Move over rock bands: there’s a new pop song out now and it’s about time. In a scene currently dominated by either rock, folk or classical, Mirage recently released the video of their fun, funky track titled Befikar — a song dedicated to living carefree and in the moment.

The video has been shot in the colourful Kiran Gali in the Baghdadi Mohalla of Lyari, right where the Lyari Girls’ Café is located. You can see band member Saad Hayat lip sync the first stanza as he walks through the café and interacts with fellow band mate Hasan Mahmud and other people, while the singer Rehan Nazim (Ronnie) jumps into the screen for his part. There’s some synchronised dancing during the chorus as well. The second part of the video is shot in Mubarak Village.

“The thing is, Ronnie is a very good dancer,” relates Saad Hayat, who produced the song and conceptualised and directed the video as well. “He did the choreography and I had to tell him to alter the choreography — simplify it a little — because I find it a little hard to dance.”

Befikar is from their second album, Doosri Dastak, which they’re hoping to release next month. “Technically, we have a new album ready,” says Saad. “It’s the usual soft-rock album — the kind of music we’ve been doing. We’ve even done a couple of videos but haven’t released them yet.”

After annoying Lyari residents with noise and hold-ups during the filming of their song Befikar, Mirage could be risking #MeToo with Ziddi Aashiq next

Why did they decide to change their overall sound? “The sound evolved because I felt that everyone’s doing the same old rock ‘n’ roll and Sufi stuff,” he says. “I thought why not try something different — so why not punk rock and funk? We’re inclined towards that as well.”

How was it filming the Befikar video in Lyari? “It was fun up to an extent,” says Saad. “The neighbours got upset after a while because of the noise and the hold-ups. So, we added a new day and shot the rest of it at Mubarak Village. We rehearsed for around 6-10 times at least before the actual shoot because we wanted to get our individual verses in all in one single shot each time.”

Saad shares some of the feedback he’s gotten from his seniors and peers in the industry:

“Lovely work, shine on!” says Tina Sani.

“It’s a delightful song,” says Shallum. “We need cheerful and groovy songs. Keep it up, I’m sure it will be a hit. Great work and a very nice video.”

From Dino: “This is so much fun!”

And finally, “Fantastic job,” says Aaron Haroon Rashid. “I really enjoyed both the song and video. Excellent work.”

Mirage plans to release Ziddi Aashiq next. “It’s about this guy who doesn’t care,” says Saad. “Whether this girl he likes uss ko lift karati hai keh nahin [acknowledges him or not]. His attitude is mein aisa hi hoon [This is how I am].”

Sounds like a #MeToo story in the making. If she doesn’t like him, he should just leave her alone! “Oh no! It’s not that!” Saad is quick to clarify, “It’s all in his head. He’s a ziddi aashiq [stubborn lover] in his own imaginary world — he daydreams about them together. The girl doesn’t even know he likes her.” They’re hoping to release Ziddi Aashiq in August. — MS

Published in Dawn, ICON, July 7th, 2019