Pakistani anti-terror song tops charts

Some of Pakistan's most popular pop singers have produced a new music video against terrorism that has topped the charts and is going platinum.

"Yeh Hum Naheen" is a "We Are the World"-style song by and for Muslims who denounce terrorism carried out in their name. Performed in Urdu, the six-and-a-half-minute music video shows Pakistan's top performers interspersed with stylized scenes of terrorist violence and media headlines, and everyday Pakistanis - from westernized urbanites to traditional fundamentalists - joined together in the "Yeh Hum Naheen" refrain.

The song is beautiful and catchy even to the non-speaker of Urdu. While westerners might argue that the video and lip-synching quality are not up to Hollywood standards, the point is that the audience isn't as finicky as Americans and Europeans, and, as the market response shows, thinks the production is just fine.

The attractive performers include Ali Haider, Ali Zafar (pictured), Haroon, Hadiqa Kani, Shufqat, Shuja Haider and Strings.

Prominent Pakistani lyricist Ali Moeen wrote the words and composer Shuja Haider penned the music; Waseem Mahmood of EUMBC Ltd., the UK subsidiary of Glevum Associates, was the producer. The production cost far less than similar US government-funded initiatives, and as the market response shows, much more successful.

Comments

[publia]

I am wondering how this can be topping the charts already if it isn't being released until March 10?

[PoliticalWarfare Editor]

Got this report from a news release sent out February 26 from the producer of the video.

[simba]

It was number 1 in the MTV video charts based on requests from viewers