Hail and farewell to those we lost in 2012 (Part Two)
Tuesday, January 1st, 2013 2:07:38 by Faisal FarooqIn the second installment of the three-part series, we will briefly those legends who passed away in 2012 including Mehdi Hassan Khan, Iqbal Bahu and Fauzia Wahab.
Mehdi Hassan Khan (1927-2012) – Ghazal singer/playback singer
The ‘King of Ghazal’ was his title, as he was awarded by the Indian and Pakistani government for his songs. He was one of the leading singers in the Pakistani film industry along with Ahmed Rushdi. Some of his awards include Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Pride of Performance and Hilal-e-Imtiaz. Khan passed away in a private hospital on June 13, 2012.
He became an abiding cultural bridge between India and Pakistan. His popularity in India was immense, and whenever he performed there he was heaped with garlands and gifts and showered with awards. The Indian singer Lata Mangeshkar, with whom he recorded a duet in 2009, compared his singing to “the voice of a god”.
Iqbal Bahu (1947 — 2012) – Sufi singer
Bahu’s most famous for Baba Bulley Shah’s kalams Alaf Allah Chumbay Dee Booti and Maain Ne Main Kino Aakhan. He was awarded the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz by the government of Pakistan in 2008 for his singing. Bahu passed away at the age of 65 in Lahore due to heart problems.
Fauzia Wahab (1956 – 2012)
Fauzia Wahab was a politician who served as the senior ex-officio member and the secretary-general of the central executive committee of the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP).
She was notably appointed as the Secretary Information of the party after the resignation of Sherry Rehman, and as well secured the chairmanship of the standing committee on finance and revenue in 2008.
She was admitted at the local hospital for an elective gall bladder surgery on 24 May 2012 and died on Sunday, 17 June 2012.
Despite being a middle class woman, she defiantly and proudly took centre stage in an arena that was dominated by rich men. She had none of the privileges of wealth and gender but she compensated for that with a tenacity and loyalty that was unmatched in the PPP.
Tags: Ardeshir Cowasjee, Arfa Karim Randhawa, Bashir Ahmed Bilour, Faizan Peerzada, Fauzia Wahab, India, Iqbal Bahu, Mehdi Hassan Khan, Obaidullah Baig, Pakistan, Pir Sahib Pagara, Pride of Performance, USAShort URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=36754