The 89th birth anniversary of the legendary ghazal singer, Mehdi Hassan is being celebrated Monday (today).
Mehdi Hassan was born on 18 July 1927 in a village called Luna, Rajasthan in Jhunjhunu district in India. Born in a family of known musicians, Hassan’s father Ustad Azeem Khan and uncle Ustad Ismail Khan were famous classical music artists.
In 1957‚ Mehdi Hassan was given the opportunity to sing on Radio Pakistan‚ primarily as a thumri singer‚ which earned him recognition within the musical fraternity.
He had a passion for Urdu poetry, and therefore, he began to experiment by singing ghazals on a part-time basis. He cites radio officers Z.A. Bukhari and Rafique Anwar as additional influences in his progression as a ghazal singer.
One of his Ghazals he will be most remembered for is Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s, ‘Gullon Mein Rang Bhare.’ A host of other numbers like ‘Ik Husn Ki Devi Se Mujhe Piyar Hua Tha’, and ‘Jab Koi Piyaar Se Bulaye Ga, Tum Ko Ek Shakhs Yaad Aye Ga’ are also equally memorable.
He sang for over 300 films during his musical career.
When melody queen Lata Mangeshkar heard him at a concert in 1977 in Delhi, she said, “Aisa lagta hai ke unke gale mein bhagwan bolte hain.” God sings through his voice.
In 1985, he was awarded the Pride of Performance by the Pakistani government, along with several other accolades to his name such as Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Nishan-e-Imtiaz, Hilal-e-Imtiaz and a few international awards.
He had been suffering from a serious lung condition for the few years before his death. He died on 13 June 2012 in Karachi.
With the ghazal maestro’s death the era of ghazal singing came to an unexpected end.
