“I’ll be in Karachi and we shall rock it up next month,” said Haider Hashimi, in his last conversation with me in May. Unfortunately it never happened. The unexpected demise of Aaroh’s guitarist really shook me to the core of my being.

In his last interview to Images on Sunday he spoke about Aaroh’s comeback and his solo projects. He had a charming personality and a wicked sense of humour. And he used both well. “On tours, he kept us entertained with his jokes,” remembers Jason Anthony, Aaroh’s drummer and an old friend.

Haider Hashimi rose to fame when he joined Aaroh, replacing Nabeel Nihal Chishty. With Aaroh, Haider played on popular Aaroh tracks like Na Kaho, Yaara initially and then on hits like Raag Neela, Pyar ka Jaal and Jaane Kyun from the second studio release, Raag Neela. These tracks will forever be remembered for Haider’s immaculate, rock-fuelled guitar-playing stunts.

Several weeks after Haider Hashimi’s tragic death, members of the rock outfit Aaroh remember their talented and high-spirited guitarist

From a hardcore rock Pyaar ka Jaal, to the serene Na Kaho, Haider had the talent to handle diverse musical genres. “He was an amazing Blues/Rock guitarist and added a new flavor to Aaroh. We wanted to try something different other than the same deep/dark side like we did in Sawal, and here Haider’s input was instrumental and produced results like Raag Neela,” says Khalid Khan, Aaroh’s bassist and his best buddy.

As Aaroh faced its second breakup, Haider switched to solo projects and continued to produce quality music. Interestingly, he had a good voice, which he showcased in his video of Nahin, which was a funky-bluesy track. Simultaneously, he did sessions for Ali Azmat and also played on Ali Azmat’s Jazba.

He was instrumental in bringing Aaroh together as an outfit with a new vocalist Rizwan Anwar, while retaining Khalid Khan and Jason Anthony. They released the video Mera Pyar which was very well-received by Aaroh fans. The revamped Aaroh had many plans, which couldn’t materialise.

Haider played on popular Aaroh tracks like Na Kaho, Yaara initially and then on hits like Raag Neela, Pyar ka Jaal and Jaane Kyun from the second studio release, Raag Neela. These tracks will forever be remembered for Haider’s immaculate, rock-fuelled guitar-playing stunts.

“I met him for the first and last time for a tribute song that we did for Mehdi Hasan at Faraz Khosa’s studio,” remembers Abbas Ali Khan.

“Even though I met Haider just once, he came across as a true artiste and a very humble human being. Haider played guitars on that song but for the video he couldn’t come so I was asked to be filmed with the guitar. Later, I apologised to Haider casually, saying ‘Sir I’m sorry aapke guitar par mein ne shoot kara diya’ to which he said, ‘Sir, aap se aacha hai kya guitar?’ I’m sure he’s rocking up there.”

“Not a day goes by when I don’t think of Haider, and every moment spent in his company is truly memorable for me,” said an emotional Jason Anthony, “Just three days before his death, I called him and was overjoyed to hear that he was home recovering.

I said to him, ‘Haidery, what the hell man ... we need to start rocking!’ He said, ‘Jason, I’m back and we’re gonna rock soon’. Well, my friend, you will rock on forever. On behalf of my band mates Farooq, Khalid and myself, I say your persistence kept Aaroh going. Hasta la vista, baby ... till we meet again.”

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, September 14th, 2014