Artist of the Week – Farhan Saeed

Source: Business Recorder

Farhan Saeed started his career at the age of 19 joining the popular Pakistani band Jal in 2003. This was the time when Jal faced a crucial moment as Atif Aslam parted ways as the vocalist, which eventually led to Farhan Saeed being recruited.

In 2004 Jal released their first Album “Aadat” with Farhan on vocals. This album instantly became a major hit, topping the charts not only in Pakistan but also in India.

This was how Farhan Saeed made his first along with his band-mates. Although the whole album was a hit, the songs “Lamhey” and “Teri Yaad” became the top two loved tracks and still hold that position today.

In 2006, Jal started their journey to make a worldwide appearance, starting from India. They got many invitations and they performed for the first time at Modern School, New Delhi. And soon after that, they went to Thailand and other countries too. Where no doubt they became a big hit step after step.

Farhan Saeed is currently a past-member of Jal as he left to start a solo career in 2011 after being apart for almost 8 years. This was surely a shocker for all the fans. And a real heartbreak as well.

On the August of 2011, Farhan Saeed released a solo track “Halka Halka Suroor” as a tribute to NFAK. This track sparked up the curiosity to whether now Farhan Saeed, too, was leaving Jal? Later in an interview with a local newspaper, he sadly confirmed that he was.

To quote, he said, “being solo now is like being the owner of my own business.  I can do the things I want and do them on my terms.”

He also mentioned that is was a mutual decision and the band members wished him well and good luck. 

Farhan Saeed is one of those artists that set the differences between India and Pakistan aside. In 2014 he featured in a romantic duet “Naam-e-Wafa” in Vikram Bhatt’s Bollywood movie, “Creatures 3D”. This song was heard massively and loved too.

Farhan Saeed takes singing passionately and that is clearly heard from his voice. He painted pictures for listeners with his singing. It can be seen that he not only sings music but also feels it dearly. Furthermore, the fact that he opened up a restaurant “Cafe Rock” in Lahore, shows his attachment to music. His restaurant is providing a platform for young aspiring artists and underground bands to express and perform their talent.

Source: Paklive

In 2014 he also took up acting for some amazing Pakistani dramas series and was dearly loved for his newly discovered talent. And that’s not it. Farhan Saeed effortlessly flaunts his talent as a guitarist as well. Also, his OSTs have been a major success due to his beautiful deep and husky voice, with soft singing tones.

Farhan Saeed was a loved artist with the band and individually and holds a big space in all his fans hearts, surely.

Kuttay by Nishtar Park – A Melodious Song

Source: Samaa TV

Kuttay by Nishtar Park was released in September of 2016 and although it has been three years to that, this unique price of musical art remains in the hearts of many. 

This song will surely give you goose bumps. With its controversial lyrics, the artist’s soft voice and the semi-hyped beats, it’s a total emotional rollercoaster. 

Nishtar Park is a seven-member, Karachi-based Rock band. Featuring Ali Raj on vocals, Ahsun Tariq on rhythm, Mikhyle Anthony having the lead, Vernon Arthur on bass, Abdullah Ibhrahim showing his talent on tabla, including, Shane and Arnold Anthony both on drums and percussion. 

The band started small firstly named as EMB back in 2010, in the days of their college. Later they changed their name as the well-known Nishtar Park. The band can be seen as a mixture of indie and rock ‘n roll. 

Back in 2016, this song was a great hit. Everyone was talking about it. E-news and television, it was everywhere. It was a great debut song of 2016. 

Later, about a year ago, a well-known vlogger Irfan Junejo used this song in one of his videos, giving the song a whole new audience and recognition.

“Kuttay” is a  beautiful poetry piece written by Faiz Ahmed Faiz published in 1941. But even after that long, these words still relate so much in today’s world. It highlights the sleeping middle class, with the use of poetry and references.

The lyrics also include 2 verses from Allama Iqbal’s poetry “Tariq ki Dua”, adding that last touch of perfection by adding contrast to both amazing works of literature. 

Nishtar Park made sure to bring life into the poetry. Listening to this song takes you into another world with such strong imagery. For each listener, it’s a different relevance that they find with the words. 

Ali Raj’s light-hearted add a unique zeal to the song. With the words, ” Jo bigren tou ek doosray say larado, Zraek roti ka tukra dikha do” (if they rebel, make one fight another, all you have to do is show them a piece of bread), Ali holds such gentle composure to his voice. With every word, there’s a whole experience and expression of great emotions.

Nishtar Park’s ‘Kuttay’ holds consistent melodic music. The soft piano and the upbeat tabla create a relaxing aura and enhances the deep meaning of the lyrics. Including that, it provides an overall mixture of both Eastern and Western influence in the music.

Even after being such a beautiful song, it still didn’t get the fame that it deserves. Fans wait eagerly for Nishtar Park’s to produce more phenomenal music as currently, they have only a few tracks to offer. 

You can check out Kuttay here:-