To Nazia, With Love
The night was not an ordinary one. More than 5,000 people collected on the cricket ground of the Gymkhana last week to pay homage to the queen of pop music of the subcontinent, Nazia Hassan. The tribute was organized by Nazia's brother, Zoheb, who, along with music composer, Biddu, had been working on the idea for some time. Biddu had helped Nazia win the Indian Filmfare Award for the song Aap Jaisa Koi in the early 80s. Both of them had composed the song while Nazia had sung it for the Indian director Feroze Khan's blockbuster Qurbani. The musician flew in specially for the tribute.
Artists recounted past experiences as well as personal views they had of the singer. The now defunct Vital Signs also made the evening a memorable one by coming together for the special night's event.
The best part of the musical tribute was the pace with which things progressed. At no point were there unnecessary delays. The show began with short acts depicting the lives of Nazia and Zoheb - the first time they learned to hum the correct tunes, the time they reached international stardom and finally, to the time of Nazia's illness.
The stage tastefully done in white with tall pillars was beautifully set up with fluorescent lights. A huge sea-blue, hand-painted portrait of the pop queen was displayed in the background. Two giant screens on each side flashed various pictures of Nazia in the beginning. Drama marked the first half of the show with background commentary by Sohail Malik, who directed the programme as well, enlightened the public with Nazia's achievements. A conversation, later, between Nazia and Zoheb from a certain part of their life, followed. Zoheb handled his part well while his wife, Gina voiced Nazia's dialogue. Both reminisced the time when the sister wanted to quit but stayed on, at her brother's insistence.
Once the singing performances were underway, there were no hinderances. The only irritating aspect of the show were the guards who dealt rudely with some of the guests.
Nine singers including Zoheb performed during the evening. Anwar Maqsood, the compere, announced Saleem Javed, who started off with Tum Mere Ho. Most of the singers lip-synched as the show was being recorded for television. Saleem's emotional ditty outlined the evening's itinerary.
Hadiqa Kiyani and Amir Zaki then walked on to the stage. The duo, who have formed a group called Rough Cut, sung two English songs. While Hadiqa's voice sounded pretty, Zaki's guitar skills with the synchronized beats of the tabla nawaz had a resounding impact. Both of them had something to say on Nazia professionally as well as personally. "For me, she is still alive. Her body and soul cannot be seen, but I believe she is here with us," said Hadiqa. "It was her personality that amazed me and really inspired people to give anything in their life their best shot, " Zaki said fondly.
Shyhaki in his pre-performance statement, was happy to see Biddu in Karachi. "He's such a refreshing change to the music scene here." Of Nazia he said, "She was a pioneer and a tribute for her is well-deserved. No one else can take her place." He sang one of his old songs "since people remember it and its perfect for the occasion." But he followed it with a Punjabi beat justifying it as "Nazia loved happiness, so we should have something happy."
Yasir Akhter was up next and his performance was constantly marred by sound problems. Oh Sanam and Yeh Wadi were cut off twice, consecutively as the sound system went kaput! Anwar Maqsood took care of things for the first time. He came onstage and apologized, taking the blame for the mishap: "I stopped the tape since we need to do a full retake for the TV recording," he said seriously. As soon as Yasir started again, the sound went dead once more. It was here that a feeling that Mr Maqsood was joking, spread among the crowd. Yasir finally took off after a little while, singing two popular numbers in Nazia's memory.
