Tuesday 10 April 2012

The Fabulous Ahmad Rushdi


1983 is remembered as a year when we lost two super stars of Pakistan, one was the face of the nation and the other was the voice of nation. We lost the charismatic Waheed Murad and melodious Ahmad Rushdi in the space of 8 months. On 11 April 1983 Ahmad Rushdi the most recognized voice of that era went silent, but the songs that he lent in the airwaves can never be silenced as they were the pulse of his time and will live forever. Although on his demise the evergreen Waheed Murad had to say that 'I have lost my voice today'.

Ahmad Rushdi was a complete singer, one who was comfortable in all styles and genres. What he offered to the audience was something not matched by other big names of his time, he gave them a sensibility and a passion through his voice which was very close to their hearts and their feelings. I must admit he was not a perfectionist, as he never underwent a proper learning and training in music, this little thing made all the difference, as he was genuine and his art and creativity was all of his own. He did not belonged to any music family nor any music tradition, but he left behind a legacy of his own, an unmatched one.

He came into prominence from Radio Pakistan:
بندر روڈ سے کیماڑی میری چلی رے گھوڑا گاڑی but when his voice first dawned on Pakistan cinema:
چاند سا مکھڑا گورا بدن he and his music just evolved tremendously and he became a must for every film.

The range of his music is fantastic, no one can match the emotional vitality with which he used to sing love songs:
اکیلے نہ جانا ہمیں چھوڑ کر تم He is simply incomparable when it comes to pop music:
اک اڑن کھٹولا آئے گا کسی لال پری کو لائے گا not only of his time but also beyond his time. When he laid his hand on slow and sad songs:
اچھا کیا دل نہ دیا ھم جیسے دیوانوں کو the sentiments conveyed through them were so touchy that a lobby worked against him in propagating that his voice was not suited to this genre and although they were successful partly in spreading this notion as the numbers of sad songs sung by him are far less in his career although our films used to have more sad songs in those days.

A qawwali sung by him in an East Pakistani film Bhaiya is rendered with class and reverence:
.مدینے والے سے میرا سلام کہہ دینا


Ahmad Rushdi was a humble person and a gentleman to the core who lived a simple life and that all reflected in his fabulous art that was energetic, pure and profound.

13 comments:

  1. hmm...I love Ahmed Rushdi....he is a legend..

    A very nice post !

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  2. I feel that you are speaking of a kind of perfection that is not the perfection of technique yet only of authenticity and deep-heart: qualities we would do well to seek and encourage.

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  3. Thinking thanks, and Ahmad Rushdi is really a legend.

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  4. Connie sometime perfectionism only leads to a set pattern and not to creativity and that is why the greatest Creator just leaves a little room of being perfect.

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  5. When I watch the videos of Ahmed Rushdi on Youtube, in which he himself is performing, I think: here is a man from Marghdeen. He looks so inimitably self-composed, as if he needs nothing from anybody. This embodiment of self-contained humility is so remarkable in a man who was among the most sought-after living celebrities in his society.

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    1. Yes he looks so absorbed when he sings, and even when he use to sing for others we could not tell where is Ahmad Rushdi because we could only hear Waheed Murad, Mohammad Ali, Nadeem and Kamal, he just used to get dissolved in those actors, no other singer had that art and quality.

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  6. A legend who took Pakistani music to new heights by introducing pop. He was rightly known as voice of Waheed Murad as we know Waheed from Koko Krina, Aye Abre Karam, Akele na jana and Kuch log rooth kar bhi like hits. May God bless his soul with eternal peace Ameen.

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    1. Ahmad Rushdi always sang exceptionally well when Waheed Murad was on the screen.

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  7. sorry never heard him? was he Indian? can you send me some links of his sngs?

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  8. Ahmed Rushdi was master of all moods, an adaptive singer with magical voice.His voice quality is still matchless and no one ever able to sing him with the same expression.I do not agree with the statement that he was not a perfectionist as I do have a lot many logic to prove that and one is whatever he rendered,no other singer despite of the classical music training,when attempted,never came close to one and only Ahmed Rushdi.That is why famous Indian playback singer Kishore Kumar admitted several times his inspiration with Rushdi and also paid him a tribute at Royal Albert Hall London.

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  9. Beautifully written... even in 2012 1 can connect to his voice easily. No matter how many singers may come and go, he will always be on the top of my list(lollywood).

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  10. He may not have belonged to a musical family,but his genuine gift from God was enough to silence anyone.I heard his songs on many movies,he usually lent his voice for Waheed Murad.It was an unbelievable combination.

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