Lahooti Live Sessions at Jamshoro

The beauty of Sindh has always been one of Pi Studio's biggest inspirations as is evident from our travel work. But, when this beauty is combined with the soulful music of Sindh, the result is nothing less than pure magic. We were shooting a wedding in Hyderabad and one of our studio colleagues hooked us up with the charismatic Saif Samejo, who is the vocalist of the acclaimed band "The Sketches".

We had a lovely discussion with him and he invited us to Jamshoro for a live session for musicians who played indigenous instruments of Sindh. The project is called "Lahooti Live Sessions". When we reached Jamshoro, we were invited to Saif's rooftop where the event was arranged. The lovely Jamshoro breeze coupled with the soul sitrring music gave us hope that Saif's efforts will revive art in Sindh and people will come to appreciate and become aware of our roots.

Moreover, a lovely dinner was also organized by Saif. Pi Studio's perceptions about the art of Sindh was drastically increased thanks to this effort and we appreciate Pakistan's diversity even further now.

For pictures please click here

Teen Talwar "Dharna" (Sit-in)

Hey guys, sorry we haven't been able to stay in touch for a bit. The pictures of the "Dharna" (Sit-in) at teen talwar against the rigging in the general elections in Karachi have been uploaded.

For pictures please click here

Pakistan Zindabad!

Rani Siddiqui designer launch event by Rasberry PR

Rasberry PR recently organized the launch of designer Rani Siddiqui. The launch was held at Cafe Flo over a great brunch. Various notable personalities of Pakistani media industry were present. All in all the event was a success and Kudos to our friends Umair Qazi and Hassan Hayat Khan for this great event.

For more pictures please click here

Election protest outside DHA phase 4 polling station (NA 250)! Depriving the right to vote!

Two years ago, our partner Oosman Sadiq had secured a job in Bahrain. All his “dreams" had supposedly come true; the prospect of a financially stable future in a good economy was mouthwatering. But God had other plans for him. During his stay there he witnessed the Bahraini uprising, in which thousands of protesters staged sit-ins at the famous (and now destroyed) Pearl Roundabout.

The uprising caused a lot of innocent deaths, yet Oosman was amazed at why such educated and financially stable people (in comparison to Pakistan), could stand up for a cause. Oosman's other perception was that the people of Pakistan would never rise up against anything. But boy has he been proven wrong and that too by the most affluent and educated class of Karachi. Yesterday, during the general elections, the polling station in a school DHA Phase 4, witnessed a massive protest, as the protesters were not allowed to vote! The polling station had not opened and since most of the voters belonged to a new democratic party i.e. the PTI, the ruling party tried to deny the voters their basic right of casting their vote.

The perseverance of people against such rigging was awe inspiring and showed that Pakistanis' faith in democracy stands renewed and that positive change via peaceful protests is possible. As a result of their protest the polling was cancelled for the NA-250 seat and the voters will be allowed to cast their votes again!

All of this reminds us of a quote by Victor Hugo:

"When dictatorship is a fact, revolution becomes a right."

Pakistan Zindabad! The first steps on the long path to democratic change have begun!

For the pictures of the protest outside the polling station please click here

For the pictures of the Bahraini uprising please click here

Technical information:

Camera Bodies:

Nikon D300

Nikon D200

Lenses:

Nikon 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 AF-D

Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 EX DG HSM

Flashes:

Oloong Speedlight SP-680 

Minolta Flash Gun

Street photography - Dubai

Pi Studio recently visited Dubai for a vacation. Missing no chance to shoot anywhere, Pi Studio shot the streets of Dubai. Dubai needs no introduction, the way the Emirate has grown into a multicultural and progressive economic hub has been phenomenal.

My partner Hussain was chatting with me over tea and he said that we should portray Dubai without the flashy buildings as it is the usual way we have begun to perceive the amazing Emirate. Thus we shot the streets of Dubai and their amazing metro trains and stations. We tried to show you the real Dubai, the real reason for their progress which includes the Dubai Metro and their amazing buildings and infrastructure, that real reason being the amazing people of Dubai! We hope you like the albums.


















Please click here for the entire albums:

Dubai Metro
Street photography - Dubai

Technical information:

All shots were taken with my trusty Nikon D300 and Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 IF EX DG HSM lens. Unlike my usual style no fill flash was used in the daylight shots this time.

Street Photography in Malir

The Pi Studio team was invited by our friends Waleed Sikandar Baloch (an ICMAP student) and Riaz Ahmed (who is an editor and illustrator) to visit Malir. Thus, we open heartedly accepted the lovely invitation and decided to visit Malir and find the answers of the various questions pertaining to the recent political and criminal developments which are now sadly widespread in Karachi.

Overall it was a fantastic experience of being in Malir with our great friends. This was an attempt by the Pi Studio team to break the perception of fear which has been created by the various criminal activities, which have wrecked great havoc in our lovely city. We hope and pray that we all Karachiites learn to co-exist in peace and harmony once again. 

PAKISTAN ZINDABAD!

For the entire set of pictures please click here 

PTI - Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf meeting for NA-250 and PS-113

We attended the meeting for Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf's NA-250 and PS 113 candidates. Our hostess was Mrs. Mufti, who had invited the PTI leaders and supporters over a wonderful dinner. The candidates for NA-250 were Mr. Najeeb Haroon and Dr. Alvi and the candidate for PS-113 was Mr. Samar Ali khan (a renowned architect).

The speeches by the candidates were very informative and highlighted Paksitan's major porblem of corruption and how PTI would address it. A QnA session followed afterwards, where the audience asked their relevant questions to the candidates. 

We at Pi Studio wish PTI the best of luck in the upcoming elections.

For pictures please click here