Own your art and artiste
LEGENDARY singer Lata Mangeshkar Jee passed away and the news of her demise came like a bolt from the blue for music lovers.
For years, her music inspired people beyond any physical borders.She will always remain in history as one of the most distinguished female singers of Asia, a nightingale of India.
She was cremated with state honor and everything went gracefully.National mourning of two days was announced and the Indian flag was flown half-mast.
She was given the honor and respect that she earned during her life.Unfortunately, in Pakistan, we don’t own our legends and leave them in despair.
Take Mehdi Hassan as an example, he was one of the most legendary singers of Asia.Among his fans were Lata Mangeshkar and Dilip Kumar.His art was recognized both nationally and internationally.
He sang for nearly three hundred movies and gave us timeless musical masterpieces, a true king of Ghazal music.
However, as soon as he fell ill and wasn’t able to continue singing, he was forgotten.He was living in a home that was in dilapidated condition and faced severe financial constraints for his medical treatment.
Recently Rahat Fateh Ali Khan built a small mausoleum of Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan at his own expense.
He said that if the government wants to do something then they should assist in making Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Academy.
Who doesn’t know the stature of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan in music; he was the man who became the face of this country.
People around the world who did not know Pakistan knew him.He performed in nearly 40 countries, collaborated with western artistes, popularized qawali music, and released songs in Japan, India, the US and Europe.
Instead of honoring his memory and inspiring others from his music, we choose to forget him.
A video of fifty-fifty famed comedian, Majid Jahangir, also made to local news.There was a time when people used to wait for his shows and looked at these stars as larger-than-life characters.
Now, he is suffering from various health issues and was requesting the government for financial and medical assistance.
It was reported that some of his friends were supporting him financially and also allowed him to live in their apartment.
He was forced to appeal for help from the general public on roads.Although he was awarded Sitara-e-Imtiaz yet no attention was given to his deteriorating health and financial condition.
The same goes for Roohi Bano, an actress that was an institution in herself.The poet who wrote the famous “Dil Dil Pakistan”, Nisar Nasik also died in anonymity and poverty.
Iftikhar Qaiser, a famed actor from Peshawar, also died in difficult financial conditions.
Musicians like Allan Fakir, Pathanay Khan all lost in the mist of time.Our habit of meting ill-treatment is not limited to artistes as we have done no different to our sports heroes as well.
What we are risking by ignoring our artiste is that we are painting this picture where opting for art will one day land you into living a difficult life and you could hardly make your ends meet.
On top of that, your art and memory will be obliterated.The stories shared above and many others like them will discourage the youth and without the induction of fresh blood, it will be impossible to keep our traditional art alive.
Slowly, people will lose the taste to understand and appreciate art.It is believed that a nation that forgets its art, risk losing its soul and rising intolerance in the society is one indication of this phenomenon.
According to an Oxford economics study, the concerts and live entertainment industry contributed $132 billion to the US economy in 2019 and supported some 913,000 jobs.
It produced $9.3 billion in federal taxes and $8.3 billion in local tax revenues.Even though we can’t compare the two markets but it’s an example of how we could generate significant economic activity in Pakistan if we properly support art.
It’s time for the government to devise a proper policy outlining what kind of content to promote, ensure intellectual property rights of artistes, layout procedures for honouring the memory of our legends, and arrange for financial or medical assistance for artists when required.
Promote arts at the school level, incentivise music rather than taxing it, and arrange for nationwide talent hunts.
We need to build institutions where we could prepare the next generation of artistes and groom them.
Bemoaning about the condition of arts will do no good, we need a concrete plan and set the wheels in motion.
—The writer is contributing columnist, based in Karachi.
