Sports

I had by no means 'forgotten' our beloved national anthem: Shafqat Amanat Ali

Twitter slams Pakistani singer for not knowing lyrics of the national anthem

News Desk March 20, 2016

Shafqat Amanat Ali (L) sings the Pakistan national anthem as Indian Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan (C) and Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee (C) look on ahead of the start of the World T20 cricket tournament match between India and Pakistan at The Eden Gardens Cricket Stadium in Kolkata on March 19, 2016. PHOTO: AFP

As Pakistan and India came face to face in Kolkata for a heavyweight World T20 clash on Saturday, seasoned Pakistani singer Shafqat Amanat Ali seemingly failed to seize the opportunity to make the nation proud with his otherwise immaculate singing skills.

Shafqat and Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan were present in Eden Gardens alongside the two teams to sing their respective national anthems before the historic event. However, the Pakistani singer could not keep up with the lyrics of the national anthem which caused displeasure among many fans across the country.

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The singer has since apologised for his performance, saying that he was deeply hurt by the little faith that Pakistanis showed in him.

"I admit that there were a few audio and technical glitches that may have sounded like lyrical errors and I will surely apologise for not being able to win your praises this time, but assure you I had by no means "forgotten" our beloved 'Qaumi Tarana," he tweeted.

Here is my apology... pic.twitter.com/09aGpMqhRs
— Shafqat Amanat Ali (@ShafqatAmanatA) March 20, 2016

Many took to Twitter to express disappointment over the singer’s performance.

By the way Shafqat Amanat Ali should be deported if he steps in the country again, made a mockery of the national anthem.
— Umer (@UmerTariiq) March 20, 2016

Even I can say better national anthem without any preparation shame on you Shafqat Amanat Ali and on your ugly voice you hung our head down.
— Marib khan (@khanmarib_) March 20, 2016

Shafqat Amanat Ali is a friend & 1 of the best voices around. But he was a real disappointment with the national anthem @ the #PAKvsIND game
— Ali Haider Zaidi (@AliHZaidiPTI) March 20, 2016

With love from Shafqat Amanat Ali pic.twitter.com/QAtcMQfcsB
— Sanaa Tauseef (@SanaaTauseef) March 19, 2016

They should have taken me instead of Shafqat Amanat Ali, I can sing the national anthem in a far better way.
— Iftikhar Firdous (@IftikharFirdous) March 19, 2016

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My 5 yr old nephew sings the national anthem with more zeal than Shafqat Amanat Ali. That hair straightening chemical's gone to his brain
— Containeristan (@guldaar) March 19, 2016

so, Mr Shafqat Amanat Ali gets the national anthem wrong at two places. #Fabulous
— EH (@ejazhaider) March 19, 2016

https://twitter.com/naveed575/status/711433029080760320

Some even suggested that Shafqat should have been ‘coached’ properly before singing on the ‘big stage’.

Someone should have coached Shafqat amanat ali before singing on the big stage #PAKvsIND
— Awab Alvi (@DrAwab) March 19, 2016

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While others said Bachchan is a better singer than Shafqat as the former ‘sounds more in tune’.

It is loud and clear. Amitabh Bachan is a much better singer than Shafqat Amanat Ali.
— Murtaza Solangi (@murtazasolangi) March 20, 2016

After all that riyaaz, the actor @SrBachchan sounds more in tune than the singer Shafqat Amanat Ali.
— Hasan Zaidi (@hyzaidi) March 19, 2016

COMMENTS (22)

Trollslayer | 8 years ago | Reply @S I'm an Afghan and I speak Farsi/Dari fluently, and I also know that Urdu has loan words borrowed from Farsi, however spoken Farsi/Dari is not understood by Pakistanis. I have Pakistani friends who are able to pick out familiar words from Farsi speech without understanding the context and content of the speech. Urdu's syntax and conjugation is derived from Hindi with loan words from Farsi and Arabic, which makes Urdu and Farsi mutually unintelligible to its respective speakers.

Trollslayer | 8 years ago | Reply @S I'm an Afghan and I speak Farsi/Dari fluently and I also know that Urdu has loan words borrowed from Farsi, however spoken Farsi/Dari is not understood by Pakistanis. I have Pakistani friends who are able to pick out familiar words from Farsi speech without understanding the context and content of the speech. Urdu's syntax and conjugation is derived from Hindi with loan words from Farsi and Arabic, which makes Urdu unintelligible to the Farsi speaker and vice versa.

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Dr Saeed | 8 years ago | Reply Very disappointed by some one who is known for his singing in subcontinent .No apologies can bring it back

S | 8 years ago | Reply @Trollslayer: Persian is very close to Urdu and Pakistan national anthem is quite simple. Only dimwits will have a problem in understanding or remembering it. The guy made a mistake at an international level. He should own it rather than giving excuses.

Hasan | 8 years ago | Reply @harkol how do u know he did rehearsal? did he personally come and tell u? Since no such mention in media or public record..he landed in kolkata from mumbai few hrs before match. Don't believe u.. I think both did well on spot performances

Pakistani | 8 years ago | Reply @Tariq: There is nothing wrong with the national anthem only the dimwits can not understand and remember it!

Ali | 8 years ago | Reply In my opinion, National Anthem must have been recited by a person who has command over the language, both prose and poetry, for e.g. Zia Mohiuddin or Anwer Maqsood.

raw is war | 8 years ago | Reply Dear Pakistani friends, This match is about cricket, not national anthem competition.

harkol | 8 years ago | Reply Worth reminding everyone - Amitabh Bachchan insisted on a rehearsal and practiced it before the match. Amazing for a man of his age... Doing rehearsals shows level of dedication and professionalism.

Hassan | 8 years ago | Reply Now the problem is not that he forgot the lyrics its about admitting ur mistake, he thinks we all r insane pointing out a mistake in the national anthem. what courage man, complete denial.

Pakistani | 8 years ago | Reply Audio and technical glitches?!!.....Stop embarrassing yourself further Mr.Shafqat. It is quite a low as it is. Also, you are in no position to lecture people about keeping the faith etc etc in the national team. With their level of professionalism and attitude, they are just another bunch of losers.

Satan | 8 years ago | Reply @Ch. Allah Daad: Did Afridi and Waqar did it "deliberately"? That's what Qandeel said as well.

Trollslayer | 8 years ago | Reply It would help if the national anthem was not in an alien language. How many people in Pakistan speak or understand Persian.

sam | 8 years ago | Reply hey no this was conspiracy by bcci. Shafqat was payed by BCCI in advance to sing wrong which would affect the players when they get to ground. he he he he...

Tariq | 8 years ago | Reply Its about time we changed the national anthem anyways.... perhaps in Urdu instead of Farsi?

mawdeva | 8 years ago | Reply amitabh much better than that shafqat who forgot his national anthem

Ch. Allah Daad | 8 years ago | Reply He didn't do it deliberately but what Afridi and Waqar has done is unforgivable. Both should be fired immediately.

Last Man Alive | 8 years ago | Reply Then why were you murmuring and not singing the anthem ???

Logitech | 8 years ago | Reply That's quite alright, Shafqat. I've forgotten most of it. It's not in a language I understand.

zakhta | 8 years ago | Reply Well this guy is drunk most of the times even when he is among public.

SuperNeo | 8 years ago | Reply OMG whole frustration of losing match going on Shafqat Amanat Ali , poor guy !!!!!

asif khan | 8 years ago | Reply What Shafqat Amanat Ali did the other night is a pure reflection of what our nation has become - bunch of unconfident individuals who never deliver true to our potential and skills, and always take things for granted. There is a serious lack of passion, professionalism and self believe. And maybe sometimes you can't blame them for these actions as well, because obviously today's generation has no inspirational leaders to follow and as a nation we have become submissive. We need strong leaders who not fixes the country and eradicates serious issues such as terrorism and corruption, but also lifts our nation as a whole. Morales are too low!

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