Strange are the ways and vicissitudes of life in the world of entertainment. The once popular artistes, who had spent so many of their precious years and worked so hard to reach the pinnacle of success and touch the apex of glory, are forgotten so soon after their getting out of circulation from the glitzy world of showbiz. Once the heartthrob of millions, they fade out of the memories of their fans sooner than one can expect.
It has happened to many an artiste and vocalists during the past few decades. A few years ago, I chanced to watch an interview of Zubaida Khanum, the popular female playback singer of the 50s and 60s, which was telecast by Pakistan Television. It reminded me of the golden era of Pakistan film industry and how original music composed by seasoned musicians won wide public acclaim. Among female playback singers of those years Zubaida Khanum ranked high in popularity. During her interview Zubaida Khanum talked about the years she had spent in Pakistan film industry and how interesting and enjoyable it was to croon songs of ranking composers.
For senior citizens, it was an occasion to recall to their memories with nostalgic fondness some of the most popular film songs, which used to be hummed and whistled by a multitude of cine-goers and lovers of music. Her pliant voice was used for the recording of songs for scores of films produced at Lahore studios in those days.
For me and many old-timers, the interview also served as a reminder of the good old days of Pakistani cinema, when quality was the only yardstick used to evaluate the content of a film, including its music. It was during that golden era of Pakistani music when senior composers exploited the vocals of Zubaida Khanum to their maximum potential. A majority of film songs, especially in Punjabi language, recorded in the voice of Zubaida Khanum became uproariously popular, not only in Pakistan but also among music buffs in the Indian Punjab.
Born in Amritsar about 75 years ago, Zubaida Khanum started her career by reciting Naats at private get-togethers along with her older brother. After partition of the Sub-continent, she migrated to Pakistan along with other members of her family.
It was in Lahore from where she made her debut as a singer from Radio Pakistan. Learning about her good vocal resources, composer Rasheed Attrey (who was for sometime associated with Radio Pakistan as a composer) used her voice for the recording of female songs for producer-director-actor Nazir's Punjabi film 'Shehri Babu'. The popularity of those songs helped Zubaida Khanum in slowly but surely dominated the film industry for a number of years. One of those songs, which reached the lips of millions, was 'Raataan maireean banay kay Rabba anaireeaaan', which is still fondly remembered by senior citizens.
Later, composer Khurshid Anwar used her voice for songs he recorded for his film 'Zehr-e-Ishq'. The reverberations of popular songs from that film, including 'Raat Chandani mein akeeli' and 'Chham chham naachoon mairey peeya ghar aiyee re', and a Naat, 'Soono arz maireee Kamli waley', still creating haunting effects on the minds of the listeners.
However, composer Baba G.A.Chishti used Zubaida Khanum's voice the most, a fact acknowledged by the senior playback singer in her responses to questions fielded by the compere in the referenced interview. Both as a poet and a composer, Chishti was acutely conscious of selecting a suitable voice, which would convey the subtle nuances of his lyrics and melodic compositions. A plebian poet and composer, Chishti scored music more for Punjabi movies than those produced in Urdu language, although he was more than competent to compose Urdu songs as well. Singer Zubaida Khanum's voice attracted his attention and he exploited it perceptively for his film songs.
Included in a list of the most popular songs of Zubaida Khanum were 'Meri chooni deeaan rashemi tandaan'; 'Keya hooa dil pay sitam', 'Dila ther ja yaar tha nazzaara lain dey', 'Ayee mausam rangeela soohane' and 'Assaan jaan kay meet layee akh way'. Besides Khurshid Anwar, Chishti and Attray, other composers like Saleem Iqbal, Safdar Husain and Tasaddaq Husain also used Zubaida'a voice for the recording of their songs in a large number of films.
After her marriage, Zubaida Khanum said goodbye to film industry, although she was still capable of contributing much to this creative medium of emotional expression. Looking graceful and fresh in the interview, she talked about her domestic life, and her penchant for reciting Naats, which as she rightly put it, provided satisfaction, solace and peace of mind both to the crooners and the listeners.
She referred to a couple of Naats composed by Khawaja Khurshid Anwar-'Suno arz mairi kamli waley' and 'Salloo Alaahay Wa Aal-e-hee', which she rendered in a captivating manner during her TV interview. Old age seemed not to have affected the enchantingly sonic quality of her voice.
One aspect of her career, which Zubaida Khanum chose to omit in her interview, was her histrionic talent. Old timers remember that she enacted different roles in several films, which were produced from Lahore film studios. This scribe still remembers her role in the film 'Patey Khan', which she delineated with much verve and feeling.
A number of her songs, especially from box office Punjabi hits, still retain their sonic freshness, as these are drenched in emotional expressiveness of her voice. It is time some recording companies launched exclusive Zubaida Khanum album(s) for the listening pleasure of the new generation, who are not that familiar with the melodic prowess of a senior vocalist. Also, it will help in the preservation of some of the best melodies from the golden era of Pakistan film industry, which will be a befitting tribute to the creative talents of a number of composers, who are no more with us.
One of her songs, 'Aye mausam rangeelay soohaney', recorded for Saif-ud-Saif's film 'Saat Lakh', has become a legion now. It was composed by Rashed Attray and filmed on actress Neelo. Her musical voice suited to the speaking voices of leading ladies of films and that was why Zubaida Khanum's songs were filmed on all frontline stars of that era including Swarn Lata, Musarrat Nazir, Sabiha Khanum, Neelo and Naghma.