PESHAWAR: Known singer Munni Begum enthralled the youth at a musical night with her melodious voice and famous ghazals here.

Tourism Corporation of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and youth affairs department organised the ‘ghazal night’ exclusively for families and the youth that took part in the National Youth Carnival that also concluded on Tuesday evening on a happy and musical note.

“Ik Baar Muskura Do”, the famous ghazal sung by Munni Begum made many young and old participants of the concert smile. They admired the melodious voice and the elegant singer, who had come all the way from the US to sing and make people smile one more time with her ghazals. She sang all her popular ghazalas like “Awaargi May Had Say Guzar Jana Chahie” and made the young go in a trance with her ‘Dama Dam Mast Qalander”.

The musical night organised in Peshawar Sports Complex, where National Youth Carnival was successfully held, culminated in a gathering which was elegant, melodious and reassuring that cultural evenings and peace was finally coming back to the historic city of Peshawar.

The flowers, the brass and copper antiques and vases as well as the local families depicted a true image of Peshawar and its culture.

The founder of Lok Virsa, Aksi Mufti, who has been awarded Sitara-i-Imtiaz for his service to culture and art, appreciated that cultural activities were again being held in Peshawar, a city rich with art and culture and especially blessed with scenic tourist destinations.

He wished the organisers and the provincial government luck on reviving the cultural activities and appreciated the initiative of holding a ghazal night.

Known singer Tahir Khan sang Urdu and Pashto ghazals to inaugurate and warm up the musical evening.

Then Munni Begum came to the stage amid applause. Munni Begum, clad in a brown Saari despite a raining cold evening, was warmed up with the applause of the audience. The synchronisation of her band was amazing as she sang one ghazal after the other.

The audience, an interesting mix of young and old, was equally entertained. The musical evening culminated in a Dhamal and high-pitched beat of dhol, violin, tabla, guitar and harmonium as she sang “Dama Dam Mast Qalander”.

The tourism department officials and Chief Secretary Azam Khan were alsopresent on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, December 14th, 2017