PESHAWAR: Noted Pashto folk singer Nazia Iqbal has said that she will continue serving Pashto quality music despite slump in the market and threats.

She said that like other artists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata she also suffered owing to militancy, but had to serve the art and culture to promote peace. She said that some time ago she had announced to quit singing during a stage show in Dubai following threats from kidnappers.

The singer said that she had restricted her activities and distanced herself from Pashto music scene under duress.

Nazia Iqbal launches her new album

Nazia expressed these views during a media briefing at a local wedding hall here the other day. She formally launched her new Pashto album ‘Chaata Ma Waiya Janan’ (Don’t endear anyone as darling) for upcoming Eidul Azha.

She described main features of her new release and hoped that it would attract large number of audience due to its quality music and poetry. The album contains nine Pashto songs and one Urdu piece sung in the style of light ghazal with a base music composition.

She said that unknown persons had kidnapped her two sons from Islamabad and forced her to quit singing otherwise her sons would be killed. She said that they were recovered safely and again she started singing to serve art of music with a new zeal. A select audience comprising music buffs, art critics, writers and fans of Nazia Iqbal attended the musical concert.

She completed audio and video recording of her new Pashto album and performed to entertain a select gathering at a local wedding hall.

She said she would help recreate market for Pashto charts through her quality work. She said depending on only computer -based music arrangement would not work as traditional melodies required a natural sound base and born passion.

She said she had made a hard decision at that time just to save lives of her kids, but was determined to restart her singing career once her kids were recovered.

“I had to announce quitting music field publicly at a musical concert in front a huge crowd in Dubai to save the precious lives of my kids. I went underground and preferred to keep quiet till recovery of my two sons. Thank God, I got my sons back and I started singing with a new spirit,” she recalled.

Nazia Iqbal staged a comeback after a long time since she had shifted to Islamabad where she lived with her husband Javed Fazaa and her kids.

About slump in Pashto market, she said that she didn’t care about whether her album would be sold or not, but would continue focusing on producing quality music and poetry. She said music and poetry both should be reflective of our cultural identity.

“I cannot think of singing a poetic piece unless I am sure of its content and message. My music and poetry should correspond to my cultural identity. It is better not to sing than to earn the title of being a computer singer,” Ms Iqbal remarked.

The noted singer said only a few genuine singers could perform live, the rest she said depended on lip-synch. “Doing rehearsal at least two hours a day is must to be an accomplished artist. I suggest upcoming youth should sit with music ustads if they want to learn music,” she said.

Published in Dawn, September 11th, 2016