Daily Times

Google paid homage to the legendary Pakistani Ghazal Singer, Shahenshah-e-Ghazal Mehdi Hassan, on his 91st birthday through a doodle.

It is Google’s way to honor a person by showing its doodle sketch on the site. Previously, many Pakistani celebrities including Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Abdul Sattar Edhi, Noor Jehan, Nazia Hassan have been honored via doodle internationally. Today is Mehdi Hassan’s 91st birth anniversary and Google is paying homage to him.

Mehdi Hassan was born in an on July 18, 1927, in a village called “Luna” in Rajasthan, India, in a family of traditional musicians.

The first performance of Shahenshah-e-Ghazal was aired from Radio Pakistan in 1957. He sang many Ghazals and playback songs of the movie.

Hassan’s first song was ‘Jab Koi Pyaar Se Bulaye Ga, Tum Ko Ek Shakhs Yaad Aye Ga’ from film Susral in 1962.

‘Ranjish hi Sahi Dil Hi Dukhane K Liye Aa’, ‘Patta Patta, Boota Boota’, ‘Dil-E-Nadan Tujhe Hua Kya Hai’, and ‘Dil Ki Baat Labon Par Laakar’ are his all time hit Ghazals.

It is also learned that the nightingale of India the great Lata Mangeshkar praised Khan Sahib by saying that “he had God in his voice.”
Folk Artist of Thar, Bharumal Amrani also said, “Mehdi Hassan vanished the thirst of the desert by his composition; he gave the voice to the ultimate sorrows of people.”
He further added, “It is a privilege for this land that a great personality like Khan Sahib was born here. He encouraged the hopeless lovers.”

The government of Pakistan honored the veteran singer with many awards including Nishan-e-Imtiaz, Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Pride of Performance and Hilal-e-Imtiaz.