Toy harmonium to Strings

Faisal Kapadia reflects on his musical journey

Faisal Kapadia, the lead vocalist and guitarist of former Pakistani pop/rock band Strings, was invited to After Hours with Ushna Shah, where he spoke extensively about his transformative journey as one of the most renowned musicians of Pakistan.

When asked about the roots of his passion, Faisal explained, "No one in my family was a musician. I remember this distinctly. I was six or seven years old, and I caught a fever, so my sister got me a toy harmonium, then eventually she found me a tutor, which is how I was able to kickstart my journey."

"So yes, I practised classical music in the beginning," he said, much to the host's shock. "My first ghazal was Kahan Ho Tum Chalay Aao Muhabbat Ka Taqaza Hai (Where Are You? Come To Me, Love Demands It)."

"My passion hadn't developed yet. I was doing it because my family wanted me to. They listened to music a lot, and they have good taste," he shared. "Back in the day, my sister pushed me to audition for Sohail Rana's show for kids. I passed the audition and performed there for two years. That was my first encounter with musical performances, and then I started taking up gigs."

An eternal hall of fame

The singer-songwriter then delved into the gaps in his journey. "After grade 10, I dropped this pursuit and started focusing on my studies. When I entered college, I had no interest in looking back," he said.

"It just so happened that in one of my classes, on the bench right next to me sat Bilal Maqsood," Faisal fondly elaborated, recalling his fellow bandmate's introduction into his life. "He liked drawing a lot, and at that time, he was drawing a very specific keyboard model, which surprised me, given my musical knowledge. I introduced myself as a musician to him, and that's how we met! This was in the late 1980s," he enthused.

"In 2021, we concluded our band's journey, which was heartbreaking for all of us," said the 53-year-old artist. On March 25, the official Facebook page of the band uploaded a post, declaring the group's disbandment to unsuspecting enthusiasts and expressing Faisal and Bilal's gratitude to their fans.

"Strings was like a roof over me for the past thirty-three years. But we'd been prepared to pull the plug at the right time," Faisal expressed. "See, everything has its time to thrive. We ended our journey on Coke Studio after season 4, we took a break after our second album to focus on our studies, and so forth. All these steps were necessary. So we had been contemplating when to part ways."

"Strings became the kind of entity that you leave at a high note," he further justified. "It's easy to get people to say, "They had a good run." We wanted this exit to make people question why we did it, which was tough since we were doing so well towards the end."

"To be honest, the death of an artist makes people easily appreciative, as in the case of Junaid Jamshed, Amjad Sabri, and Aamir Zaki, all of whom passed away. But the same kind of love is not dispensed to living artists. Fortunately for Bilal and I, we saw the opposite reaction at the conclusion of Strings," Faisal noted, addressing the collective response of disheartened fans.

Cementing artistry

Moving on to a brighter note, the singer then dived into the creative aspects of his work. "Usually with bands, melodies come first, then we fit in words. When we were teenagers, our lyrics alluded to our naivety, but that changed as we got older," he joked. "Inspiration comes from nature, from things like the sound of an aeroplane and raindrops. There's noise all around us."

When asked about his first big concert, he responded, "We once did a show at a university in Islamabad. It was a big crowd, and I was so nervous, I could hardly speak. Junaid Jamshed joined us during the soundcheck before the performance and praised our music, and that really made my day." Reminiscing over the bittersweet past, Faisal added, "He was my classical music listening partner."

On the birth of the band's name, the artist explained, "Bilal and I used to just go by our names until we became a band of four, which is when things got tricky. There wasn't really a culture of adopting Western names back then, but we were urged to do so. That's how we came up with Strings, which comes from guitar strings."

As a senior in the industry, Faisal also offered valuable insights. "At the start, you're a niche artist creating music for your pleasure. When you attract a following, you must begin catering to them. That's how a band's sound evolves and achieves a medium point, an intersection between fan-driven music and one's own creativity," he observed. "After that period of making hits, you finally reach a point in your success when your music becomes personal again. It matches the purity of your initial years."

The conversation then transitioned to Faisal's solo album, Zindagi Jahaan Le Jaaye (Wherever Life Takes Me). "Even after Strings was over, I still wanted to continue with music," he confessed. "This album was completed in three months, which supports the ultimate message of the album. I'm going wherever life takes me!"

The album was released on February 2 under the label Twenty Nine Records.