Quartet (1988–1992) Pop music became more popular in Pakistan during the late 1980s, with new artists emerging in the scene.
Shalimar Television Network (STN), one of two channels in the country—the other was the
Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV)—launched a show entitled
Music Channel Charts to showcase new talent. In Karachi, however, fans of singers such as
Nazia and Zoheb,
Alamgir and
Ali Shehki were eager to hear the new wave of Pakistani pop music. In 1988, at the
Government College of Commerce & Economics in
Karachi, four classmates (Bilal Maqsood, Faisal Kapadia, Rafiq Wazir Ali and Kareem Bashir Bhoy) formed a band. They called themselves Strings after the host of their college farewell party asked for their name while they were being announced on stage. Soon afterwards, though, their "Sar Kiye Yeh Pahar" video aired on
MTV Asia and sparked international fame. After Strings disbanded, Maqsood attended art school and later became a creative director at an advertising agency. Kapadia went to
Houston, Texas to continue his business studies; When their new video was played on Indian music channels, "Duur" became a hit across the border. The hit became the official song for the
India national cricket team's tour of Pakistan. After the success of their third album and "Jheet Lo Dil", Strings toured India with
Channel V. The band were warmly received by Indian audiences, and lined up singers
Hariharan and
Sagarika for their fourth album. Strings appeared on Channel V's television show
Jammin, performing "Pal" from their upcoming fourth album with Sagarika. The song was written and recorded in audio and video over a three-day period. The band then recorded the single "Bolo Bolo", later re-recording the track with Hariharan. The band were then approached by
Columbia TriStar Films of India, a sister company of their record label, to include their next single ("
Najane Kyun") on the soundtrack of the Hindi version of the Hollywood film,
Spider-Man 2. In May 2005 Strings released the music video of "Kahani Mohabat Ki", directed by Umar Anwar. The single was a success, receiving positive reviews from critics. With their subcontinental success, the band won the
Favorite Artist India award at the
MTV Asia Awards 2005. Strings were approached by director
Sanjay Gupta, who was shooting
Zinda (a remake of the
South Korean film
Oldboy), for a song for its soundtrack. Bilal Maqsood composed "Zinda Hoon" (with lyrics by his father, Anwar) for the film. The duo acted with (and befriended) two
Bollywood A-list actors,
John Abraham and
Sanjay Dutt, with whom they later worked. In July 2006, Strings were nominated for Most Wanted Band and won the Motorola Music Icon award at the
2006 The Musik Awards. "Zinda Hoon" was nominated for the Most Wanted Song and Best Pop Song awards. On 28 September 2006 the band released "Beirut", an anti-war video.
Success (2007–2010) On 8 May 2007 Strings released "Aakhri Alvida" on the soundtrack of
Shootout at Lokhandwala, a Bollywood film directed by
Apoorva Lakhia. On 1 November, they released the single "Hum Hee Hum" and its music video from their fifth album. Also in late 2007, Strings signed an agreement with the
Gibson Guitar Corporation; they and the Pakistani rock band
Jal were the first South Asian bands to have a working relationship with the guitar manufacturer. It was reported that as part of the agreement, Strings would use Gibson guitars exclusively for concerts, recordings and music videos. In return, Gibson would provide concert venues and required equipment. On 16 May 2008 Strings released their fifth album,
Koi Aanay Wala Hai, on
Fire Records in Pakistan and
Sony BMG internationally. The album, co-produced by Bollywood actor John Abraham, topped the charts in Pakistan and India and included songs from the soundtracks of the Bollywood films
Shootout at Lokhandwala and
Zinda. On 19 May the band released the album's title track, "
Koi Aanay Wala Hai", featured John Abraham. On 24 June Strings released a music video for "Humsafar", directed by Jami Mehmood and filmed in
Moscow. This was followed by a performance on the debut season of the musical television programme
Coke Studio, which also showcased Pakistani artists and musicians
Ali Azmat,
Mauj,
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and
Ali Zafar. During the second episode of
Coke Studio, aired on 29 June, Strings performed their singles "Sar Kiye Yeh Pahar", "Anjane", "Zinda Hoon" and a duet on "Duur" with Ustaad Hussain Bakhsh Gullo. In August 2011, they again appeared on the show, performing "Dhaani" with Gullo. On 9 October Strings released another single, "Jago", with an accompanying music video. The band's success in
Coke Studios first season led them to an appearance on the show's second-season finale, airing on Pakistan's Independence Day (14 August 2009), in which they performed "Titliyan". In November Strings released the "Titliyan" music video, which did well on local music charts. s in 2010. In June 2010 Strings signed a one-year partnership with
Abu Dhabi-based
Etihad Airways as its brand ambassadors, promoting Pakistan in the global market with the band's music. Peter Baumgartner, chief commercial officer for Etihad Airways, said he was "looking forward to witnessing how the Etihad brand name reached across the world through the music of Strings." Vocalist Faisal Kapadia said, "It is not only about free air tickets. We needed something like this to promote the true image of Pakistan. We want to do concerts internationally, but it is very expensive. This deal will help to overcome that". On 5 June, Strings and
Arshad Mehmood judged the National Song Competition for national awareness initiative Azme Alishan. The primary aim of the movement is to revive the spirit of nationhood and community in Pakistan, highlighting the country's young musical talent. The competition was televised worldwide throughout the summer, with the winner announced on 14 August. Other guest judges were former
Vital Signs member Shahzad Hassan, singer
Najam Sheraz and Khalid Khan from the band
Aaroh. On 16 July 2010 Strings released their single "
Ab Khud Kuch Karna Paray Ga", featuring former Jal lead vocalist
Atif Aslam. In October Strings, in collaboration with Emirates International Mobile Humanitarian Hospital for Children, distributed over 500 gift packs to children displaced by the
2010 Pakistan floods who were living in the Sujawal relief camp.
2011 to 2017 In February 2011, Strings performed at Pearl, the annual cultural festival at
Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani – Hyderabad in
Hyderabad. The following month they played at the Aman Ki Asha concert in
Ahmedabad with the Indian band
Indian Ocean, releasing "
Mein Tou Dekhoonga" on 28 March and its music video (directed by Jamshed Mehmood) on 4 April. The band also performed with
Shafqat Amanat Ali in
Dubai. Later in April Strings became brand ambassadors for
Levi's Pakistan, and on 13 May the band performed at the Pakistani Embassy in
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. On 26 May Levi's Original Music released a promo with Strings and Zoe Viccaji and a music video of an
a cappella version of "Mera Bichra Yaar" with Zoe Viccaji four days later. On 4 June, Strings performed at the Beach Luxury Hotel. The band began with "
Koi Aanay Wala Hai", the title song from their 2008 album. They followed with "Najane Kyun", dedicated to the journalists who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty, "Zinda Hoon", "Mein Tou Dekhoonga" and "Sohniyae". On 10 June, a cover version of "Anjane" with Bilal Khan and Zoe Viccaji was released by Levi's Original Music. in 2011 On 1 August, in an interview with
The Express Tribune, Strings confirmed that they were working on two new songs: "Tum Hi To Ho" and "Goli Maray". Kapadia said, "The whole idea behind going into a recording studio and making a bunch of new songs is just to have fun. We strongly believe that coming out with new music helps us grow and reinvent ourselves as musicians." On 15 August, in an interview on the
BBC Hindi show
Music Beyond Borders, they discussed the political situation in Pakistan, performed "Mein Toh Dekhoonga" and covered the Indian Ocean song "Bandeh" at the request of Indian Ocean lead vocalist
Rahul Ram. On 26 August, Bollywood director
Sanjay Gupta confirmed that Strings would provide music for the soundtrack to his movie
Shootout at Wadala. Several days later Maqsood and Kapadia, in India, confirmed that they were composing music for the Bollywood film; On 28 August, the
Hindustan Times reported that actor
Imran Khan organised a special screening of his comedy
Delhi Belly for Strings. In September, the
Express Tribune reported that Strings and
Atif Aslam were nominated for the Best Singer award at the 2011
Lux Style Awards for their collaboration "
Ab Khud Kuch Karna Paray Ga". On 3 November the band performed at
Waves '12, the cultural festival of the
BITS Pilani Goa. A recent Pepsi commercial features Strings. In April 2013, Strings joined
Meesha Shafi,
Ali Azmat,
Shahzad Hasan and
Alamgir as judges on the vocal-talent show
Cornetto Music Icons on
ARY Digital. On 29 October 2017, Strings announced its farewell to Coke Studio after season 10. In 2018, they announced new videos from their new album, to mark 30 years of Strings. A romantic number, "Piya R"e is in top list. It has been written by Anwar Maqsood and Bilal Maqsood. The song has been mixed and mastered by M. Ishaq Nazir.
2018 to 2021: 30 Strings released a teaser of their upcoming single "Sajni" on 2 March 2018 on their Facebook page. Later the band's lead singer Faisal Kapadia confirmed the release of their sixth studio album
30, as 2018 marked 30 years of Strings. Sajni is one of the eight songs from the upcoming album. The official video for their first single "Sajni" was released on their official YouTube channel on 17 March 2018. Strings released their second track "Urr Jaoon" on their YouTube channel on 6 April 2018. On 25 March 2021, Faisal Kapadia and Bilal Maqsood officially announced that the band is coming to an end on Instagram. ==Music==