Saleem Raza (singer)
Encyclopedia
Saleem Raza was a Pakistani playback singer
. He started his singing career from Lahore
film industry and quickly gained popularity. Raza was a classically trained singer and was more famous for singing sad songs. Saleem Raza's career suffered due to the rise of the singer Ahmed Rushdi
in the late 1950s. He left playback singing in 1966 as he lost his popularity with the composers and shifted to Canada
where he died a few years later.
, India
in a Christian
family. After partition, he migrated to Pakistan and settled in Lahore
. He changed his name to Saleem Raza and started singing at Lahore Radio Station
. Raza made friends with a popular artist of the time, Mohni Hameed. Saleem Raza and Mohni Hameed were often seen together for long periods of time.
Additionally, Saleem Raza learned music from famous music composers of those days including M. Sadiq Ali, and Ustaad Aashiq Husain. Saleem Raza’s break came in director Syed Ata Ullah Hashmi’s 1955 film Naukar. Saleem Raza lent his voice to the tragic score, Taqdeer kay malik deikh zara kya zulm hai (Duet, Saleem Raza – Kausar Perveen). But his first famous film as a playback singer was Qatil in 1955. His breakthrough came with his super hit song Yaaro mujhe muaaf rakho, main nashey mein hoon (Saat Laakh - 1957).
He sung many other super hit songs in big films like Aas paas, Do rastey, Haboo, Hamsafar, Seema
and many more. His last big film was Pail ki jhunkar (1966).
recorded a sad song Kisi chaman main raho tum bahaar bun kay raho in Raza's voice for film Anchal
but was not satisfied with his expressions. Initially, he decided to re-record the same song in Mehdi Hassan
's voice but changed his mind because Mehdi Hassan was facing difficulty with high notes as the composition had variations. Khalil finally invited the famous singer Ahmed Rushdi
to sing the same song and Rushdi not only satisfied Khalil but also the song was a super hit.
Apart from Ahmed Rushdi, Saleem Raza was in direct competition with highly talented singers like Mehdi Hassan
, Masood Rana
, Mujeeb Aalam
and Bashir Ahmad
. Moreover his voice was best suited on Syed Musa Raza (Santosh Kumar) and his brother Darpan. They also lost their popularity in the mid 1960s. These were the basic factors which affected his fame. Later, with the change in the recording devices, Raza found it difficult to adjust to the new equipment, resulting in a setback to his career.
, Canada
, in 1975, and established a music school. For eight years, from 1975 to 1983, Saleem Raza taught music to numerous music students. He also started performing in musical concerts. Saleem Raza suffered from kidney malfunction, which took his life on November 25, 1983. He was fifty-one years of age.
Saat laakh, Ishq-e-Laila, Bedari, Saheli, Rehguzar, Salma, Gulfaam, Saperan, Azra, Mousiqaar, Aanchal, Qaidi, Ik tera sahara, Tauba, Chingari, Pail ki jhankar Noor E Islam
2. Shah-e-Madina (saw), Yasrib kay wali (Noor-e-Islam 1957)Poet Was Naeem Hashmi
3. Ae nazneen tujh sa koi haseen ham nay kabhi (Shama 1959)
4. Zindgi mein ek pal bhi chain aye na, iss jahan main kash koi dil lagaey na (Hamsafar 1960)
5. Bana kay mera nasheman (Do rastay 1961)
6. Tujh ko maalum nahin, tujh ko bhala kya maalum (Anchal 1961)
7. Jan-e-baharan, rashke-e-chaman, ghuncha dahan, shireen badan (Azra 1962)
8. Tum jug jug goe maharaj ray, hum teree nagarya main aaey (Mousiqar 1962)
9. Ae dil kisi ki yaad mein hota hay beqarar kyun, jiss nay bhula dia tujhay us ka hai intezar kyun(Ik tera sahara 1963)
10. Na milta gar yeh tauba ka sahara hum kahan jatay (Tauba 1964)
11. Jo kisi kay qareeb hotay hain, woh baray khush naseeb hotay hain (Shabnum 1965)
12. Ek hamen awara kehna, koi bara ilzam nahin (Insaan 1966)
13. Husn ko chand jawani ko kanwal kehtay hain, tairee surat nazar aaey to ghazal kehtay hain (Payel ki jhankar 1966)
14. Yaro mujhay muaf rakho main nashay main hoon, ab jaam do to khali he do main nashay main hoon (Saat laakh 1957)
15. Meray dil ki anjuman main teray ghum say roshni hai, na bhula sakoon ga tujh ko tera pyar zindagi hai
Playback singer
A playback singer is a singer whose singing is prerecorded for use in movies. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras, while the actual singer does not appear on screen.-South Asia:...
. He started his singing career from Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
film industry and quickly gained popularity. Raza was a classically trained singer and was more famous for singing sad songs. Saleem Raza's career suffered due to the rise of the singer Ahmed Rushdi
Ahmed Rushdi
Ahmed Rushdi, SI, PP was a versatile Pakistani playback singer who worked in film music and was "an important contributor to the Golden Age of Pakistani film music." Rushdi is acclaimed as one of the greatest singers ever lived in south asia and was a natural baritone, yet could sing high tenor...
in the late 1950s. He left playback singing in 1966 as he lost his popularity with the composers and shifted to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
where he died a few years later.
Career
Saleem Raza was born as Noel Dias in AmritsarAmritsar
Amritsar is a city in the northern part of India and is the administrative headquarters of Amritsar district in the state of Punjab, India. The 2001 Indian census reported the population of the city to be over 1,500,000, with that of the entire district numbering 3,695,077...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
family. After partition, he migrated to Pakistan and settled in Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
. He changed his name to Saleem Raza and started singing at Lahore Radio Station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
. Raza made friends with a popular artist of the time, Mohni Hameed. Saleem Raza and Mohni Hameed were often seen together for long periods of time.
Additionally, Saleem Raza learned music from famous music composers of those days including M. Sadiq Ali, and Ustaad Aashiq Husain. Saleem Raza’s break came in director Syed Ata Ullah Hashmi’s 1955 film Naukar. Saleem Raza lent his voice to the tragic score, Taqdeer kay malik deikh zara kya zulm hai (Duet, Saleem Raza – Kausar Perveen). But his first famous film as a playback singer was Qatil in 1955. His breakthrough came with his super hit song Yaaro mujhe muaaf rakho, main nashey mein hoon (Saat Laakh - 1957).
He sung many other super hit songs in big films like Aas paas, Do rastey, Haboo, Hamsafar, Seema
Seema
Oncorhynchus masou, has three different subspecies. 'Song-eo; 송어' or 'Sancheoneo; 산천어' Oncorhynchus masou masou in Korea, and 'Formosan salmon; Oncorhynchus masou formosanum as in Tiwan, and as Masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou macrostomus in Japan. Pacific Ocean:...
and many more. His last big film was Pail ki jhunkar (1966).
Downfall
Saleem Raza remained a dominating singer in the late 1950s due to his popularity in singing tragic songs. In 1961, music director Khalil AhmedKhalil Ahmed
Khalil Ahmed was a well known Pakistani composer for films. He started his career with film Anchal in 1962 and remained one of the leading music directors in subcontinent.-Early Life and career:...
recorded a sad song Kisi chaman main raho tum bahaar bun kay raho in Raza's voice for film Anchal
Anchal
Anchal is a very fast developing town in the east central part of Kollam district of Kerala, India. It is the second fastest developing town in Kerala after Chalakudi. The name Anchal means the land of five proverbs. What characterizes this town is its quick pace of development...
but was not satisfied with his expressions. Initially, he decided to re-record the same song in Mehdi Hassan
Mehdi Hassan
Mehdi Hassan is a Pakistani ghazal singer and a former playback singer for Lollywood. He is famously known as the 'King of ghazal' . He has ruled the Pakistan film industry along with Ahmed Rushdi...
's voice but changed his mind because Mehdi Hassan was facing difficulty with high notes as the composition had variations. Khalil finally invited the famous singer Ahmed Rushdi
Ahmed Rushdi
Ahmed Rushdi, SI, PP was a versatile Pakistani playback singer who worked in film music and was "an important contributor to the Golden Age of Pakistani film music." Rushdi is acclaimed as one of the greatest singers ever lived in south asia and was a natural baritone, yet could sing high tenor...
to sing the same song and Rushdi not only satisfied Khalil but also the song was a super hit.
Apart from Ahmed Rushdi, Saleem Raza was in direct competition with highly talented singers like Mehdi Hassan
Mehdi Hassan
Mehdi Hassan is a Pakistani ghazal singer and a former playback singer for Lollywood. He is famously known as the 'King of ghazal' . He has ruled the Pakistan film industry along with Ahmed Rushdi...
, Masood Rana
Masood Rana
Masood Rana was a Pakistani playback singer. He began his singing career in 1962 with the film Inqalab and became one of the top male singers in both Urdu and Punjabi films for more than three decades...
, Mujeeb Aalam
Mujeeb Aalam
Mujeeb Aalam was a Pakistani playback singer who had a short film career. His singing style was a mixture of Mehdi Hassan and Ahmad Rushdi's style. He sang dozen of hit songs in late 1960s and remained popular with cinema viewers...
and Bashir Ahmad
Bashir Ahmad (Singer)
Bashir Ahmad is a Bangladeshi origin playback singer for Lollywood. He is famously known as East Pakistan's Ahmed Rushdi because his singing style is inspired by Ahmed Rushdi. Born in India, he migrated to Bangladesh and started his singing career...
. Moreover his voice was best suited on Syed Musa Raza (Santosh Kumar) and his brother Darpan. They also lost their popularity in the mid 1960s. These were the basic factors which affected his fame. Later, with the change in the recording devices, Raza found it difficult to adjust to the new equipment, resulting in a setback to his career.
Death
Saleem Raza was in the grip of a serious financial crisis in the 1970s. His wife, Maude, earned their livelihood and supported him. He migrated to VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, in 1975, and established a music school. For eight years, from 1975 to 1983, Saleem Raza taught music to numerous music students. He also started performing in musical concerts. Saleem Raza suffered from kidney malfunction, which took his life on November 25, 1983. He was fifty-one years of age.
Urdu and Punjabi musical movies
Here are the names of some Urdu and Punjabi famous films for which Salim Raza sang beautiful songs which even today make a large number of fans nostalgic.Saat laakh, Ishq-e-Laila, Bedari, Saheli, Rehguzar, Salma, Gulfaam, Saperan, Azra, Mousiqaar, Aanchal, Qaidi, Ik tera sahara, Tauba, Chingari, Pail ki jhankar Noor E Islam
Some famous songs of Salim Raza
1. Bedard zamanay walon nay kab dard kisi ka jaana hai (Aas paas 1957)2. Shah-e-Madina (saw), Yasrib kay wali (Noor-e-Islam 1957)Poet Was Naeem Hashmi
3. Ae nazneen tujh sa koi haseen ham nay kabhi (Shama 1959)
4. Zindgi mein ek pal bhi chain aye na, iss jahan main kash koi dil lagaey na (Hamsafar 1960)
5. Bana kay mera nasheman (Do rastay 1961)
6. Tujh ko maalum nahin, tujh ko bhala kya maalum (Anchal 1961)
7. Jan-e-baharan, rashke-e-chaman, ghuncha dahan, shireen badan (Azra 1962)
8. Tum jug jug goe maharaj ray, hum teree nagarya main aaey (Mousiqar 1962)
9. Ae dil kisi ki yaad mein hota hay beqarar kyun, jiss nay bhula dia tujhay us ka hai intezar kyun(Ik tera sahara 1963)
10. Na milta gar yeh tauba ka sahara hum kahan jatay (Tauba 1964)
11. Jo kisi kay qareeb hotay hain, woh baray khush naseeb hotay hain (Shabnum 1965)
12. Ek hamen awara kehna, koi bara ilzam nahin (Insaan 1966)
13. Husn ko chand jawani ko kanwal kehtay hain, tairee surat nazar aaey to ghazal kehtay hain (Payel ki jhankar 1966)
14. Yaro mujhay muaf rakho main nashay main hoon, ab jaam do to khali he do main nashay main hoon (Saat laakh 1957)
15. Meray dil ki anjuman main teray ghum say roshni hai, na bhula sakoon ga tujh ko tera pyar zindagi hai