The Fire that Burnt Heart and Soul

By Divya Unny - Daily News & Analysis - Mumbai, India
Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Not everyone knows about the long-abiding friendship ex-cricketer Imran Khan shared with Sufi maestro Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

But, it was one of Nustrat Saab’s initial performances at Imran Khan’s Lahore home that is till date credited as his gateway to stardom.

Today [August 16th], on Nusrat’s 10th death anniversary, Imran Khan revealed a few priceless anecdotes.

“To me, Nusrat Saab was a singer par excellence long before that particular performance. He was very happy to receive my invitation and when I reached out to welcome him he seemed to me drenched in childlike simplicity and innocence,” recounts Imran.

Interestingly, his respect and admiration for Nusrat’s music was most evident when the Pakistan cricket team won the World Cup in 1992.

“There was quite a buzz when I attributed much of the 1992 World Cup success to the spiritual help I got from Nusrat’s voice. We all (the cricket team) did listen to his cassettes to derive spiritual uplift — from his qawwalis, especially. Nusrat saab’s voice and the composition of music was really what Ameer Khusro has termed the “fire that burnt heart and soul”.

However, it was not a relationship bound just by exchange of musical notes and words of admiration, but a bond that helped provide aid to many across the globe.

“Nusrat helped me out in a great way when I was out on a global tour to raise funds for my Cancer Hospital Project. He performed for several hours in the fund raising concerts. If it really is the question of complimenting and adding to the public image, I guess we both somehow did it for each other,” he says.
[picture: A Voice from Heaven (1999). Directed by Giuseppe Asaro. (This 75-minute documentary, available on VHS and DVD, provides an excellent introduction to Nusrat's life and work.) Buy at http://astore.amazon.com/wilderwri-20]

[Read also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nusrat_Fateh_Ali_Khan]