Coke Studio Episode 5: Ali Azmat back in the spotlight

Published September 12, 2015
Ali Azmat returns to Coke Studio — Photograph by Insiya Syed
Ali Azmat returns to Coke Studio — Photograph by Insiya Syed

It's that time of the week, folks: Coke Studio is releasing the fifth batch of its singles today, and the return of Ali Azmat to the platform gives us enough reason to celebrate.

Rockers have united for his track titled 'Rangeela': while the lyrics were written back in the day by songwriting legend Sabir Zafar, 'Rangeela' was originally composed by Bilal Maqsood, and will feature Omran Shafique on the guitars for this performance. This is Ali's third song for Coke Studio; 'Babu Bhai' from Season 6 was a hit in 2013, and we hope 'Rangeela' is just as delightfully irreverent.

Mekaal Hasan — Photograph by Kohi Marri
Mekaal Hasan — Photograph by Kohi Marri

Another rockstar in the episode is Mekaal Hassan, whose relatively new Pak-India band line-up with Sharmista Chatterjee behind the mic and Ahsan Papu on the flutes, will grace the Coke Studio stage for the first time. Their track is titled 'Kinarey'.

Asim Azhar — Photograph by Kohi Marri
Asim Azhar — Photograph by Kohi Marri

As for reinterpretations of the classics this week, Bakshi Brothers's rendition of 'Khalis Makhan' will segue into Saieen Zahoor's 'Peera Ho', while debutantes Samra Khan and Asim Azhar will take on Noor Jehan's 'Hina Ki Khushbu', in which Asim has interspersed some of his own lyrics.

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