Indus Blues

The film starts with a showcase of classical folk music as it travels in Pakistan from Moenjodaro to the Makran Coast. The soundtrack for this part of the film includes instruments such as Boreendo, Alghoza, and Banjo. Moving to Sui, Baluchistan for Suroz, Cholistan for Raanti, Gilgit-Baltistan for Chardha, Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for Sarinda, and finally to Lahore for Sarangi.[8]

The cast of the film consisted of the musicians and craftsmen describe their plight of barely surviving in a society intolerant to their art and craft. They recount their experiences and the treatment they have received by people around them, reminding them that they are social outcasts who are looked down upon. They reveal that religious bigotry is a factor in terms of marginalizing them and it is connected to the lack of patronage and economic problems of these artists. With all these factors combined, and with some of the last custodians of the art remaining, the future of the indigenous musical instruments in Pakistan remains in peril.[9]

Mai Dhai - Folk Artist
Krishan Laal Bheel – Folk Artist
Faqir Zulfikar – Boreendo Player
Ejaz Sarhadi – Sarinda Player
Sachu Khan – Suroz Player
Zohaib Hassan – Sarangi Player
Sattar Jogi – Murli Been Player
Mumtaz Ali Sabzal – Banjo Player
Gulbaz Karim – Chardha Player
Akbar Khan Khamisu – Alghoza Player
Ustad Ziauddin – Sarangi Craftsman
Ibrahim Hajano – Alghoza Craftsman
Muhammad Jan – Suroz Craftsman
Shafqat Karim – Chardha Craftsman
Nighat Chaudhary – Classical Dancer
Saif Samejo – Folk & Sufi Artist
Arieb Azhar – Folk & Sufi Artist
Faqeer Juman Shah – Folk & Sufi Artist

The film took four years to complete with only the post-production taking up to two years and was shot across Pakistan from Gilgit-Baltistan to Sindh and the Makran Coast.[10] Jawad Sharif also has stated that "Independent cinema will send the message that our TV Dramas could not."[11]

Omair Ali wrote for Wire.in that "As much as the documentary shows the joy that the music brings, it is situated in the bleak atmosphere of a conflict-ridden society, where the musicians are forced to talk of their relatives wounded by mortar shelling, or confronted by villagers accusing them of immoral practices. The pleasure of music, of older, generous traditions is – in the documentary – a small pool of cool water in an increasingly thirsty land."[12]

Dr.Nazir Mehmood wrote in the Daily News about the film:"Now ‘Indus Blues’ has taken up the challenge to document near-extinct music and musicians. This is groundbreaking in the sense that, prior to this movie, no other director or producers had ever attempted to highlight the issues faced by our folk musicians and instrument-makers, and how they are trying to keep their art and craft alive."[13]

• Official Website
• Indus Blues on IMDb