In Memory of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

In Memory of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

It’s hard to believe it was eleven years ago when Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the world-renowned Qawwal, left us to meet his Maker. The date was August 16, 1997.

Regarded by PakistaniMusic.com to be “Pakistan’s greatest export”, Khan redefined how Pakistan and Qawwali was viewed across the world. Trained in the art of qawwali, as had been the Khan family tradition for over 600 years, he transformed what was previously a quaint Sufi tradition into its present modern form.

In the mid 1990’s, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan began his march Westward, collaborating with music personalities such as Michael Brook, Eddie Vedder (of Pearl Jam) and Peter Gabriel. In the East, he performed several tracks for Indian films further consolidating his fan base. Before long, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s music had millions of followers across the globe, with his form of qawwali played everywhere from weddings in Lahore to cafes in Paris to nightclubs across Europe. The Shahenshah-e-Qawwali had arrived.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t destined to stay with us for long. Although at the height of his career and international stardom, he was physically a weakened man. He fell ill with kidney and liver failure on August 11, 1997 and died of a sudden cardiac arrest at age 48.


It’s been eleven years, but we still miss Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. For those of my generation, he represented something magical. Something powerful. His music was inspirational. To see him perform, awe-inspiring. It is tragic that someone with so much talent and potential left us so soon. Yet, his music lives on, with tracks such as Halka Halka Suroor, Ali Maula, and Dam Mast Qalander continuing to inspire.



By Hassan Taqi

A Tribute to Nazia Hassan

A Tribute to Nazia Hassan

The news of the death of pop star Nazia Hassan on Sunday, August 13, 2000, spread like wildfire. Within seconds, the Internet, newspapers and the rest of the news media around the globe were flashing news of her final journey.

Amidst the sobs and tears, almost every one had one thing in mind, i.e., “God Almighty had showered Nazia with all the bounties, except length of age.”

One could easily rank her as the first and foremost pop singer of Asia, generally and the Indo-pak subcontinent in particular. Born in a well to do, highly enlightened family in 1965, she had shown an aptitude for music from her earlier days.As a young child, she frequently appeared in Pakistan television’s music program for children, called “Sang Sang”. Sohail Rana was the lead person of that show. Her father Baseer and her mother Muneeza took great interest in the upbringing and education of Nazia and her younger brother, Zohaib. Both of these gifted kids were admitted to school in London, where they received education as well as lessons in music.

In 1978, in England, thirteen year old Nazia recorded a song “Aap jaisa koi meri zindigi mein Aaye, tou baath bun jaaye” (film: Qurbani, music:Biddu, lyrics: Indeevar, picturised on Zeenat Aman). “Aap jaisa koi” is considered the first pop song of the Indo-Pak Subcontinent, the greatest achievement of Nazia, hence, a milestone in her music career.

In 1979, both Nazia and Zohaib came out with their first music album “Disco Deewanay”, which happened to be a record breaking collection of pop songs. She became the heart-throb of teenagers with songs like:

Komal Palkain Bojhal
Boom Boom
Dum Dum, Dee Dee
Aaona Pyar Karain, and many more.

Nazia was married to an enterpreneur, Ishtiaq Beig, in 1995, with whom she had a son, Areez, in 1997. She had been battling against cancer since 1996 and eventually succumed to it on Sunday morning. She was only 35 years old.

BY Hassan Taqi

Arieb Azhar

By Ali Haider Sulehria

Arieb Azhar is a singer, composer, musician and now a host. He is among one of the most talented musician in our music industry. He is not an average musician and he is certainly not singing sappy love songs with a band. Instead, he has taken on the challenge to preserve Pakistani folk music by creating rhythms that blend the classical with musical influences from around the world. He is among one of the most inspiring, impressing and down to earth man whom I have ever met in my life .He has so far released one album called WAJJ which got a very good response. This album was tagged as Sufi album and had one of the most mesmerizing melodies ever and according to me if you have not heard this album you have heard nothing. He has also just finished a travel show based on music journey in Bosnia and Croatia called SALAM BALKAN. He has lived in Croatia for about 15 and was there through out the war. He has recently performed at rafi peer festival and he was performing on the stage when bomb blasts took place. I talked to him in Lahore about his musical journey, time in Bosnia and Croatia, his upcoming projects and his next album.



Haider: Q 1: Since how long you are singing and do you have any musical training?

ARIEB: I started singing since my childhood and as far as musical training is concerned I don’t have any musical training but I have learned a lot from listening to music of all type. I have been a part of Irish band and have produced two Irish albums and done a lot of gypsy music in Croatia. Throughout these last few years in Croatia I felt more and more of a longing to immerse myself in the ‘roots’ music of Pakistan and finally decided to shift back about 5 years ago back here and then I quickly got involved in the poetry of Bhulleh Shah and other Mystic poets.

Haider: Q2: How was the response of your first album WAJJ and was it up to your expectations?

ARIEB: Well the response of my first album was up to my expectations because I never thought that it will be a one night hit even though the marketing of the album was not up to mark .

Haider: Q3: Who has been your inspiration in music?

ARIEB: As far as Pakistani music is concerned I am inspired by Abida Parween, Aziz mian, Ghulam Fareed Sabri, Tufail Niazi, Fareed Ayaz Rizvi. Mostly I am inspired by folk and organic music. These days I am inspired by a Lebanese artist based in France Abba Ji whom I met in world performing arts festival.

Haider: Q4: These days mostly musicians make very expensive and high budget videos but video of your song HUSN-E-HAQIQI was very simple why it is so?

ARIEB: First of all I don’t have extra money to waste and second is that I don’t believe on commercialism, as far as husn-e-haqiqi is concerned we made that video only 2500 rupees and that suite the type of music I am doing.

Haider: Q5: What is pop and rock music? Which one does you like the most? What are your views about Pakistani rock music?

ARIEB: Well I don’t like pop music because pop means popular music and to sell something and I don’t believe on commercialism. According to me pop music is the lowest common denominator. As far as rock music is concerned it is very inspiring and impressing. It actually originated from streets and its main purpose was to bring revolution or change in music scene of that time. I think people in Pakistan are getting more into the pop, and perhaps, rock scene – not because they are honestly into the music itself, but the whole ‘star’ status that the music brings with it. As far as Pakistani rock music is concerned it is not rock music it is actually rock n roll music which is inspired from western rock n roll .According to me the real rock musician of Pakistan is Aziz Mian .

Haider: Q6: How you became interested in Sufi music and what actually Sufi music is all about?

ARIEB: Since my father Aslam Azhar was involved in the early years of the establishment of PTV, a lot of folk artists used to frequently visit our house in Rawalpindi. Some of my earliest memories are of Shaukat Ali singing Saif ul Muluk, and later of Abida Parveen, Tufail Niazi and many others. My parents also used to listen to a lot of Eastern and Western classical music. As far as Sufi music is concerned if ‘Sufi’ music means, singing the poetry of well-established Sufi poets, then that’s possible in any style of music. I take ‘Sufi music’ to mean, any type of music which is played with soul. So for me ‘Afro-American Gospel’ music is also ‘Sufi’ I think in our part of the world people take Sufi music to mean the folk and Qawwali style of rendering the Mystic poetry of the Subcontinent.

Haider: Q7: How will you differentiate SAIF-UL-MALUK which you have sung from other classical singer who has been singing it for years?

ARIEB: Saif-ul-maluk which old classical singers such as Shaukat Ali sang was very excellent and out of this world. Saif-ul-maluk which actually I have sung is more improvised and its arrangements are latest. These days I am singing it in totally different way which I have recorded in my album.

Haider: Q8: It is believed that when someone who has a very beautiful voice sings SAIF-UL-MALUK fairies gather to listen it, Is it true?

ARIEB: Ha ha, I think that, this do happen because vfairies love art whether it’s in any form.

Haider: Q9: You have composed and sung first Bosnian song in Pakistan’s musical history called EMINA what does that mean and what it is all about?

AREIB: This is actually a sevdah song which means pain and it is among one of the special music of Bosnia which touches and enter your soul. Emina is basically the name of a girl in Bosnia as we have Amina in Pakistan. It is sort of a love and Sufi song of Bosnia. This is also a sad song but according to me the real joy and relaxation is in sadness. It is actually a nostalgic kind of song

Haider: Q10: You have also been a part of an Irish band and produced two Irish albums, what is Irish music?

AREIB: Irish music is actually music from Ireland. In 50s and 60s there folk music started dying. Then some youngsters of that time revived and brought a new boom and evolution in music. Irish music not harmonic music it is actually melodic music. Irish music is not like western classical music. In Irish music a specific drone is played on which melody is weaved. As Ireland used to be a separate island so many people used to take asylum there to save themselves from Romans so a lot of culture is actually present in Irish music.

Haider: Q11: You have spent many years of your life in Bosnia and Croatia what type of place it is? Did you went there for education and how was your experience there?

AREIB: I went there for education. It took about a year to first learn the language. I studied Philosophy and Indology (India Studies) there and after that I started music. I was there during the war and situation there at the time of war was totally similar to current situation of Pakistan. Well as far as the place is concerned it is among one of the most beautiful places in the world and I am totally in love with Bosnia and Croatia. It helped me a lot in my musical journey and training.

Haider: Q12: How was the experience and response of your first travel show SALAM BALKAN which you also hosted?

AREIB: It was a very beautiful experience for me and it was the biggest opportunity for me to capture my memories of Bosnia and Croatia in a documentary. It was a very personal kind of a project. Well as far as hosting is concerned this was my first experience of hosting. In first few episodes I was a little bit nervous but after that I got used to it and its response was very good.

Haider: Q13: When you will be releasing your second album, are you planning to release more videos from your next album as compared to the last one and will it also be Sufi album?

AREIB: I will start recording my second album in December and hopefully I will be releasing more videos from my upcoming album then the last one .I won’t give it any tag and this album will be a live album in which all my fellow musician including me will be playing live .

Haider: Q14: Do you think that a singer should fully understand the meaning and feelings of the Sufi poetry before singing it?

AREIB: I think it’s very important to understand the meaning and feeling of the poetry and singer should totally get into depth of each and every word. According to me this is more important than musical “riyaaz”.

Haider: Q15: How does it feel to sing kalam of Sufi poets?

AREIB: It feels very good to sing kalams of Sufi poets. They have said and written something against extremism which if I am going to say then this society will impose ten “fatwas” on me but what they have said is actually something which no one can deny and argue on and it is also correct and true.

Haider: Q15: You have just recently performed and have been performing in Rafi Peer World Art Festival, how was the experience of performing and what is the significance of such festivals?

AREIB: This is actually a very good and interesting festival where you get a chance to listen international music for about ten days and interact with international artists. Such events have a huge importance and significance in our society where we are already tensed by terrorism and there should be many such festivals.

Haider: Q16: How was the reaction of international artists who came from all over the world to Rafi Peer Festival when the bomb blast took place?

ARIEB: They got a little bit panic but there moral was very high and they all decided to perform and have decided to come next year also specially Indians .

Haider: Q17: Tell us about your international concerts and which is your most memorable concert?
AREIB: Well I have not performed that much internationally but I have performed in India, Bosnia, Croatia and Germany. My most memorable concert of my life was on 22nd November 2008 when I was performing in Alhamra and bomb blasts took place.

Haider: Q19: What are your upcoming projects?
AREIB: Well I have a plan to make a documentary on Pakistani folk music in which professional sound engineers will record the music and in which we will travel across all over the Pakistan. The second one is to do a musical travel show in which we will travel from Pakistan to Iran , turkey , Bulgaria, Bosnia , Italy , France , England and than end in Ireland and in this documentary we will travel on a van.

Haider: Q20: What can be done to promote music and music talent in Pakistan?

AREIB: It is true that there is a lot of musical talent in Pakistan but our promoters and producers are totally losers because they believe in commercialism. They should promote and package musicians which mostly Pakistani people listen to rather than promoting glamour and fashion because this is all artificial. They promote the proper content rather than this fashion and glamour.

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

He was the Bob Marley of Pakistan. He was the Elvis of the East. He was Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and was considered as one of the greatest Qawwals in the world. Khan had made a great impression on the music scene with his mix of Eastern poetic music with that of the West.

Khan departed from this sphere on the 16th of August 1997, and will be missed immensely by his fans all across the globe.usrat Fateh Ali Khan's last live performance was in Karachi, Pakistan. That concert was then released as the Swan Song album.

BY HASSAN TAQI

LAAL bands Interview

By : Ali Haider Sulehria

Taimur Rehman is the lead guitarist, composer and songwriter of LAAL band. Laal is a musical band known for singing poetry of revolutionary poets such Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Habib Jalib. The band came into limelight during the " Lawyers Movement", in which it led support to the reinstatement of the then deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. The band put to music one of the poems written by leading lawyer Aitezaz Ahsan during the movement, "Kal, Aaj, Aur Kal". I talked to Taimur about his musical journey so far and what are his future plans

Haider: Tell us about your education?

TAIMUR:I studied from Aitchison College. Then I went to Grinnell College USA to obtain a BA in Economics and Political Science. I got my masters degree from Sussex University UK and finally I’m working on my Phd from University of London School of Oriental and African Studies.

Haider: How did you get into music and where did you learnt guitar from?

TAIMUR:I have always loved listening to music. And I picked up the guitar when I was a teenager. While in college I studied performance and harmony and developed my skills as a guitar player. But I stopped playing for a number of years and began to play again only a few years ago. Music has been a constant love in my life.

Haider: How was the band formed and what is the concept behind the name laal?

TAIMUR:The band was formed as a result of the collaboration between Shahram and myself. We used to visit working class colonies and sing Faiz and Jalib to raise political consciousness. Then we did the same in protests. Soon this developed into Laal. We choose the name Laal because red is the colour of the labour movement, of change, of revolution.

Haider: How was the response of your first album "UMEED-E-SEHAR" and was it upto your expectations?

TAIMUR:It went far above our expectations. We always knew that our work would be popular but we didn’t know that we could emerge so quickly as a mainstream national level band.

Haider: How was the experience of singing Faiz Ahmed Faiz , Habib Jalib and other revolutionary poets and why did you chose to sing such poetry?

TAIMUR:This poetry goes straight to the heart. It is about what we as a people are experiencing. It touches us all. For us, singing Faiz and Jalib has been a process of discovering these great writers as well as a process of discovering our own selves and the contradictions of the society we live in.

Haider: You sang and composed " Kal Ajj aur Kal " written by Aitzaz Ahsan, How does that happen?

TAIMUR:We saw Aitzaz’s poem on You Tube and felt that his words encapsulated the moment we were living in and our aspirations. We set this poem to the tune of an guitar instrumental track I wrote when I was in college. It worked out wonderfully.

Haider:You and your band played a huge role during restoration of judicary,Are you satisfied with the current judicary because the poor people you talk about are in the same conditions as they were before?

TAIMUR:No we are not satisfied. To be satisfied means that we can go home and relax. But the problems that Pakistan confronts are so enormous that we must continue the struggle for a just society. The restoration of the judiciary and democracy was only one small step in that struggle for a new society.

Haider: You are a key member of Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party , tell us about your party and will it become a mainstream party like other political parties?

TAIMUR: I have been a Marxist activist for the last 12 years. We hope that socialist ideas take hold of the workers movement and we are able to play a role in the development of a socialist movement.

Haider: Where and what do you teach and how has been this experience so far ?

TAIMUR:I teach political science at LUMS. I love to teach. It is a labour of love. I wouldn’t give it up for the world.

Haider: Your band has started " Laal Book Circle" in Isalamabad , what is it and will it be started in other cities?

TAIMUR:In both Lahore and Pindi we are running book circles to study and teach socialist literature. Young people from other cities have been contacting us constantly to do something similar in other cities. They need guidance to start such circles and we are working on that as well.

Haider:Do you think that music can bring change and has it ever happened before in any other part of the world?

TAIMUR:It is happened in our own part of the world. Look at the influence of music on popular culture in Pakistan. Sufi poetry and sufi music was enormously influential in shaping the moral and social life of our society.

Haider: Which has been your most memorable performance so far ?

TAIMUR:They were all memorable. But the one that takes the cake still is the one we did from the back of a moving truck to a moving workers rally on May 1st 2006.

Haider: Tell us about your upcoming video , who is directing it and what it is going to be about?

TAIMUR:We are still working on the concept so I can’t reveal much. Besides what would be the fun if I gave it all away.

Haider: When are you planing to release your next album?

TAIMUR:Next year. We have already written all the songs and also made demos. So next summer, you will see the second Laal album.

Haider:What are the future plans of "Laal"?

TAIMUR:We want to try and break into the international market as well.

Haider: What message would you like to give to your fans specially youth and how can they contact you?

TAIMUR:They can email me or write to me on facebook. I respond quite regularly to all our fan mail.
My message to them is “We can change Pakistan if we really want, but to do this, we have to work and work hard”.

JUNNON: THE INSIDE STORY



Salman Ahmad

Water. Restless, moody, flowing. Ustad Ashiq Ali Mir says “Salman jo kehta hai woh kar ke dikhata hai.” While growing up, this ex-cricketer, ex-doc was all over London, Virginia, Kuwait, NY. Good he gave up medicine. Imagine him doing to patients what he does to the guitar!

A song you’d like everyone to know: “Imagine”. It speaks a universal message: Imagine there’s no country… You may say I’m a dreamer… I think we’re all dreamers, deep down. I am. I dream of one world, without countries, boundaries, passports, religions.

A song that symbolises you: “Mein Kaun Hoon.” Hamara hi hai. In order to find out who you are, you have to search your own conscience, right?

About cricket: I played in an exhibition match against the South African team when they were touring Pakistan scored 42 not out. Jonty Rhodes, who was fielding at point, goes “Hey man, drop the guitar, you gotta pick up the bat.” If there was another junoon in my life, besides music, it was cricket.

On evolution as a musician/ songwriter: As an artiste, you feel like a child every time you pick up your instrument or write a song though I’ve written 40 to 50. For me, soulfulness is a top priority and virtuosity doesn’t interest me that much. You can get the most happening sound out of playing very simply, so I try to push myself in directions where I don’t worry about how technically proficient I am but how I am able to express myself on the guitar.

Teenage idol: Imran Khan.

Most valuable possession: My music.

On Pakistan: I like the warmth and hospitality of the people. What I don’t like about it is the lack of tolerance.

Your guitar: A really beaten-up ebony rosewood Ibanez, six strings, electric. I have another favourite one: a double-necked Gibson la Jimmy Page.

Influences: Hindi film music, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix.

In songwriting: John Lennon, R. D. Burman.

Brian O’ Connell

Earth. Solid, stable, you know, all there! Brian met Salman in NY when they were both 13, went to the same high school, and played in their band, Eclipse. He studied music and worked with developmentally disabled people. In ‘92 Salman invited him to join Junoon.

Your guitar: The one I play with Junoon is a Washburn, five strings, it has a low B string (most bass guitars have four), so it goes lower. On Azadi I used a lot of the lower notes; the deeper you go the better it sounds.

On music education: Music is an art and you don’t need the education to put out good music. If a person can speak the language, they can write poetry; but if you know the language, you can write better poetry. By having education in music, you understand music, the technicalities and how it all fits together much more.

On being a session guitarist: That does really require a music education background. Because you go to a session studio, somebody hands you a piece of music you’ve never heard or played before. That was a challenge.

On teaching music: I taught in high school, college and junior high school (an absolute nightmare!). The last thing you want to do in your teens is pay attention to studies. Hormones get in the way, life in general gets in the way. You spend your whole time trying to discipline the class. I like teaching, but I found it was robbing me of my musical creativity.



A song you’d like everyone to know: “Amazing Grace”. How sweet the sound/that saved a wretch like me/I once was lost but now I’m found/was blind but now I see… It’s a very hopeful song, it’s about faith and the guiding light.

A song that symbolizes you: I am always discovering who I am as time passes. I’ll write a song about it!

Teenage idol: My only idol is Jesus Christ and He is a tough act to follow. You need a connection with God and realize that there is one God.

On the move to Pakistan: I’ve a sense of adventure and at that point, aside of my job, I had very little responsibility. I was single, and still young enough to take a crazy adventure. So I did.

On Pakistan: My favourite things in Pakistan are my wife Ayeshah, my daughters, my band Junoon, and the common man. And not just in Pakistan. In India, I find so much similarity between the cultures. You’ve shared a culture for thousands and thousands of years. It has only been 50 years of separation. I think if there’s any separation, that’s taken place on a political level. What I’d like to see with both countries is to break down the walls. Those walls were put up by people who really do not have a vision of peace, love and hope.

Most valuable possession: My wife Ayeshah (’Gift of God’ and she is!) How crazy is it to think of someone with a steady job and the securities of the US to uproot and come here. I’ve had many relationships but I truly believe it was God’s will that I come here and meet her.

Influences: As a child, mostly guitarists Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix. Later, Steven Morris, Larry Coryell. Nowadays, Salman… I’m a very big fan of Salman!

Ali Azmat



Fire. Bright, hot, ballistic. Salman calls him tota, the original mimic, for his unusual Lahore meets Australia meets Texas accent. He worked in a bank for a week, has acted in TV serials, writes poetry and music, but his deepest unfulfilled ambition is to play guitar – he makes do with the air guitar! Unbelievably, Ali has had no training in singing. The guy who said he would teach him guitar just handed him the mike!

On evolution as a singer: There are so many different kinds of music you listen to that you end up taking with you. You venture out this way or that way and there always will be ways. You do things that you haven’t done before. You just go up there and do it, and try to reach that level. More than anything, you don’t worry about doing this garari (you know, the a-a-a-a-a!); you just emote. It’s all emotions. It’s like acting. Every song is like a script and you just read that script accordingly and that is the more important thing. In “Sayonee”, I don’t think I’m singing perfectly. I’m always like, I should have done that note, taken it there. You look at your work critically, but the emotion is there. That’s what reaches the people more.

A song you’d like everyone to know: Any song from Dave Mathews. The music is so so positive. It’s happy and sad at the same time. Musically it’s so much there. Lyrics, composition, voice, guitars, drum, bass.

On singing a capella in any place in the world: The bathroom. Great echo! I go to a friend’s place it has a staircase that has the greatest echo in the world and I go there and try to sing as loud as I can. It’s great.

A song that symbolises you: I said my head is a closet/ I am stuck inside/ Can’t see the light/ I and my head is in a nice house in the sky/ Got central heating/ And I’m around/We’ve been standing here for a long long time/I find sometimes it’s easy to be myself/And sometimes easy to be somebody else. It’s one of my favourite songs. I think it explains a lot of things.

Teenage idol: Pearl Jam, Freddie Mercury, Steven Tyler, A-ha, Robert Plant.

Guitarists: Jimmy Page, Joe Satriani.

On Pakistan: The thing I both love and hate about Pakistan is the people. The reason I am there is that I love the simplicity of the people, the kind of people who live there. At the same time, I am a very non-conformist person and I hate that the people their fake values and their lousy traditions.

BY HASSAN TAQI

Hadiqa Kiyanis New Album

By Ali Haider Sulehria

Hadiqa Kiyani is among one of the biggest Pop stars of Pakistani musical history.She is among one of the few female singers who has sustained so far in our music industry. She is the most talented and succesful female musician after Madam Noor Jahan and Nazia Hassan.She is singing since her childhood. She came onto TV to host a childern music program . She also appeared as a VJ for various music shows .She apperared as as a playback singer for a musical movie called Sargam in 1994. Her first succesful album was Raaz. She has also been awarded Tamgha-e-Imtiaz as well as countless musical awards throughout her career. She has performed in 1000s of shows all over the world.
So far she has released five albums the first was “Raaz” , then came “Roshini” and “Rung” followed by “Rough Cut” and latest of all “Aasmaan”.Her latest album has been relaesed by fire records in Pakistan. Its Hadiqas first album in local languages languages since her release of "Rung" back in 2002. In this album, she sings in Urdu,Punjabi,Persian, Pashto and many other dialects. One song in the album has vocals featured by her older brother (and manager) Irfan Kiani.
She has also collaborated with UK producer NAT-Z on two tracks of the album, "Sohnya" and "Dil Mera".
She has also sung a Pashto duet with Pashto singer Irfan Khan.

So far three videos have been released from this album . The first one was Sohanaya , then came Tuk Tuk followed by Az Chasmey saki. All three videos were appreciated by the viewers and remained on top on various chart shows.

The first track of the album is "WANJILI". It is a punjabi song and has a very mellow and soothing feeling .Its starts with a accoutsic touch and is then followed by a very catchy beat . The best thing in the song is the melodious flute played in it.
The second track of the album is "JAB SAY TUM" . It is a urdu song with male vocals in it which is given by Irfran kiyani who is her brother.This is a soft and a sad love song .The music arrangement of the song is very good which gives a very soothing effect . The male vocals are also very good which equally complements the vocals of hadiqa .
The third song of the album is "SOHNYA" . The video of this track was the first video to be released from this album. Its video was a massive hit and got a huge response . It is a Punjabi fast song with a bit of rap in it .She has collabrated with a UK producer NAT-Z on this song .
The fourth song of the album is "CHANKATA" . This is a punabi song . This is fast bhangra track with amazing dhol played in it and this is a pure desi song . The song is basically a love song with a groovy feeling and I am sure that it will be played on every wedding.
The fifth track of the album is " TUK TUK" . This is a again a fast track with a groovy beat , The video of this track was the second video to be realeased from this album. The video was shot in India by Sajan Agarwaal in which she dressed up like a Rajistani girl. The video of this song also became part of various chart shows and got a huge response and was well apreciated .
The seventh song of the album s "JANAAN" which is a Pushto song . She has collabrated with a pushtoo artist Irfan Khan in this song and male vocals are done by Irfan are very mesmerizing . This is among one of the best tracks from the album and my personel favourite . The composition and music arrangement of the song is very impressive and as the song is in Pushtoo so i dont know what does it means but by the word Janaan I can figure out that this is a love song.
The eighth track of the album "ZARA ZARA". This is a urdu song which has trans music in it. It is again a fast track with some special effects in it.
The ninth track of the album is "AS CHASME SAKI" . This is a Persian song based on the poetry of Allama Iqbal. Its her first Persian song. Its video was released near Iqbal Day. The instrument played in this song are very ethnic but according to me if Oud or Rubarb would have been played instead of guitar it would have been much more better and appropriate but inspite of that its one of the best song from the album with a very mesmerising composition. Regardless, music is a universal language and Hadiqa has proven that in this Persian number. The song has an Arabic vibe, which probably comes from the experience Hadiqa has had performing in the Middle East during these past few years
The next song of the album is "DIL MERA " . This is a song in Urdu,Punjabi and English . This is again a fast track in which she has collabrated with a producer from UK called NAT-Z. It also have male vocals sung by JKD.
The 11th track of the album is "SAJNA SAJNA". This is basically a typical song with dholki touch in it .
The next song of the album is "SHALALA". This is basically a fast track and it is a kids club mix song which according to me is quite a wierd song .
The last track of the album is is the club mix of the song Zara Zara which is beautifully done.
Overall, the album is good and gets a must listen review . So grab a copy of it as soon as possible and dont download it from net . Buy your own copy and say no to piracy.