"Music has the power to set the narrative."
Pakistani music producer Xulfi has celebrated a landmark moment after Coke Studio’s track ‘Peechay Hutt’ was featured in Netflix’s Best of the Best.
He took to Instagram to congratulate the team behind the track and express his pride at seeing it reach a global audience.
‘Peechay Hutt’ was first released in 2022 as part of Coke Studio Season 14 and features vocals by Hasan Raheem and Justin Bibis.
The track also showcases electro-pop beats by Talal Qureshi, with Xulfi leading the overall creative direction of the project.
Expressing his feelings about the moment, Xulfi wrote:
“Representation is what puts us on the global map of everything.
“It might just look like a soundtrack in a movie, but music has the power to set the narrative and tell the world about who we are, where we come from, where we have reached and what we stand for.
“‘Peechay Hutt’ in a Hollywood movie is part of that revolution.”
The news follows closely on another historic milestone for Xulfi and the broader Pakistani music community.
Coke Studio’s ‘Pasoori’, which Xulfi produced, recently became the first Pakistani-made music video to reach one billion views on YouTube.
‘Peechay Hutt’ already has over 28 million views on YouTube, a figure that is now set to grow significantly with its Netflix placement.
The film’s global subscriber base on Netflix will introduce the track to millions of new listeners.
The Best of the Best also features major international artists including BLACKPINK, Hanumankind and AR Rahman.
The inclusion of a Pakistani Coke Studio track alongside such globally recognised names is a statement in itself.
Best of the Best is a coming-of-age dance comedy directed by Lena Khan and co-written by Hasan Minhaj and Prashanth Venkataramanujam.
The film follows childhood best friends Maya and Anjali as they join their university’s competitive Bollywood-fusion dance team.
The two friends set their sights on the US championship in a story that celebrates South Asian culture, friendship and identity.
However, the film has also become the centre of controversy after criticism of a specific joke in the screenplay.
In the scene, Maya tells another character: “Guys throw themselves at you like you’re the last plane out of Kabul.”
Critics say it trivialises the trauma of the 2021 US evacuation of Afghanistan.
Despite the controversy surrounding the film, ‘Peechay Hutt’s inclusion remains an undeniably significant moment for Pakistani music.
Listen to the Track:
