* The Pride of Performance bestowed on him by Gen Ziaul Haq * The Tamgha-i-Imtiaz granted to him by Gen Ayub Khan His funeral was attended by the speaker of the Sindh Assembly, MQM leaders and thousands of his admirers.Īwards He had been the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions:. KARACHI: The funeral prayer of Ghazal King Mehdi Hassan was offered at the Noorani Mosque near the Ancholi area. His funeral took place on Friday,Jun 15, 2012. Mehdi Hasan died at around noon on 13 June, 2012 at Agha Khan Hospital Karachi after suffering a 12-year long tenure of lung, chest and urinary tract diseases. He had been suffering from a serious lung condition for the few years before his death in 2012. Despite the financial hardships, his passion for music didn not wither and he kept up the routine of practice on a daily basis. He later became a car and diesel tractor mechanic. Mehdi Hassan initially started working in Chichawatni, in a bicycle shop. Hassan started to perform at a young age and the first concert of dhrupad and kheyal with his elder brother is reported to have been held in Fazilka Bungla, near present DC House (1935) of Undivided Punjab.Īfter the Partition of India, 20-year-old Hassan and his family migrated to Pakistan and suffered severe financial hardships. Mehdi Hassan had his musical grooming from his father Ustad Azeem Khan and uncle Ustad Ismail Khan who were both traditional Dhrupad singers. Mehdi Hassan was born on 18 July 1927 in a village called Luna in Rajasthan, India into a family of traditional musicians. His mastery over the ragas made him the indisputable master of ghazals in the subcontinent. His silky voice had an enormous range which till date remains unmatched. His unique style of presenting Urdu couplets and giving a classical touch to soulful music made him the emperor of ghazals. Mehdi Hasssan died on 13 June 2012 after a protracted illness, in a private hospital in Karachi. He remained a leading singer of film industry . He is famously known as the "King of ghazal", and was highly regarded in the Pakistan film industry. Mehdi Hassan Khan (J– June 13, 2012) was a Pakistani ghazal singer and a former playback singer for Pakistani films.