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Into the great beyond
generation remembers for hits such as Tumhi ho Mehboob Meray in Aaina and Ye Wada Kiya in Daman Aur Chingari died on October 5, 1995. The death of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the man who popularized the fusion of pop music with qawwali, in August 1997 was a hard blow to the world of music. Known popularly as the grand maestro of qawwali amongst followers and fans around the globe, Khan sahab's death was the prelude to more trauma for the musical world. An untimely death came upon the young Nazia Hasan who succumbed to a long battle with cancer on August 13, 2000. The proponents of pop music in Pakistan, Nazia and Zoheb won hearts in PTV's Sang Sang and went on to conquer an entire nation with hits like Dum Dum Dee Dee and Aag. The biggest shock to come still was the death of Madam Nur Jehan on the 23rd of December that same year. A child prodigy, Nur Jehan dabbled in acting but it was her voice that brought her recognition and accolades from every angle of the spectrum. The death of the singer who reigned supreme over the Pakistani music scene for more than six decades traumatized an entire nation. With classic hits like Awaz De Kahan Hai and Mujh Se Pehli Si Mohabbat to her credit, Malika-e-Taranum Nur Jehan's name has become immortalized. The death of another legend, Malika Pukhraj on February 4, 2004 has added to the gaping void in Pakistani music. A singer in the court of Maharaja Hari Singh of Kashmir, Malika Pukhraj came to be known for her tongue-in-cheek Abhi Tau Mae Jawan Hoon. Kajjan Begum, another singer and mother of Mehnaz died in February 2000. The demise of two great Ustads was an upset for the performing arts. Ustad Salamat Ali Khan, one of the greatest exponents of classical music died in July 2001. To his credit was the tradition of two brothers singing in pairs. He sang with his brother Ustad Nazakat Ali Khan. Ustad Allah Rakha Khan passed away on the 27th of January 2002. One of the last surviving virtuosos of the sarangi, Ustad Allah Rakha died on his way home after a magnificent live performance with Farida Khanum. Pathaney Khan was another great musical legend who died soon after giving a grand performance. This gentle Sufi singer excelled in the genre of mystic poetry and died of illness after a performance at the First Sufi Soul World Festival in Lahore. His Meida Ishq Wi Tu, Eman Wi Tu is one of the most touching and celebrated paeans in the subcontinent. Allan Fakir, the Allah Allah Kar Bhaiyya man died in July 2000. A singer in the traditional mannerism of Sindh, Allan's early career was spent singing in villages and marriage ceremonies. His voice had a high range of vocal expressions. The absolute abandon with which he sang and danced for the love of God is remembered by the young and old. The deaths of two of the most talented and universally renown qawwals of the subcontinent, Ghulam Farid Sabri and Aziz Mian Qawwal devastated lovers of this traditional genre of music. Ghulam Farid Sabri was 70 at the time of his death and left his younger brother Haji Maqbool Sabri to continue the Sabri Brothers group. A popular figure, Aziz Mian Qawwal died in Iran in December 2000. Holding Masters degrees in Urdu and Persian, languages he sang in, Aziz Mian's paan stains, silk kurtas and long dishevelled locks added to his magnificent way of singing. Another artist to die away from the country was Dildar Pervaiz Bhatti, the TV host. A liberal sense of humour that didn't aim to go above most people's heads made him the people's compere. Dildar Pervaiz Bhatti was a man of many talents having worked in Radio Pakistan as well as being a teacher with a degree in literature. He died of a heart attack in New York after a performance on October 29, 1994. The classical arts lost their share of talented people. Ms Anna Marie Guiezeler, known popularly as Madame Azurie died in August 1998. A renown and revered classical dancer, she truly broke ground by training a generation of classical dancers in spite of myriad odds and social taboos. Maharaj Kathak, recipient of the Pride of Performance, died in June 1998, almost 100 years old at the time of his death. Trained in the art of dance by Achaan Maharaj and in poetry, philosophy and painting by the great Indian philosopher and writer Rabindranath Tagore, he was in a class of his own. Violence was the way for two of the Pakistani film industry's artists to go. Nadira, an actress whose career spanned only five years was murdered in Lahore in August 1995. She had 75 films to her credit and her brutal, still unsolved murder, sent shockwaves throughout Lollywood. Sultan Rahi, muscle man of the industry, was shot on a highway near Lahore and no explanation has been given for his death. He had acted in more than 800 films and his name was in the Guinness Book of World Records in the category of actor with most films to his credit. Rahi had started his career as a spot boy and reached the peak with Maula Jat, in which his gandasa (pole axe) image took off spectacularly. Asha Posley, Pakistan's first heroine, died on March 26, 1998 in a dire state of finances and health. She was the leading lady in the film Teri Yaad opposite Nasir Khan, in 1948. Shola, Sassi and Mehbooba are films she excelled in. Shah Zaman, known more popularly as Lala Sudhir died on January 19, 1997. He was a silver screen superstar in the 1950s and starred with Sabiha Khanum and Musarrat Nazeer. It was a sad decade for television, which lost many seasoned and talented artists. Two immeasurably capable women died at the hands of cancer. Khalida Riyasat breathed her last in August 1996 at the age of 43. She came on television in the late '70s and in a short period made a massive impact on audiences with startlingly good performances in various plays. Yasmin Ismail, a superbly talented veteran died on January 18, 2002. Brilliant and hardworking, children's theatre in Pakistan became synonymous with Yasmin. She brought to the children wonderful plays such as Haspataal ka haal acha hae, Hawa ko dawa do and Choti, Moti, Tota aur S.M. Hamid. She put up a valiant fight but lost to the disease in the end. With her death, theatre has been dealt a severe blow. Arsh-e-Munir, known for her interesting roles, took the final bow in the late '90s. Agha Talish, the last of an era of refined and educated actors, died on February 19, 1998. Known as a progressive and intelligent actor, his career spanned four decades during which he dominated Pakistani cinema with his strong character acting. Other television actors to die in the last decade were Mohsin Rizvi of Sona Chandi fame in August 1998, television and radio artist Nur Mohammed Lashari in February 1997, Qurban Jeelani in October 1996 and the elderly grandfather of Kasak and Sunheray Din, Hameed Wyne in June 1997. The year 2001 saw the demise of Farid Nawaz Baloch, a television artist who also appeared in films. Deewarain, Jungle and Faaslay saw some of his memorable performances. Latif Kapadia, a veteran television artist died in March 2002. A man with many facets, he was also confined to a stereotyped comedian role throughout his career. Ali Ahmad, a progressive playwright and stage director died in August 1996. Known for tackling issues most other writers kept away from, he was known as being the original artist in the midst of many superficial copies. Sheeshae kae Aadmi, Zaat-i-Sharif and Aadhi Roti, Aik Langoti were stage plays that showcased his resolve to work for social change. Zia Sarhadi was another radical film-maker of the subcontinent who died in Spain in January 1997. The man behind Aakhiri Shab and Hum Log, Sarhadi left Pakistan after trouble in General Zia-ul-Haq's time. Mushtaq Gazdar, director of world class documentaries on human rights liberties and the treatment of women, died in November 2000. His documentary They Are Killing the Horse won the best documentary award at the Cannes Film Festival whilst From Home to Hell, a documentary on the trafficking of women won critical acclaim worldwide. Masood Pervaiz, director of Koel, Intezar and Zehr-i-Ishq, hit films with Madame Nur Jehan in her prime, died in March 2001. Mohammed Nisar Hussain, known popularly as MNH and for having pioneered the genre of long plays on PTV also died in March 2001. The man behind the legendary Uncle Urfi, Mohsin Ali died in May 2003. To his credit were greats like Kiran Kahani, Tabeer and Jinnah se Quaid. There
are many more famous people that need to be mentioned here but due to
the lack of space we have confined ourselves to the most relevant ones.
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