Very few people make a mark on history and are remembered with such reverence as Nelson Mandela. He struggled to liberate the black people of South Africa, enduring untold hardships in the process, and through perseverance achieved his goal. To pay homage to the great man who spent 27 of his years in jail, a fundraiser titled A Tribute to Nelson Mandela, based on the famous poem Ajao Africa by Faiz Ahmad Faiz, was held recently at the FTC by the Welfare Society for Patient Care.

Faiz Ahmad Faiz who wrote against oppression and intolerance himself and was jailed for many years in his country for his outspokenness, felt deeply for the African people and strongly condemned apartheid. He wrote Ajao Africa in 1955 while in jail, pleading with the African people to break their chains of slavery and cruelty. It took them 36 years to achieve their goal.

The programme started on time, a rare feat in itself in our society. And what better choice than Arshad Mahmood, who knew and doted on Faiz, to conduct the evening’s programme? Talking about the poem, he explained that Faiz wrote it during his days in Montgomery Jail and was deeply moved by what was happening in South Africa, quoting:

Ajao Africa mein nay sun li tere dhol ke tarang,

Ajao mast ho gaee meray lahoo ki taal

The highlight of the evening was Tina Sani who sings Faiz’s poetry with aplomb. She presented a trilogy of songs by Faiz, Allama Iqbal and Maulana Rumi. But before she commenced singing she said that it was the first time she was performing in an auditorium in Karachi, a sprawling city which lacked such venues. Feeling deeply for the city she loved and which had given her so much, she prayed that the city of lights returned to its former glorious days, and dedicated the first song by Faiz to Karachi, Raat youn hi dil mein teri khoye hui yaad aaye, followed by Kuch pehlay in aankhon ne...

In her element that evening with the audience praising lavishly, Tina performed well in her soft husky style laced with emotions, interspersing with explanations of the words and feelings of the poet for the uninitiated in the audience. She commented that when the listeners responded well it gave the singer a lot of energy and then sang Bahar Aaye to the delight of the audience, Faiz’s poem composed by Arshad Mahmood.

Adeel Hashmi, Faiz’s grandson, joined Tina to recite the poems of Faiz in his soft and somewhat slow style while she sang the verses after him. Shikwa and Jawab-i-Shikwa by Iqbal followed, written 100 years ago but its relevance to today’s situation was not lost on the audience. This continued with Maulana Rumi’s poetry. This style of presentation was quite popular with the young and old alike in the audience.

As it was a tribute to Mandela, TV artist Tipu Sharif presented a documentary on Nelson Mandela’s life and invited M. Hillary to perform on the saxophone on a song Aseem Bolong (We haven’t seen Mandela) based on the great leader. Dances were performed by a troupe in African style along with local dances. An interesting one that held the audience’s attention was the Gumboot dance also known as the miners’ dance as the dancers perform with their boots on, making movements and sounds similar to tap dancing. The famous Waka Waka (It’s time for Africa) song for the World Cup Cricket held in South Africa in 2010 was performed live by Aaima.