Habib Wali Mohammad’s son keeps his legacy alive

The late singer's beautiful ghazals were recently reprised by his son at an event in Karachi

Pakistani musical maestro Habib Wali Mohammad may have died in 2014, but his musical legacy lives on.

The late singer achieved instant fame when two of his ghazals, emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar’s Lagta nahi hai dil mera and Mirza Ghalib’s Yeh na thi hamari qismat gained popularity and were played repeatedly on the radio by his fan -- famous Bollywood actor Meena Kumari.

In 1941, he won the first prize in a music competition held in Bombay when he sang Lagta nahi amongst 1,200 contestants which included the late Mukesh Ji, who later became one of the most famous playback singers in Bollywood. The tune of this ghazal was composed by Habib Wali himself.

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After migration to Pakistan, Habib Wali Mohammad’s recorded geets and ghazals were broadcasted by all radio stations in the country. He was invited to perform at concerts and the prestigious All-Pakistan Music Conference organized by Hayat Ahmad Khan in Lahore. Raaz Allahabadi’s ghazal Aashiyan jal gaya was popularised by Habib Wali when he sang it for the first time at the conference.

He was also awarded the ‘Golden Disk’ by EMI for launching the first long play record in stereo titled Unforgettable Song by Habib Wali Mohammad. Later, it appeared in the film Bazi starring veteran actor Nadeem. He then sang for many other film soundtracks.

His national songs, such as Roshan-o-rakhshan, nayyar-o-taban, Aye nigar-e-watan tu salamat rahay and Sohni dharti Allah rakhay, became as famous as those sung by Madam Noor Jehan and Mehdi Hasan.

Recently, his son Rizwan Wali Mohammad, who remained under the tutelage of his father since childhood and is a mirror reflection of his vocal talent, performed some of his popular ghazals at events in Karachi and made everyone nostalgic of his father’s melodious voice. He also presented his newly released video song Unka lehja rabab se barh kar.

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The romantic but mischievous song Raatein theen chandni from Bazi brought smiles to the faces of listeners. Rizwan was applauded for his beautiful rendition of lyricist Fayyaz Hashmi’s masterpiece Aaj jaanay ki zid na karo from Badal aur Bijli, which was set to music by maestro Sohail Rana.

Possessing a powerful voice, Rizwan also ventures to sing songs and ghazals sung by reputed singers other than his father. His medley comprising of three ghazals by Jagjeet Singh, Kia hai pyar jisay, Tum ko dekha to yeh khayal aya and Honton say chhu lo tum, was a real treat for music lovers.