Mehfil Tour opened its Karachi chapter at the Arts Council of Pakistan on 8th May, bringing together audiences for an evening of music, memory, and cultural exchange. Curated by acclaimed producer Zulfiqar Jabbar Khan, popularly known as Xulfi, and Sherry Khatak, the concert brought the soul of Hunza into conversation with some of Pakistan’s most loved contemporary music voices, creating a live experience that felt both nostalgic and new.
Following the success of Mehfil’s debut edition in Lahore last year, the Karachi concert marked the beginning of Mehfil’s 2026 three-city tour, which will continue to Islamabad and Lahore later this year. Designed as a live music property, Mehfil brings together distinct musical lineages, established artists, and young talent in a shared performance space, celebrating Pakistan’s diverse musical heritage through carefully curated arrangements.
The evening featured the LLMC Ensemble from Hunza, Pakistan’s first authentic orchestra of its kind, alongside Farhan Saeed and Call The Band. Trained at the Leif Larsen Music Centre in Hunza, the LLMC Ensemble is known for preserving and reimagining the indigenous music traditions of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral through traditional instruments such as the Dadang, Chitrali Sitar, Xhiggini, rubab, and flute.
The Karachi performance took audiences through a powerful setlist that moved across memory, region, and genre. From traditional and contemporary compositions including Ashurjan, Ya Qurban, Madhuvanti, Ranjish, Tu Jhoom, Abdul Qadir, Dam Mast Qalandar, Dharkay Jia, and Nishan, to beloved hits such as Sab Bhula Ke, Laari Chooti, Pi Jaon, Khat, Halka Halka Suroor, and Aadat, the concert became a layered celebration of songs that have shaped different generations of Pakistani listeners. The evening closed with Qataghani, bringing the energy of Humnava’s cross-cultural spirit into the Mehfil experience.
Indeed, Mehfil serves as a cultural moment, one that places mountain melodies, contemporary arrangements, and Pakistan’s modern music memory on the same stage. The performance highlighted how familiar songs can take on new emotional life when reinterpreted through different instruments, regions, and musical traditions.
Speaking about Mehfil, Xulfi said: “Mehfil came from a very simple but powerful desire: to create a space where different musical worlds could meet each other with honesty, warmth, and excitement. We often inherit songs in one form and one memory, but when those same songs are reinterpreted through different instruments, regions, and sensibilities, they begin to reveal new emotional colours. That, for me, is where Mehfil becomes special.
What moved me most in the first edition was seeing how naturally these worlds came together. The LLMC Ensemble brought such depth, discipline, and soul to the music, and when that met artists and songs people already carry in their hearts, something fresh happened. Nostalgia. Performance. Rediscovery. Mehfil is about giving Pakistan’s musical diversity the scale, care, and stage it deserves.”
Mehfil is the brainchild of Giraffe Private Limited, the team behind several recent seasons of Coke Studio. The tour is being presented through a collaborative effort between Giraffe Private Limited and HUM Network through Karwaan Music (Private) Limited, with Aga Khan Cultural Services – Pakistan mobilizing the LLMC Ensemble.
With its Karachi opening, Mehfil has set the tone for a tour that is about cultural preservation, reinterpretation, and collective memory. It brings Pakistan’s musical traditions into a contemporary format without losing their roots, offering audiences a rare opportunity to experience heritage as something alive, evolving, and deeply moving.
