Capri Cinemas is back in its glory days and is now screening critically-acclaimed local productions in its “Sunday Matinee” series. This weekend on Sunday 15th September, at 11 am, the popular documentary film “Indus Blues” will be up for you to watch and enjoy.
Indus Blues takes you on an impressive journey where the Pakistani folk artists talk about their struggle to keep a fading art form alive while reminding the world what they are about to lose. The modern noise and the rapid deterioration of heritage and tradition is causing us the kind of harm that we don’t properly realize. The diverse cultures around Indus, with over 70 spoken languages, have deep roots going back centuries. Despite the richness of the various cultures flourishing along the mighty Indus river, their sounds have faded to the background in a world dominated by modern musical instruments.
Watch the Trailer
Indus Blues is a rich ethnographic account that will take you along on a journey of traditional music in Pakistan. Director and Producer, Jawad Sharif takes the audience on an eventful, musical and magnificently aesthetic journey, spanning a thousand miles from the Karakoram Mountains to the southern coastline, capturing the little-known ethnic, linguistic, and musical diversity and humanism of the cultures of the Indus. You will be up close and personal with the lives, experiences and raw emotions of Pakistan’s folk and classical musicians, and the legacies of ancient instruments including the Raanti, Sarangi, Suroz, Balochi Banjo, Chardha, Murli Been, Alghoza, Boreendo and Sarinda.
A highly celebrated film
In Pakistan’s filmmakers’ circle, Indus Blues does not need any introduction. Indus Blues premiered at Pakistan National Council of Arts to a full house, and has has bagged huge number of accolades in both local and international forums. The documentary film has already received recognition with two nominations at Regina International Film Festival and Guam International Film Festival respectively and winning the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary Feature Crystal Award in the latter. The film has also won “Best Feature Documentary” and “Best Cinematography” Awards at Jaipur International Film Festival, India. It will also be premiered in Italy at the Festival Del Film Etnomusicale 2019 this month.
See status Quo through the lens of folk musicians and craftsmen
Audience is made to shift their perspective and look at our national problems from the eyes of these musicians. Pakistan stuck in political instability, worsening economy, and social identity crisis. We hear accounts of the struggle of the featured artists with terrorism, economic difficulties, and social issues surrounding music and dance. Each one of them affects their survival.
Here, Jawad Sharif talks with BBC Urdu about his experience making the film:
To sum it up, Indus Blues is a film unlike any other because not only does it showcase the unique performances of these rarely seen musical instruments but also take the audience on a trip across the diverse landscape of the country. In many cases, these performances feature the last remaining maestros playing their respective instruments. Do not miss out on this unique and thought-provoking experience.
