"Pasoori" (, ) is a Punjabi and

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Ali Sethi Ali Aziz Sethi (Urdu/; ; born July 2, 1984) is a Pakistani singer, songwriter, composer, and author. Sethi rose to prominence with his debut novel, '' The Wish Maker'' (2009). In 2012, Sethi began focusing on his musical career and made his film ...

and debutant

Shae Gill Anushae Babar Gill (Urdu, Punjabi language, Punjabi: ), popularly known as Shae Gill, is a Pakistani singer and cover-artist, mostly known for her Punjabi language, Punjabi duet song "Pasoori" with Ali Sethi. Early life Shae Gill was born an ...

. It was released on 6 February 2022 as the sixth song of season 14 (episode two) of ''

Coke Studio Pakistan ''Coke Studio'' ( ur, ) is a Pakistani television programme and international music franchise which features studio-recorded music performances by established and emerging artists. It is the longest-running annual television music show in Pakis ...

'' and was subsequently released on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

on 7 February 2022. "Pasoori" is the first ''Coke Studio'' song and the first Pakistani song to feature on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a proprietary Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 456 million monthly active us ...

's "Viral 50 - Global" chart. It was featured in episode 4 of the

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miniseries ''Ms. Marvel'', and in August 2022, it became only the third song in the 14-year history of ''Coke Studio'' to reach 300 million views on YouTube. On 14 October 2022, with 410 million views on YouTube, "Pasoori" became the most-watched ''Coke Studio'' music video of all time. According to data released by Spotify in December 2022, "Pasoori" was the most-streamed Pakistani song globally as well as the most-streamed song in Pakistan in 2022. It was also the most-searched song in the world in 2022, as per

Google Trends Google Trends is a website by Google that analyzes the popularity of top search queries in Google Search across various regions and languages. The website uses graphs to compare the search volume of different queries over time. On August 5, 20 ...

' "Year in Search 2022" report. In December 2022, "Pasoori" became the first Pakistani song to enter YouTube's Global Top Music Videos chart (week of December 16-22). On 21 January 2023, "Pasoori" hit 500 million views on YouTube, making it the first ''Coke Studio'' music video to reach this milestone.

Background

Music producer Abdullah Siddiqui noted that the song is a mix of various cultural influences: "you get to listen to a little bit of the classical tune of a '' rubab'' along with a modern

reggaetón Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American hip hop, ...

beat."

was discovered by composer

Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan Zulfiqar "Xulfi" Jabbar Khan (born 28 October 1980) is a Pakistani composer, singer-songwriter, music producer and a guitarist. Starting his career in 1994, Khan is the recipient of multiple awards in Pakistan. He is currently working on the te ...

through

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where she regularly posted cover versions of various songs. In an interview, Gill stated: "Coke Studio producer Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan (Xulfi) found my Instagram page and checked out my singing. He liked my songs and later contacted me via direct message, saying, 'I want you to sing for Coke Studio''.''' The rest is history." In addition to the lead vocalists and musicians, the music video of the song also features Pakistani social activist and

Bharatanatyam Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of S ...

exponent

Sheema Kirmani Sheema Kermani (also spelled Kirmani) (Urdu: ; born 16 January 1951) is a Pakistani dancer and social activist. She is the founder of Tehrik-e-Niswan Cultural Action Group (Women's Movement). She is also an exponent of Bharatanatyam dance. She ...

. In a text message to Sethi, Kirmani shared that while conceptualizing her dance movements for the song, she "did not want to go along the line of literal depiction of words, but nsteadfelt that the movements should be abstract but suggestive of the emotions contained within the song and music."

Composition and songwriting

Sethi shared in an interview that the inspiration for the song came to him as he was driving from

Faisalabad Faisalabad (; Punjabi/ ur, , ; ), formerly known as Lyallpur ( Punjabi, Urdu: لائل پور), named after the founder of the city, but was renamed in 1977 in honour of late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. It is the 3rd largest city of Pak ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

and noticed a quote in Punjabi on the back of a

jingle truck Truck art in South Asia is a popular form of regional decoration, with trucks featuring elaborate floral patterns and calligraphy. It is especially common in Pakistan and India. During the War in Afghanistan, Pakistani decorated trucks that ran ...

that said "''aag lavaan teri majbooriyan nu''" ( and compulsions). He mentions that he was struck by these words: "I felt that this was such an amazing expression of the Punjabi language. This should be part of a song somehow." He describes that the words inspired him to brainstorm further to come up with lyrics that would go well with that expression and add weight to the song, and that is when he came up with "''aan jaan di pasoori nu''" (). Sethi has mentioned that he "wanted to write a song that felt classical but also relevant to contemporary life." Sethi revealed that "Pasoori" took around one year to develop and that his goal was to infuse "the Turkic, Indic,

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

, and...the global placeless, ubiquitous 'beats' vibe that is also our inheritance." He noted that the folk and classical musical traditions the song draws from — including

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

and

qawwali Qawwali ( Punjabi: (Shahmukhi), (Gurmukhi); Urdu: (Nasta'liq); Hindi: क़व्वाली (Devanagari); Bengali: কাওয়ালি (Bengali)) is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing, originating from the Indian subcontinent ...

— have centuries-long origins and therefore could not be classified as either Indian or Pakistani. Sethi has also shared that he sent the initial tune for the song on a voice note to composer

, and that the lyrics of the song were not finalized until about 12 hours before the recording. "Pasoori" revolves around themes of separation and heartbreak, but also self-acceptance, self-expression, letting go of one's worries, and the transformative power of art. Sethi contends that the word "pasoori" is deliberately ambiguous and difficult to translate and that the song is about "the bittersweet-ness of unrequited love, the

Wabi-Sabi In traditional Japanese aesthetics, is a world view centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of appreciating beauty that is "imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete" in nature. I ...

in art or the strange joy one sometimes finds in melancholy, Pasoori is all this. It speaks of anguish, art, music and passion, and how all of these can be uplifting, transformative even."

Music and style

"Pasoori" was conceptualized as a fusion of pop and

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

music. Sethi has stated that the song blends ''

raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradit ...

'' and reggaeton — a sound which he describes as "ragaton" — and notes that it was designed to feel warm and familiar, asserting that "it makes one feel good." Sethi shared that with "Pasoori," he wanted to create a song "that represents our culture but does dialog with the world" to show that "it is possible to be local and also be global...to be completely rooted and to be completely open and free." According to a ''Coke Studio'' press release, Sethi began writing and composing "Pasoori" at a time when Pakistani artists were barred from working across the border in India, which led to a sense of frustration and anguish. Consistent with his musical style of challenging norms and voicing dissent, Sethi stated that his objective with "Pasoori" was to make a statement on the "free movement of ideas and melodies through a song," turning angst into art, and celebrating artistic self-expression in a world where "borders and boundaries of all sorts have become more rigid." Sethi stated: "I might not have been able to travel to India, but I knew my music could." The YouTube description of the song reads: "Let's transcend boundaries and bridge distances through compassion, love, and identity." In its description of the song, ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' stated: "Pasoori''' is ostensibly about star-crossed lovers, but it’s also an apt metaphor for the relationship between two countries in perpetual conflict whose histories and cultural touchstones are entwined." Song producer Abdullah Siddiqui described "Pasoori" as belonging to "a groundbreaking new hybrid genre" and as "one of the most modern tracks" of ''Coke Studio'' Season 14. The song features musical instruments ranging from electronic drums and synths to acoustic guitars and the ''

bağlama The ''bağlama'' or ''saz'' is a family of plucked string instruments, long-necked lutes used in Ottoman classical music, Turkish folk music, Turkish Arabesque music, Azerbaijani music, Kurdish music, Armenian music and in parts of Syria, Iraq ...

'' and

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

. On August 18, 2022, ''Coke Studio'' released an African fusion remix of "Pasoori" featuring Sethi singing a modified version of the song along with Nigerian musician

Reekado Banks Ayoleyi Hanniel Solomon (born 6 December 1993), better known by his stage name Reekado Banks, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. He signed with Mavin Records in 2014 and left the label in 2018. He went by the stage name Spicy before his recor ...

and Egyptian

EDM Trap EDM trap is a fusion genre of hip hop, rave music and EDM (electronic dance music), that originated in the early 2010s on peaking popularity of big room house and trap music genres. It blends elements of trap, which is an offshoot of Southern ...

artist Marwan Moussa. On December 8, 2022, Sethi released an

acoustic version Acoustic music is music that solely or primarily uses instruments that produce sound through acoustic means, as opposed to electric or electronic means. While all music was once acoustic, the retronym "acoustic music" appeared after the adven ...

of "Pasoori" featuring guitar work by

Noah Georgeson Noah Georgeson is an American musician, producer, engineer, mixer and solo recording artist. Georgeson's debut album '' Find Shelter'' was released through Plain Recordings on November 28, 2006. Early life and education Born in San Anselmo, ...

and trumpets by

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

-based musician, Jordan Katz. In an interview with ''

The Harvard Crimson ''The Harvard Crimson'' is the student newspaper of Harvard University and was founded in 1873. Run entirely by Harvard College undergraduates, it served for many years as the only daily newspaper in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Beginning in the f ...

'', when asked to reflect on the viral popularity of the song, Sethi stated: "It's like some of the Punjabi limericks I learned as a kid, which were half-nonsensical, but kind of magical...They were built on themselves, and became these fabulous myths with the head of one thing and the tail of another. I think that's kind of what Pasoori is, a magical being…and there's something about the structure of it that dazzles and asks for recitation."

Reception

"Pasoori" became the fastest in ''Coke Studio'' Season 14 to garner one million views on YouTube and amassed 10 million views on YouTube within 10 days of its release. It went on to become the first ''Coke Studio'' song and the first Pakistani song to feature on

's "Viral 50 - Global" chart. "Pasoori" also ranked at number one on Spotify India's "Viral 50" chart on 7 March 2022. On 26 April 2022, it debuted at number 161 on Spotify's Global Chart, making it the first Pakistani song to enter the streaming platform's global charts, and peaked at 109th weekly and 89th daily positions. On 4 May 2022, it climbed to the top of Spotify's "Viral 50 - Global" chart. On 7 May 2022, 90 days after its release, "Pasoori" hit 100 million views on YouTube, making it one of the most-viewed Pakistani videos on the video sharing platform. On 1 August 2022, the song reached 300 million views on YouTube, making it only the third song in the 14-year history of ''Coke Studio'' to do so. As per data released by Spotify in December 2022, "Pasoori" was the most-streamed Pakistani song globally as well as the most-streamed song in Pakistan in 2022. In December 2022, "Pasoori" became the first Pakistani song to enter YouTube's Global Top Music Videos chart (week of December 16-22). With over 500 million views on YouTube as of January 21, 2023, "Pasoori" is currently the most watched ''Coke Studio'' music video of all time. "Pasoori" received praise for its "joyful sounds," "earworm tune," "catchy melody, lyrics...and impeccable performances by the artists," and for "the balance between modern and old school sounds." The vocal chemistry between Sethi and Gill was also met with positive feedback, with Gill's "smoky voice" being praised for pairing well with "Sethi's rich tenor." The song trended heavily on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok, inspiring numerous user-generated reels, dance challenges, covers, mashups, spin-offs, and fan artwork. The production design of the music video by Hashim Ali received praise for its striking visual appeal, intricate layout,

bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

esthetics, and vibrant color palette. Ali described the set as "a communal space where artists can celebrate humanity "through not just ethnicity, but also variety in emotion, style and spirituality." Video director Kamal Khan was lauded for "celebrating communal spirit by showing different emotions, styles, and spirituality" and for sending "a message of inclusion" through each character in the video. Sethi, who conceived the idea for the video, stated: "It's a chimera: where one is many and many is one. It's like an acid trip. I really wanted to gesture at this mystical strain of South Asian artwork and philosophy, because that part of our ancestral culture can engage in a fruitful dialogue with contemporary discourse." In its review of the song, ''

'' stated: "The song is stealthily subversive: a traditional raga — the classical Indian framework for musical improvisation — has been laid over an infectious beat that sounds South Asian, Middle Eastern, and, improbably, reggaetón, all at once." Describing the song as a "global hit," ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' stated: "the song has been heralded for transcending boundaries, particularly between India and Pakistan, continuing a long tradition of culture uniting the two countries where politics always failed." Writing for '' The National'', Mariam Nihal contended that "the track embraces unity in diversity as it features Pakistani dancer and activist Sheema Kermani performing bits of a

Bharatnatyam Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of ...

, an Indian dance. The Turkish baglama (string instrument) features in the video while Shae Gill, who's from the Christian community, is joined by Sethi, a Muslim, as they sing in Punjabi, a language spoken in both India and Pakistan." A cover of the song was performed by Dutch singer

Emma Heesters Emma Heesters (born 8 January 1996) (pronunciation: emā hīsṭars) is a Dutch singer and television personality, mainly known for performing covers of popular songs on her own YouTube channel. She began her music career in 2014 and as of August ...

which went viral on social media. A

TikTok TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes. TikTok is an international version ...

video of Indian and Pakistani

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

fans singing and dancing to the song outside

Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as "The 'G", is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadiu ...

ahead of the

2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup The 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the eighth ICC Men's T20 World Cup tournament. It was played in Australia from 16 October to 13 November 2022. Although originally scheduled to be held in 2020, in July 2020, the International Cricket Counci ...

game between India and Pakistan went viral in October 2022.

Charts

Credits

* Vocals: Ali Sethi and Shae Gill * Song Narrative: Ali Sethi * Written by: Ali Sethi and Fazal Abbas * Composed by Ali Sethi and Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan * Arranged by: Abdullah Siddiqui and Sherry Khattak * Produced by: Abdullah Siddiqui and Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan * Mixed by: Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan * Production Designer and Art Director: Hashim Ali * Performer: Sheema Kirmani * Director: Kamal Khan

References

{{Authority control 2022 songs Ali Sethi songs Coke Studio (Pakistani TV program) Number-one singles in India Pakistani folk songs Pakistani pop songs Punjabi-language songs Urdu-language songs