Faiz Al-Najdi

RIYADH — A grand musical evening featuring the popular Punjabi folk singer, Arif Lohar, was held at the King Fahd Cultural Complex Thursday.



More than 1,000 music lovers from the subcontinent thronged the venue to listen to Lohar’s energetic, upbeat numbers on the beats of “Chimta (steel tongs),” a traditional tool used by blacksmiths, “dhol (drums),” and other modern music instruments.



Lohar, dressed in a traditional Punjabi Dhoti/Lacha and Achkan, took over the stage in the midst of scintillating drum beats and kicked off the evening by singing one of his famous numbers “Jugni Dee.”



He also sang “Meriya Jugne O Naam Ali Da,” “Aj Kaala Jora Paya Teri Furmaish Te,” “Meriya Jugnee Jee,” “Alif Allah (Jugni),” “Ek Pal,” “Bol Mitti Da,” “Sher Punjab Da,” “Soniye,” “Aakhian” among others as the crowd danced, whistled and cheered for him to sing more. He was well supported by his band members — the drummer, keyboard players, lead guitarist and choristers.



Lohar’s folk music is a representative of the traditional folk heritage of the Punjab. He is the son of the erstwhile famous folk singer late Alam Lohar.



Khayyam Akbar, Minister and Deputy Head of the Mission at the Pakistani Embassy, who conducted the event, shed light on Lohar’s numerous achievements. He said Lohar has more than 150 albums and more than 3000 songs in the Punjabi language to his credit.



In 2005, Lohar was awarded the Pride of Performance Award from the Government of Pakistan, the highest civil award of the country.

In 2006, he again took the Punjabi music world by storm with his album “Jugni,” which expanded his fan base worldwide.



His two soundtracks “Mirza” and “Alif Allah Chambey Dey Booti” earned him international success.



In June 2010, Lohar participated at the Coke-Studio, a Pakistani live session program by Rohail Hayat, where he performed “Alif Allah (Jugni)” with upcoming musician Meesha Shafi.



Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan bought exclusive rights of “Alif Allah Chambey Dey Booti” for his film “Cocktail.”



Lohar also enjoys the unique opportunity to be the only South Asian artist to have performed in North Korea as part of an international delegation of peace and goodwill, in the presence of the late President Kim Jong Il.



Embassy of Pakistan in Riyadh under the patronage of the Pakistani Ambassador Muhammad Naeem Khan had taken the initiative to invite Lohar to regale its community members.



Khan said that he was aware that the Pakistani community here wanted grand musical events and that is why he had invited Lohar.



“I assure the community that in future also such events would be arranged by the embassy and some more famous singers would be invited for the sole entertainment of the community here,” he said.



In the end he extended his felicitations to the Pakistani community on the occasion of the country’s national day which falls on March 23. The event concluded with the Pakistani National Anthem.