After yesterday’s unpredictable win, everyone is overwhelmed with joy; not knowing how to deal with the remarkable performance of Pakistan’s cricket team. Coke Studio’s new song, Cricket Khidaiye, hits the right emotions post match with its celebratory vibe. It is not only timely and relevant to the contemporary music standards but is also a dramatic fusion of Punjabi rap and pop.
The T20 Anthem brings an exciting collab of the three heartthrobs, Atif Aslam, Faris Shafi and Talal Qureshi. Apart from the Bol superstar, it was a debut performance by Faris and Talal for Coke Studio. The upbeat and groovy song adds to the uplifting lyrics and brings out the jazba for cricket. The Aadat singer and the seasoned rapper essentially manifest a successful win for Pakistan’s cricket team in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
The talented composer, Talal Qureshi, outperformed himself with a remarkable combination of Punjabi rap and pop. The composition is complimented by a well written rap and the Punjabi accent nails it all.
Watching Atif Aslam in his rapper avatar is a heavenly treat! His versatility is commendable; however, the Pakistani rap god, Faris’ took the bait here. Faris, with his phenomenal flow, has been the backbone of the Pakistani rap industry for a while. However, his solo rap is graphic, political and often intellectual and hence seemed a bit too risky for any corporate giant to play with. Yes, Cricket Khidaiye is safe but Faris Shafi is a safer choice for any kind of rap. With Young Stunner’s Why Not Meri Jaan and Coke Studio’s Cricket Khidaiye, 2021 might be the year for Pakistani rap industry.
The catchy rap throwbacks to the history of Pakistani Cricket are awe-inducing. Atif and Faris share a verse that is reminiscent of Pakistan’s 2009’s epic T20 win and wishes that 2021 is the year we bring it back. Atif singing Mitti ka maan rakh le was granted as a wish and kudos to Babar Azam and his team for living up to the song and the nation’s pride.
The punjabi rap song also paraphrases the iconic dialouge, tum jeeto ya haaro, humein tumse pyaar hai with Atif singing Chaahe tu jeete hare, dil mai rahegi teri jaga. We all believe in lucky charms, don’t we?
