‘Hip-hop changed my life’: Talha Anjum on his epic year and victory lap with Kattar Karachi
“Kaun Talha?” I asked. His response did not disappoint: “Rap Elia toh Jaun Talha. I’m Talha Anjum from Karachi. I write and I rap and I do it for you.”
The story of desi rap in 2024 is largely a story of Talha Anjum. It’s not only that he released a brutal diss track after an Indian rapper dared to ask the same, or that he dropped numerous collaborations and two EPs in one go in August. It’s not only that he partnered with Mass Appeal and capped off the year with his second solo album, My Terrible Mind, or that he emerged as Spotify’s most-streamed Pakistani artist of 2024. It is that he is now taking his victory lap with Kattar Karachi, his debut film, and shows no signs of slowing down.
When a 16-year-old Talha Anjum and a 15-year-old Talhah Yunus dropped ‘Burger e Karachi’ in 2012, they took digs at a proud group of preppy, snobbish, and well-to-do teens while also challenging the upper-class mentality that ridicules people who refuse to adhere to its standards of uprightness.
Over the years, the duo has observed and documented the unique subcultures of Karachi in its lyrics while acting both as artists and activists, dissing the powers that be. They have come a long way, taking the Young Stunners’ legacy forward and building on their solo careers.
In the process, Anjum, who released his debut solo album Open Letter last year and somehow achieved everything he did this year, has elevated himself as Pakistani hip-hop’s hardest-working star. He has earned the titles “Baani-e-Urdu Rap” and most recently, “Mr Most Streamed”.
However, it is clear that this is not enough for the star lyricist who has turned Urdu rap into a cultural juggernaut.
‘Hip-hop has changed my life’
A known recluse, Anjum recently came out of his shell to tell me what keeps him going. “I am motivated by the people around me; my producers, Jokhay and Umair Tahir, my friends and brothers, Talha Yunus and JJ47. I am also motivated by the fact that hip-hop has changed my life. It has turned it around,” Anjum expressed.
The artist does not speak to the press. He also does not need to. With a following of over two million on Instagram and a listenership of 10 million on Spotify, Anjum peaked this year with 285 million streams, and he knows he’ll get his message across. All he needs to do is write a song.
“I read somewhere that if you love something and you keep doing it, it will take you around the world. That is exactly what has happened to me. I think that is the biggest motivation one could have, seeing the influence you can have on the youth. When your craft changes your life for the better, that’s the biggest motivation one can have.”
Striking a deal with Mass Appeal
Anjum’s collaboration with Nas’s music label, Mass Appeal, was a watershed moment for Pakistani hip-hop. In a mission to amplify South Asian hip-hop voices, the record label signed Anjum, Umair, Maanu, JANI, and Blal Bloch in November.
While music distribution has become swift with the rise of streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, independent artists still struggle to market their music the way they’d like. That’s where PR companies, managers, and labels come in.
Previously, music labels were primarily responsible for financing the production, promotion and distribution of music; today, their job has been made easier but the stakes are higher than ever. They are responsible for putting an artist on the world map, be it through digital marketing, international collaborations or live gigs.
Anjum was about to sell his debut album Open Letter to a different company when his manager reached out to him with an offer from Mass Appeal. “My manager, Alina Naghman, brought the offer to me when I was considering other deals for Open Letter. I got on a call with Nas, and after a 20-30 minute conversation, it became clear to me that this was the right move for Desi rap.”
About why an established artist like him ended up partnering with a label and how he feels such a partnership could benefit him and Pakistani hip-hop, he said, “The sky is the limit. I don’t have a long-term plan, but I always try to make new music and I try to put it out there, you know, for my fans around the world. Ever since I started working with Mass Appeal, they’ve been nothing but supportive of me and my team. So, I think with them, we can take desi rap to newer heights.”
Inspiration behind My Terrible Mind
Anjum’s second solo album, My Terrible Mind, is an introspective journey exploring the duality of human thought. “The album is a concept,” says Anjum. “It reflects the hardships I’ve seen growing up in Karachi. The bad stuff I’ve seen and how it affected me. It’s about the reality we live in and the ones we create in our minds.”
My Terrible Mind is a two-part sonic odyssey, blending gangster rap, melancholic guitar ballads, and even modern disco beats. The double LP is by far Anjum’s most experimental work.
“The second part happens to be something that I have always, you know, tried to do. They call it ‘pookie’ nowadays, but the whole concept behind it is the vulnerability that a mind can have. And ‘terrible’ was the best word that I could associate with this.”
Flipping the script with Kattar Karachi
Seeing the multiple endeavours he is taking on, at the launch of Anjum’s latest album, his friend and a stand-up comedian joked about the rapper slowly turning into Kababjees. Had I not known Anjum’s journey or heard his music, I too would have made light of his latest venture. But I don’t believe in pigeonholing artists to a genre or craft.
The desi hip-hop scene is already a hot mess of cultural contradictions that have stoked the dumpster fire of mainstream Pakistani music. Whether you’re drawn to the lyricism of Faris Shafi, the poetic storytelling of Young Stunners, the raw authenticity of Eva B, or Babar Mangi’s Sindhi rap, there will always be people who will brand desi hip-hop as “crass” because it refuses to romanticise or sanitise the realities of the world around us.
And Anjum will not accept such criticism, neither will he mince words. He is a kattar (hardcore) Karachiite, after all, and that makes him brutally honest. Hence, he is coming out with a film that will tackle themes of resistance and justice in Karachi.
The rapper’s decision to come out with this film in the place of music videos for My Terrible Mind is reminiscent of Michael Jackson, who released several short films to accompany his music during his life. Jackson’s films would feature intricate storylines, elaborate choreography, and cutting-edge special effects, and would sometimes also receive criticism for being too graphic.
Anjum’s debut film, Kattar Karachi, will be an action-packed thriller. Directed by Abdul Wali Baloch, the film will feature him as the protagonist alongside Imran Ashraf as the villain and Kinza Hashmi as the strong woman lead.
When asked about the decision to make this film, Anjum said, “As a creative and as part of Young Stunners, my team and the operation that goes behind, we always try to do something that has not been done in Pakistan.”
He also shared how Kattar Karachi will bridge his two creative worlds. “The idea behind this movie is, again, the life that I’ve lived, you know, things that I’ve seen, things that I think are wrong with the world around me. The movie isn’t derived from my album. But the songs I have picked for this movie hold a very special place in my heart.”
Working with Imran Ashraf and Kinza Hashmi
Anjum also talked about working with Ashraf and Hashmi for the movie. “Imran Ashraf has always been a great friend and he happens to be one of the best actors in Pakistan. So I was lucky enough to, you know, be in his presence and work with him. I, you know, asked him if he could do this, and he was all sports about it.
“On the other hand, Kinza Hashmi is one of the most well-known faces in the country, and she’s a really good actress. So, yes, it was lovely, you know, getting them on board. And the movie that I’ve seen, the cuts that I’ve seen, it looks brilliant. Everyone’s done a great job.”
Full-time musician, part-time actor
The rapper may be a “lyrical genius”, but he’s aware that acting, like any other art form, isn’t child’s play. However, his friends lent him the confidence to pursue it anyway.
“Acting I started back in 2020 when my long-time friend and colleague, Talha Yunus, everybody knows him, was doing his thesis for the National College of Arts. He was the one who said that you know, you can do this. That was the first and only time I ever acted before this. This time, Kattar Karachi’s director Wali Baloch and I were just bouncing ideas off of each other about what visual representation my album was going to have. So that’s when he told me that we could even do an album film. That’s how it started.”
When asked if he sees himself transitioning to acting full-time, Anjum said, “I never even planned to make a music video. And then I made a movie. So, I don’t have plans, as such. But yes, if a good opportunity comes my way, I would be happy to do it. I’m not switching, though. Music is my, you know, choice of drug,” he chuckled.
Dealing with hecklers and mismanagement
Last month, the Young Stunners called off their performance at the Oxford Art Factory in Sydney due to “significant mismanagement” and “mistreatment” of the team artists. Live Vibe Australia claimed that the rap duo pulled out of the Sydney show “due to their management’s choice.”
About what happened, Anjum said, “That was unfortunate. I was looking forward to, you know, seeing all my fans and performing for them. I was still able to meet them, we did a meet and greet and it was lovely. But what happened there could have happened anywhere.”
Anjum also “loses his cool”, as detractors like to put it, during shows when someone in the crowd misbehaves. He gets a lot of bad rep for it too. But he’s not one to tolerate disrespect. And it’s only fair because no artist gets paid to tolerate disrespect.
“It happens in Pakistan, the way I deal with the hecklers or whatever, I don’t know, I just like to call them fans. Stuff happens sometimes, you know, I try to control it. Sometimes I deal with it gracefully. Sometimes I also lose my patience. And I would just like to apologise if anybody feels bad about it, but it is just that it’s a part of the process.”
Talha Anjum’s top five
For curious Talha Anjum fans, the rapper also shared songs from his catalogue that are his top five: “‘Loneliness’ from My Terrible Mind, ‘Glass Half Full’ from Open Letter, ‘Gumaan’ by Young Stunners, ‘Afsanay’ by Young Stunners, and most recently, ‘Kaun Talha’.”
Anjum’s debut film Kattar Karachi is set to hit theatres on December 20.