ISLAMABAD: The Nepalese embassy’s melodic celebration of 57 years of Nepal-Pakistan diplomatic relations commenced at Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA) auditorium to a packed audience on Wednesday.

The musical evening began with a classical choir ensemble and an introduction of two widely acknowledged Nepalese singers, Anand Karki and Prashna Shakya, who each have over a thousand recorded songs and have voiced a variety of musical numbers in various regional languages.

The performances began with a touching patriotic number that merged a popular Pakistan national song with a Nepalese national song. The singers soulfully collaborated with the musicians and in each musical note, they perfectly resounded a taste of Pakistani nationalism.

Anand Karki was extensively applauded for his rendition of the late Mehdi Hasan’s ghazal Mujhay Tum Nazar Se which he sung impromptu and with absolute euphonious perfection.

The audience was left in a trance and the spell that he cast only intensified when Prashna Shakya took centre stage and paid tribute to the legend Tara Devi by singing her popular romantic songs.

The PNCA auditorium was subtly lit, and the contemporary music score and the glorious voices of Anand Karki and Prashna Shakya paid homage to the 57th anniversary celebration of the peaceful diplomatic relations between Nepal and Pakistan.

Earlier, Nepalese Ambassador Sewa Lamsal Adhikari extended her gratitude to each guest by receiving them at the door and in her address to the audience comprehensively commended the bond between Pakistan and Nepal.

She appreciated the efforts of the Pakistani government in terms of preserving Buddhist sites in Pakistan and their continuous support in adverse times of earthquakes and natural catastrophes.

She added that Pakistani music has been phenomenally popular in Nepal.

“Towering music figures like Ustaad Ghulam Ali and the late Mehdi Hasan have added their voices to the musical diversity of Nepal,” she said.

The ambassador then commented that the singers from Nepal would perform vividly ingenious music that would transcend language since they would melodiously merge both Urdu and Nepali.

The chief guest, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, further proffered his appreciation to the Nepalese embassy and its efforts to strengthen diplomatic ties with Pakistan.

He deliberated on the ongoing attempts to further strengthen relations by creating a direct air travel link to Nepal from Pakistan and working on further maintaining of Buddhist sites in the region.

He also expressed enthusiasm towards the musical evening in the company of former chief justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and former foreign minister Gohar Ayub.

“There is no better vehicle to communication than art and culture since it has the ability to bring people together in a lasting manner,” said PNCA Director General Jamal Shah, setting the tone for the performances that followed.

Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2017