Ismail Ka Urdu Sheher: A Music Book Album
Ismail Ka Urdu Sheher is 100 paged science-fiction graphic novel, accompanied by a 12 track album (featuring artists such as Zoe Viccaji, Abbas Ali khan, Sara Haider, Omran Shafique, Gumby, Jaffer Zaidi & Samra Khan, where each chapter is musically depicted by one song). Also a section from the very first chapter has been made into a music video entitled Wake-up/Jaago, which gives you an insight into the concept of the novel.
It has been written and produced by Zohaib Kazi, published by Markings Publishing and is the first of its kind in Pakistan. Overall it has taken 8 years to complete this venture; the byproduct of the efforts of our immensely talented animators, illustrators and musicians.
The Story of Ismail Ka Urdu Sheher
The story is set in the distant future, when a remote planet suffers disastrous effects due to the malfunctioning of the Large Hadron Collider on Earth. The protagonist is the world’s leading scientist, Ismail Alset. So in hope of finding a way to resolve the crisis; he embarks on an expedition which leads to many startling discoveries about our universe as well as his own life.
Forthcoming Endeavors
Zohaib wants to convert it to an Augmented Reality (AR) experience, something which has not been done here before. Also a sequel is likely to follow in around two years, and he would like other musicians and writers to develop the universe of Ismail ka urdu sheher by making additions and writing prequels.
Furthermore it will be translated into Urdu so that a wider audience can be targeted, and specifically for the youth so to
- promote our cultural values
- give them native heroes that would serve as role models
- inculcate an interest in science and philosophy while highlighting their present day importance
- inspire them to use their imagination.
At the Karachi Literature Festival (KLF) 2016
Already making a mark; a panel discussion took place with some team-members of IKUS on Day 2 at KLF.
About Zohaib Kazi: The Mastermind Behind Ismail Ka Urdu Sheher
Zohaib Kazi began his career in media a decade ago, and has been working in various capacities. He is a music producer, composer, audio-grapher, video-grapher, writer and has also served as director of Hum TV Network. Since 2009 he has been working with Coke Studio, and now is General Manager as well as Associate Producer.