Live show: Folk singers take capital by storm

Folk music aficionados flocked to listen to their favourite performers.

ISLAMABAD:

Wonderful weather, open air and an excited crowd — all you need to turn this into a memorable night is electrifying music and that’s exactly what performers at the “Lok Aur Maqbool Geeton Ke Sham” on Monday night gave their fans.

The crowd, mostly comprising folk-music lovers, thronged the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) to watch maestro Attaullah Essa Khailvi, Mehmooda Qamar and Muhammad Ali perform.

“It’s a beautify night to enjoy famous performers,” said Saira, an enthusiastic participant. Her sentiment reflected in the crowd, as they bestowed thunderous applause on each performer.

The evening started with an instrumental set of Bibi Shireen by Khyber-Pakthukwa performers Murad (tabla) and Gulab Khel (rubab).

It kicked off the event in the right tone, with the crowd swaying with the melody by the time the second the performance began.

Islamabad-based artist Mohammad Ali performed Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s classics like “Piya Ghar Aya”, among other memorable songs.

Soft-spoken Mehmooda Qamar followed with her well-received performance of beloved folk songs like “Teray ishq nachaya.”

But it was Khailvi’s presence that really set the crowd on fire — he warmly thanked the crowd for coming out in full force to hear his performance and the festival in general.

Performing the hits “Pyar nal na sahi” and “Sab Maya hai”, the singer had the crowd yelling for an encore. After receiving multiple requests from the crowd, Khailvi quipped he could only sing one song at a time.

An enthusiastic fan showered the singer and his accompanying band with Rs1,000 notes as a token of his appreciation, before being escorted off the premises.

The organisers managed to successfully pull off a large-scale live show for the residents of the twin cities. Party favours in the form of paan and hot tea were a hospitable gesture appreciated by the crowd.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 16^th, 2011.