Punjabi Kolkata Times: Mehdi Hassan: A golden voice that transcended boun...

Punjabi Kolkata Times: Mehdi Hassan: A golden voice that transcended boun...: 'Ab ke hum bichhade to shaayad kabhii khwabon mein milen' (If we part now, we may meet in dreams). The world of ghazal will no long...

Mehdi Hassan: A golden voice that transcended boundaries

'Ab ke hum bichhade to shaayad
kabhii khwabon mein milen' (If we part now, we may meet in
dreams). The world of ghazal will no longer be same without
legendary singer Mehdi Hassan who leaves behind an unmatched
legacy and treasure of soulful melodies.
     Adored by millions on both sides of the border for his
golden voice, the 84-year-old ghazal maestro, who died in a
Karachi hospital today following multi-organ failure, was one
of the last icons representing the shared cultural heritage of
India and Pakistan.
His demise has brought the curtains down on an era of
lyricism and poetry.
     An inspiration to generations of singers in both the
countries, Hassan's mesmerising voice and range made him
'Shahenshah-e-Ghazal' (The King of Ghazal singing).
'Aaye kuchh abr kuchh sharaab aaye'; 'Patta Patta, Boota
Boota'; 'Dil-E-Nadan Tujhe Hua Kya Hai' and 'Dil Ki Baat Labon
Par Laakar' are among the his all-time hits.
Hassan was born into a family of traditional musicians at
Luna village in India's Rajasthan state on July 18, 1927.
Belonging to the 16th generation of musicians from the
Kalawant clan, Hassan received his musical grooming from his
father Ustad Azeem Khan and uncle Ustad Ismail Khan who were
both traditional 'dhrupad' singers.
He started performing at a young age and his first
concert was on 'dhrupad' and 'kheyal' with his elder brother.
Hassan's family migrated to Pakistan at the time of
Partition in 1947 when he was just 20.
     The family was living in poverty but despite the
hardships, Hassan's passion for music did not wither and he
kept up the routine of 'riyaz' (practice) on a daily basis.
In an attempt to make both ends meet, Hassan started
working in a bicycle shop. The singer got his first break on
Radio Pakistan in 1957. 
Hassan, who married twice, is survived by 14 children --
nine sons and five daughters. His wives predeceased him.
     The maestro, who began his career primarily as a 'thumri'
singer, earned recognition within the musical fraternity at
the time when Ustad Barkat Ali Khan, Begum Akhtar and Mukhtar
Begum were considered the stalwarts of ghazal rendition.
It was his passion for Urdu poetry that made him take up
ghazal singing on a part-time basis but he soon became its
greatest star.
There was a time in Pakistan's film industry when a film
was considered incomplete without Hassan's voice. He ruled the
Pakistani film world along with Ahmed Rushdi in the 1960s-70s.
He was the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions:
the 'Tamgha-i-Imtiaz' granted to him by Gen Ayub Khan; the
'Pride of Performance' bestowed on him by Gen Ziaul Haq; and
the 'Hilal-i-Imtiaz' conferred by Gen Pervez Musharraf.
Besides the Nigar Film and Graduate Awards from Pakistan,
he was presented the Saigal Award in Jalandhar, India, in
1979, while the Gorkha Dakshina Bahu Award was given to him
in Nepal in 1983.
Hassan stopped singing in the late 80s due to ill health.
Despite his ailments, Hassan had a great desire to sing
with Lata Mangeshkar. In 2010, "Sarhadein", an album which had
the first and last duet song "Tera Milana" by Mehdi Hassan and
Lata Mangeshkar, was released.
Hassan recorded his part in Pakistan in 2009 and Lata
later heard the track and recorded her part in India in 2010.
The tracks were later mixed together for a duet.
     Lata, who once called Hassan the 'voice of God', said "A
singer like him is born once in a millennium. It is my bad
luck that I could not sing with him when he was healthy. Now I
can only regret. With his demise the music fraternity has lost
a great and legendary singer."
Hassan, who last performed in India in 2000, wanted to
visit his birth country again, a wish that remained
unfulfilled.

ट्राम

कोलकाता में पहली बार 24 फरवरी 1873 को सियालदह स्टेशन से आर्मेनियन स्ट्रीट तक ट्राम चलाई गई थी. तब इसे घोड़े खींचा करते थे फिर बीच में चार साल बंद रहने के बाद वर्ष 1880 में यह सेवा दोबारा शुरू की गई. इस दौरान स्टीम इंजन से ट्राम चलाने का असफल प्रयास भी किया गया और अंत में 27 मार्च 1902 को बिजली से ट्राम चलाने में कामयाबी मिली. कोलकाता में चलने वाली ट्रामों में दो डिब्बे होते हैं.


अंग्रेजों ने साल 1900 में इसमें एक और डिब्बा जोड़ दिया था तब अगला डिब्बा प्रथम श्रेणी का कर दिया गया और पिछला डिब्बा द्वितीय श्रेणी का. पिछले डिब्बे का किराया पहले डिब्बे से कम था. नगर में 1930 के दशक में 300 से ज्यादा ट्रामें चलती थीं. उस समय यही महानगर की प्रमुख सार्वजनिक सवारी थी अब सड़कों के प्रसार व वाहनों की तादाद बढ़ने के साथ इनका रूट सिकुड़ गया है लेकिन ये अब भी सड़कों पर बिछी पटरियों पर ही चलती हैं.  इस समय कोलकाता ट्रामवेज कॉरपोरेशन यानि सीटीसी के पास 272 ट्रामें हैं, लेकिन उनमें से सिर्फ 125 ट्रामें ही सड़कों पर उतरती हैं.