The 14th death anniversary of renowned Ghazal singer known as Shahenshah-e-Ghazal Mehdi Hassan Khan was observed on Saturday.
Born on July 18, 1927 in Rajasthan, Mehdi Hassan Khan ruled over the hearts of millions of admirers in both Pakistan and India through his more than 25,000 songs and ghazals.
He was born in a family of musicians and got basic training from his father Ustad Azeem Khan.
Mehdi Hassan had great interest in Urdu poetry and he composed many ghazals of literary giants of his time, including Faiz Ahmad Faiz and Ahmad Faraz.
The legendary singer first got an opportunity in Radio Pakistan in 1957 as a Thumri singer and he never looked back.
His new journey started from here and he sang evergreen ghazals and super-hit playback songs.
He is considered the best ghazal singer of all time. Bollywood melody queen Lata Mangeshkar always remained great admirer of Mehdi Hassan as she once said, “god speaks in his throat”.
Ranjish hi Sahi Dil Hi Dukhane K Liye Aa, Patta Patta Boota Boota, Dil-E-Nadan Tujhe Hua Kya Hai, Gullon Mein Rang Bhare, Ik Husn Ki Devi Se Mujhe Pyar Hua Tha, Jab Koi Pyaar Se Bulaye Ga and Dil Ki Baat Labon Par Laakar are among his all-time hits. He remained a leading singer for film industry along with Ahmed Rushdi for decades. He sang for over 300 films during his music career.
He was honoured with numerous awards including Nishan-e-Imtiaz, Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Pride of Performance and Hilal-e-Imtiaz by the Pakistan government. Mehdi Hassan died on June 13, 2012 after a protracted illness in Karachi.