present in almost all the music industries around the world, but in Pakistan, these ‘cheap shots’ end up getting more attention than most of the actual good work. This brings us to the next question; does talent and merit hold no ground in our music industry?
From the already viral ‘Chai Wala’ music video, all I got from the video was how a bunch of untalented rappers we’re exploiting Arshad Khan’s internet fame, to get more views and attention; and it seems to have worked!
Urwa’s song came as a surprise to me and most of the nation; but the surprise turned into a shock as soon as I heard it. For an established actress like her, I can’t even think of why she would sign up for something like this. I mean yes, we’re all aware of her engagement with singer Farhan Saeed but what is she trying to prove with the song; that she can bring down all her ‘Udaari’ prestige with a release of just one silly single? Because that’s kind of what she did.
The video features the starlet, shooting for a music video and failing (Just like in real life); she then flashbacks into riding a scooter (Kareen Kapoor style) and just wandering around in an off-shoulder outfit by Rema, and then a black and gold frame of her in a golden fur jacket, with golden song keys raining down upon her, while she tries her best to channel her inner Honey Singh.
For an industry that produces incredible music like the Coke Studio series; we can all just hope this trashy viral trend dies down soon, and we can go back to having more substantial work, or at least anything better than this represent our industry.