Mehdi Hassan's voice gave life to the lyrics of the song and transformed it into a timeless entity to be hummed by generations to come. This happened when he sang 'Gulon Mein Rang Bhare' the words of Faiz Ahmed Faiz for the film Farangi (1964). It moved the poet so much that he bestowed the song to Mehdi Hassan.
This happens when two great combines together to create something, a masterpiece is born. This ghazal is widely considered to be amongst the most popular as well as the very best of Faiz Sahib’s ghazals. Indeed, as many would consider it to also be amongst the best of Mehdi Hasan’s ghazals.
This ghazal was not written for the film It had already been recorded by Radio Pakistan’s Central Production Unit. The radio version had just a sarangi, a tabla and a tanpura yet it had become a massive hit. This became a rage only when it was re-recorded for the film. There was no situation in the film for this song but the director Khalil Qaisar was hell-bent on including in the soundtrack.
Ismail Khan, the uncle and mentor of Mehdi Hassan fashioned it in the Jhinjhoti Raag, Heavy orchestra was used. violins were introduced instead of Tanpura. The ghazal’s resounding success catapulted Hasan’s career in the industry and he never looked back An anecdote linked with this song is that during many get-togethers, people would request Faiz Sahab to recite the ‘Mehdi Hasan ghazal.
Mehdi Hassan. Born on July 18th, 1927 in Rajasthan of pre-partition India, he was initially named Ismail Khan. As a child, he was weak and fell seriously ill, and after many prayers, he recovered on the 8th of Muharram, after which he was renamed Mehdi Hassan. He was born into a traditional family of musicians, and his father and uncle had even been invited to the court of the Maharaja of Baroda, one of the greatest honors at the time. Growing up in this family of musicians, Mehdi Hassan gained an understanding of “raag” at the early age of six. By the time he was eight, he also performed in the presence of the Maharaja, who greatly appreciated him.
Mehdi Hassan sang for more than 300 films, and his fan base stretched beyond Pakistan to India. His contributions as a playback singer not only made him famous, but they also made the film, poetry and poet memorable. For instance, Ahmed Faraz’s ghazal, “Ranjish Hee Sahi,” was immortalized when Mehdi Hassan sang it.
It is important to note that Mehdi Hassan changed ghazal from a purely classical genre to a semi-classical genre. This transition allowed the format of ghazal to be more openly adapted in films.Mehdi Hassan sang in two Hindi films also.
He passed away on 13th July, 2012, and the world was deprived of a beautiful voice. His songs can still be heard in households and streets, transcending borders and languages.
