Strings fans could be seen in full force last Friday evening at the Royal Rodale Club in Karachi where Faisal Kapadia and Bilal Maqsood got off to a bumpy start amidst the muffled voices in the background. They belted out their first track of the evening, Humsafar, from their album Koi Aanay Wala Hai, which is somewhat fast becoming a signature opening number for their performances. The sound system too was good enough to pump energy into the audience.

Sans any glaring glitches or behind the scenes blunders, it was an amazing experience to be at the concert. Although the entry of stags and boys in groups was refrained following the club?s policy, the energy level wasn?t missing.


Acclaimed for their rhythms, beat and melody, and enriched with poetic values courtesy Anwar Maqsood, Strings with Adeel on the lead guitar, Shakir on the bass guitar, Haider on keyboards and Qaiser on drums belted out Deewana and Aik Do Teen, and brought the house down with their fiery energy on stage. Chaye Chaye and Durr electrified the ambiance with the crowds singing along and dancing to the upbeat numbers.

Soon it was Bilal?s turn and after blazing through Sarr Kiye Yeh Pahar he moved on to Mil Gaya Woh and Mera Bichra Yaar. In spite of 2009 being a dull year with terrorism overshadowing all kinds of activities and with hardly any public concerts, Strings has managed to be in the spotlight even though it has been nearly two years since their last album was released.

Be it was their appearance at fashion events, their live act at the UAE T20 cricket match, the music video of Humsafar shot in Moscow featuring Bollywood superstar John Abraham, their tribute to Pakistani legends with Titliyaan, the second season of Coke Studio, or their social involvement with Unicef and their US tours, the band has sustained its presence in the news unlike their contemporaries.

The band went through all their popular numbers including Anjane/Na Jaane Kyun, Alvida, Yeh Hai Meri Kahani, Zinda, Dhani and Koi Aanay Wala Hai. A surprise appearance by Anwar Maqsood brought new energy to the scene, no doubt taken as a gesture of support to the new generation from the older one.

In a post-gig chat for Mag4you.com, Strings had this to say:

How has tonight?s show been for you?
It was an interesting venue ? doing a concert on a rooftop felt amazing. The stage was good, the crowd awesome and sound arrangements perfect. We had a blast.

It has been quite some time since Strings did a concert. Where have you been?
Things were either on a halt or they were kept private due to the turbulent law an order situation. We have planned to arrange a series of concerts throughout Pakistan with a telecom service provider, though not on a massive scale as it is neither secure nor practical.

Tonight was basically a test gig which kicked off nicely. Next, we are flying to Lahore and then to India where we have a series of shows lined up in Delhi, Jaipur and Bangalore. We will be back after Moharram to resume touring.

How has 2009 been for you?
It has been a depressing year generally and the entertainment industry is no exception. Besides terrorism, the common man had to fight on several fronts including inflation, economic crisis, etc. It was not a good year musically as well and we have had to postpone a number of tours due to security concerns. But we all need to fight this gloom and doom, and the entertainment industry can play a significant part in doing so.

How has the experience of doing a video like Titliyaan been?
Great. We got good feedback for the song and the video of Titliyaan.

Who was the first to come up with the idea and what motivated you?
Originally the concept was that of Bilal and later Soheb Akhtar took it over and executed the whole concept very well. We feel that as a nation we have a short-term memory. We are unfamiliar of the work of our legends and their achievements.

Basically, the idea of Titliyaan was to pay rich tribute to all icons that Pakistan has had over the decades ? from music legends Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Malika Pukhraj and Iqbal Bano to writers and poets such as Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Ashfaque Ahmed and Parveen Shakir, artists like Sadequain to Gulgee, and actors like Khalida Riyasat, Saleem Nasir, Yasmeen Ismail and Mehboob Alam.

Wasn?t it difficult to summarise all in a few minutes? video?
It was and credit goes to Soheb Akhtar for making it sound so touching. With it we have strived to create awareness in the younger generation regarding our rich traditions, and the people who helped us reach where we are today.

What surprises does 2010 hold for Strings? fans?
Well, 2010 is dedicated to concerts and tours that unfortunately couldn?t materialise this year. After India, we are heading to the US in March. But there is a project that we are engaged in along with Atif Aslam and that, we are sure, would be a pleasant surprise for our fans.

How was it doing a live act at the UAE Cricket Stadium in T20?
Really great. The band has always been associated with cricket. It was for the first time that the UAE Stadium management took it so seriously and made the arrangements for a live concert by giving the kind of sound system a stadium should have for a concert. It was fun performing live and later when Pakistan won the match it added more to the excitement.

Can we expect a new album in 2010?
I don?t think so as 2010 would be too early. We usually start working on an album when we are done with the concept/storying of the album. We haven?t started working on it as yet.

Will you be discussing social issues in your albums?
We have already recorded a few documentaries with Unicef for creating awareness regarding Aids, and soon these would start making their way to the media.

Recently, both of you made a presence on the ramp at a fashion show. What was that all about?
It was an interesting experience and we were dragged by Freiha Altaf into doing a lip synch act for two of our songs, Koi Aanay Wala Hai and Sarr Kiye Yeh Pahar. The fashion industry is doing quite well here and we believe that music and fashion co-relate to some level, therefore the idea attracted us. We had done a similar act in India as well for John Abraham who launched a clothing line there.

What else is keeping Strings busy these days?
The Internet has turned the world into a global village, making interaction with people a whole lot easier. Strings is quite active through different social websites such as Facebook, besides we have our own website where fans can directly interact with us. It has benefited us as we get instant feedback from our fans.