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Jamal Rehman’s True Brew, a studio and recording space beloved by Lahore’s music scene, once tucked away in a corner of Gulberg, has reemerged after an extended hiatus in Karachi’s Bukhari Commercial — because, as he joked, “who goes to Islamabad?”

The once-small, deeply personal True Brew — the one that, much to everyone’s dismay, shut down six years ago — has been reborn. Except this time, it’s not a studio — it’s a spacious, well-lit coffee house.

Rehman, the “ex-music producer” turned filmmaker, switched gears after Covid-19, moving from producing music to directing. His original True Brew, set up on the ground floor of a building in Gulberg, was a “one of a kind space”, as described by regular goer and music enthusiast Areeba Hussain. It was where musicians came to jam, create, and perform — and where, quite frankly, some of the “best quality music” of our generation was born.

True Brew Lahore was small, close-knit, even a little cramped — but people like Hussain were there every weekend, because the music was that good. The gigs were curated, the crowds intimate, the atmosphere electric. It gave musicians such as Maanu, Natasha Noorani, Talal Qureshi, Towers and Asfand a platform to kickstart their journeys long before anyone realised history was being made in that tiny, echoey space made solely for musicians to thrive.

For so many, it was more than just a studio. It was a community — one where ideas bounced, guitars twanged, and some dangerously good music took shape.

That’s why, six years after it shut down, when a reel of old clips from the Lahore location was used to announce True Brew Karachi’s arrival, the excitement was instant. Friends who share the same love for music as me, people I went to True Brew with, started messaging and our long-dead WhatsApp group was revived. Could Karachi really be next in line for that same kind of magic?

It was quite literally the place where Maanu played one of his first gigs. Was it too much to hope that Karachi might now get its own True Brew era?

Turns out, not exactly.

My visit to True Brew Karachi — and I say this with love — kind of deflated my high.

True Brew Karachi, unlike True Brew Lahore, comes in with a big space and even bigger “secret” plans. But this time, the soundproofed walls have been swapped for semi-finished ones, the tangle of instrument wires replaced by plants and vines, the music gear traded for espresso machines, and the floor cushions exchanged for simple café chairs. True Brew 2.0, as Rehman, the director of ‘Jhol’, describes it, is a “coffee and community” concept: a café designed to bring together creatives over caffeine, conversation, and maybe a little creative chaos.

There will be curated gigs by the massive window — but also film screenings, discussions, and maybe a little discourse over sweet treats. There’s even a shelf half-filled with film books for when you want to play the moody artist. And of course, there will be coffee too. Maybe served with a shot of water to cleanse your palate if you order the V60, which I must say was one of the best I have had in Karachi.

For Rehman, it is a space for ideation through brainstorming and conversation. A perfect day at the new True Brew, he says, “would be lots of coffee consumed over interesting conversations with people.”

One of the reasons behind the creation of True Brew 2.0 is the same as the one behind the OG True Brew: lack of community.

This time, however, it feels more like a community for filmmakers, but musicians, artists and writers are welcome too.

“There was such a strong sense of community that developed during our 12 years, whether that was doing gigs, or recordings. [Back then] I felt like musicians were all kind of working in silos, and there was a sort of fragmentation. To bring them together, I set up True Brew in its initial form.

“Now, doing film, I felt the same thing. I felt like all the filmmakers that I know work separately. But as a community, there isn’t that much connection. So, I decided, you know what, what if I kind of bring True Brew back, and set it up as a coffee shop and hub for musicians, for filmmakers, for artists.”

It makes sense. But I can’t help but wonder — will a space that opens its doors to so many art forms still hold the same intimacy? The same spark? Or is it going to be just going to be a Bukhari version of “Rose Apothecary” from Schitt’s Creek?

Banking on his decade-long experience curating events, Rehman seems confident. “The magic is in curation, right?”

Maybe he’s right. Maybe Karachi is ready for a little magic — even if it comes brewed instead of recorded. I will go as far as to say that perhaps this could be a modern version of Pak Tea House?

We’ll find out soon enough when True Brew officially launches this Friday. Until then, I will be sipping my V60s and hoping — praying — that Rehman really does have some secret potions up his sleeve to keep this from becoming just another Instagrammable coffee shop at Bukhari.