Shahi Hasan

From Vital Signs to a

Music Legend

By
Sadaf Fayyaz
 Author’s Note

On a hot, dusty and humid evening, I was listening to a

song “Mann ki Lagan”, about which I later came to know
that it was composed by an ex-member of famous band,
Vital Signs of Pakistan. I felt like doing some internet
browsing and was surprised to see little information about
the member. Though, the web world contained a lot of data
about other Vital Signs members, but I found very meager
pieces of information about Shahi. At that very moment, I
decided to take an initiative. I thought it might have been
due to other reasons that fans know little about Shahzad
Hasan. The ex-member wasn’t in much spotlight, as he
should have been.

The idea came to my mind fortuitously, I perchance

stumbled and fell prey to the writing bug. I had recently
posted a small article on glorious Vital Signs on a website;
the reviews and readers’ opinions made me feel that people
want to read more about the band and its members.
I have always loved writing and it’s one my passions as
well. Though, my student life didn’t give me any time for
reading or writing. I wanted some incentive or motivation
to write. One fine evening, I talked to Ammar Hashmi, a
friend of mine about taking the life-sketch project on
Shahzad Hasan. He thought it was an excellent idea and
decided to help me out. He also spotted out that Shahzad
was a kind of person who didn’t like to come in the
limelight. I made it clear to him that the sketch had nothing
to do with his personal life, but would aim towards
portraying his musical and productive accomplishments so
far. He agreed to that.
Also, I had to research on Shahzad’s works and his
contributions during the last two decades. It took almost a
week to gather and analyze data, and get some facts
through other network channels. The most difficult part
was to get in touch with him and initiating a “360 Degree”
feedback process from the folks he had been working with.
But thanks to my passion, which made the work much
easier for me.

The scope of this small booklet is to provide Shahi’s fans a

subterranean insight of his recent tasks, upcoming work,
contributions and passions that he possesses besides music.
“Shahi Hasan: From Vital Signs to a Music Legend” is
an immense insight into his music toil, productions and
mastered works. He describes himself as “There are words
for people like me, but not very many”. I initially thought
the same, but decided to find appropriate words for people
like him; the mini booklet is a result of that. It is also a
collection of my memoirs and things I have been writing
on Vital Signs. The weirdest thing about this book is that it
all relates with Shahi’s professional contributions and
achievements, and it has nothing to with his personal life.
Since in the beginning Ammar told me that he wouldn’t
like his personal things to be known to public. Keeping that
in mind, I started working, ensuring that nothing personal
about him is disclosed, since he likes to abstain from it.

I have tried to be as just and fair regarding his

contributions and works. I would like to dedicate the book
to all the young and upcoming fans of Shahi in the hope
that it provides several details revealing some aspects of
his master pieces and exacting personality, his fans know
little about.
 Acknowledgements

I am vigorously grateful to Allah who created the universe

and other creatures, without whose mercy and blessings
nothing is possible in the world. I express my deepest
thanks to my friend Ammar Hashmi who presented the
novel idea to me, and appreciate his support from the
beginning. My thanks are due to all these for their heartfelt
and untiring helpfulness: Shahzad “Shahi” Hasan, Najam
Sheraz, Haroon Rashid, Devika Chawla, Omran Shafique,
Syed Farhad Humayun, Junaid Jamshed, Faisal Rafi, Asad
Ahmed, Uns Mufti and Fayyaz Ahmed.
My account of acknowledgement would remain incomplete
if I don’t express my thanks to my parents and brother.
They supported me a lot during this piece of writing and
provided every possible help. They have always been a
source of inspiration for me. Lastly, I offer my regards to
all those who supported me in any respect during the
completion of this little booklet.
 Dedication

I dedicate this work to my lovely

parents, who inspired, encouraged and
nurtured my existent writing talents.
I also dedicate it
to Shahi Hasan and all his fans.
 (Excerpts from the Book)

“Shahi is an awesome friend, great teacher, a true believer in the power of

music, an innocent soul and one hell of a bass player. “ Faisal Rafi

“Shahzad Hassan Shahi would always hold a very special place in my heart
for introducing me to the biggest miracle that I have seen in my life ''the
understanding of Quran '' Shahi is a dreamer, a fighter and a true genius
unfortunately not as business minded as his other colleagues are but the gifts
he possesses are far superior ...his production of my third solo album Jaisay
Chaho (Aao wahan chalain) was way ahead of its time, India is now waking up
to that pop rock sound. I would appreciate if you do not miss anything I have
said about him.” Najam Sheraz

“History knows him as one of the forces behind the Vital Signs. The groove
maker of VS. He is one of the best music producers around. He is undisputed
king of the art of audio mastering and generally a very understated and decent
guy.” Fayyaz Ahmed

“When the music is recorded in the studio, it is then mixed - which means the
volume levels of each instrument/vocals/sound are brought to a level that
complies with the genre of music being produced and the impact a band wants
to bring to a record. After the mixing comes the mastering stage which refers
to balancing harsh sounds, eliminating bad frequencies and giving the entire
album an even feel. Mastering on the album was done by Shahi Hasan.”
Syed Farhad Humayun

“I took it to Shahi for final mastering of the album. He has many years of
experience and has a nice mastering facility, and he understood where I was
coming musically. It seemed to be a natural fit!” Omran Shafique

“Nightmare for any Psychiatrist and an Angel for any Saint.”

Ammar Hashmi

“I always had a vision to sing this song differently, and give it a more modern,
yet classical rendition, and I discussed this and brainstormed with Shahi about
this. …………..Shahi is a great composer and musician; he is very passionate
and a perfectionist about his music. I really enjoyed working with him to
create a beautiful, soulful album.” Devika Chawla

“Shahi is an extremely versatile and multi talented man. He started off his
career as a talented composer and musician with the Vital Signs but in the last
ten years he has been at the forefront as one of the premier recording
engineers and producers in the country. Shahi has played a role in the
recording and engineering of my music since the very first Awaz album. I
highly respect his opinion when it comes to music engineering. As a human
being he is intelligent, has a great sense of humor and is the sort of person you
can rely on to be a great friend. He has always made the time for me when I
needed him. I think because Shahi has lately been working behind the scenes
he is underrated in the general public. However all of us in the music field
have the highest regard and respect for his talent. I wish him continued
success.” Haroon Rashid

“He is a very up right person, a sincere friend, does not lie ever and is very
sensitive” Junaid Jamshed

“Well Hum Tum was recorded in 2 weeks at Rohail’s house and Shahi played
some great Bass on it. I think we all co- wrote a few songs... Jaana Jaana,
Mein Chup Raha and Namumkin. Shahi's strength at that time was his bass
playing and ability to liven up the proceedings with his humor. We also toured
in England with that album and had a fabulous time there. Shahi is truly a
great guy and friend as well as an exceptional engineer and producer.”
Asad Ahmed
 Contents
Early Works: Vital Signs Rock the World

Late 90s Funnel Shahi

Production Endowment

Waiting for Tour de Force

“There Are No Rules for Good

Photographs, There are only
Good Photographs”

Adding Glamour to Mauj Technicolor

Accumulating Grandeur to
Overload “Pichal Pairee”
It’s not years in your life that count but Life in
those Years
Shahi Hasan Quotes
 Early Works: Vital Signs Rock the World

I
t is very hard to flashback two decades old memories,
but I’ll try my best to portray them. It was an
uninteresting and droning evening somewhere around
mid of 80’s. My dad was posted in Azad Kashmir and then
to Siachen. We were staying at our grandparents place in
Baffa. Life was quite slow and boring at the village house,
with little creativity and almost no entertainment for young
kids. Village folks use to have food around 8 pm and went
to sleep around 9 pm. Television transmission programs
used to be quite dreary and un-enjoyable for young kids.
One evening, we were watching local television routine
transmission. It aired a song with four teenage boys,
holding musical instruments and singing in an entirely new
style. We kept watching the song called “DIL DIL
Pakistan” and didn’t move until the song finished. “WOW,
that was amazing”, ejaculated my little 4-year old brother,
“I love it’. I had the same notions as well.
They just mentioned the singers’ names. They later came to
be known as “Vital Signs”, a top-notch and first official
band of Pakistan. They produced some more hits like
“Chehra”, “Tum Mil Gaye”, “Gorey”, “Sanwali Saloni”,
but “Dil Dil Pakistan” was a skyrocket hit, which brought
them under the limelight. National songs aired those days
were usually picturized indoor in PTV studios. “Dil Dil
Pakistan” set a totally novel trend in the history of
Pakistani patriotic songs. It was something stunning for the
new generation. We later came to know about all the four
enigmatic boys of the band. The two young teenagers
Shahzad Hasan and Rohail Hyatt were the pioneers of Vital
Signs. They beautifully composed a ghazal “Chehra” by
late Parvin Shakir, which I found amazing too. There is a
slight difference between the “Chehra” composed first and
the later one. The one composed earlier is a bit speedy and
fast, with six young men sitting and enjoying at the side of
Lotus Lake Islamabad. One can see glimpses of a much
peaceful Islamabad and outskirts of much cleaner Rawal
Lake very clearly in the video.
When my dad came from Siachen, we insisted on buying a
cassette of Vital Signs. “But how are you going to listen to
the song? You don’t have a music player.” He replied.
Shahzad Hasan was light-eyed, camera-shy bassist, and an
energetic Rohail Hyatt was on the keyboards. They worked
really hard on the song and it was rated “The World’s 3rd
most popular song” by BBC World in 2003.
 Photograph Courtesy Facebook
L to R: Rohail, Salman, Shahi & Junaid

L to R: Junaid, Shahi, Nusrat & Rohail

 Photograph Courtesy Facebook
L to R: Shahi, Rohail, Salman & Junaid
Photograph Courtesy Facebook: Shahzad and Rohail are the finders
of Vital Signs, Junaid joined Afterwards and Nusrat was replaced by
Salman.
Sanwali Saloni video shoots at desert of Thar, Sind
L to R: Junaid Jamshed, Rohail Hyatt
Shahzad Hasan & Rizwan ul Haq
(Famous model Iraj Manzoor
was also in the video and dressed in a
Typical Thar outfit, little traditional
dance “Jhummer”)
Rizwan joined after Salman
Ahmed quit in 1990.
 L to R: Shahzad, Nusrat, Junaid and Rohail
Shoaib Mansoor was ingenious enough to judge the talent of young
boys and asked them to prepare a song. The song was deeply aesthetic
and patriotic, thus making new ways to serious pop music in Pakistan.
Though Nazia & Zoheb had already initiated a pop music culture, but
they were known as siblings, not a band. Nusrat later quit and joined
PIA as a pilot, suggesting Salman Ahmed in place of him. The first
album was a great and jubilant success, as a result of VS members’
and Shoman’s effort. Two songs from the album “Musafir” and “Yeh
Shaam” leave a very nostalgic impression on mind. “Tum Mil Gaye”
from first album was shot with Junaid and Andaleeb Iqbal, with other
VS members missing from the video. Some songs like “Do Pal”,
“Samjhana” and “Yeh Shaam” were used in “Dhundlay Raastay
also”.
 Song Chehra: L to R: Rohail, Nusrat, Shahzad and Junaid
The video was shot at vicinity of Rawal Lake, produced by Rana
Kanwal, a student at Pakistan Television and edited by Dost
Muhammad Iqbal. Besides Vital signs, the video also had two other
musicians namely Sarosh and Zaheer. The beautiful ghazal was
written by Late Parvin Shakir. The song initially composed had
different music, from the “Chehra” re-composed, in terms of more
bass riffs and healthier rock. The song composed first has a soft and
jolly tune attached to it, whereas, the re-composed version has a
melancholic and romantic effect. Both are equally invigorating.
 L to R: Shahi, Zaheer, Junaid, Sarosh & Nusrat
About The other two boys, people have little information about, since
they only appeared in “Chehra” and no other song of Vital Signs.
These were the times when the song only showed singers’ names.
Nusrat afterwards released his own album in 1993 but unfortunately
the solo venture didn’t do very well as expected.
 “Wo Kaun Thi”, L to R: Rizwan, Rohail, Shahi & Junaid
The song typically depicted college boys’ attitude, busy writing letters,
talking till late nights on the telephone, gazing at every pretty girl.
There is a scene where Rizwan is on his bicycle and looking at some
girl, without looking ahead, he collides with a man and falls from his
bicycle. There is a scene that Rohail gets so absorbed to look at
someone that the cold drink he is holding in his hand splashes on
earth. Without any model or girl in the video, the direction is
remarkable.
Vital Signs in Early 90’s
Photograph Courtesy Facebook
Later Nusrat Hussain (guitarist) was replaced by Salman
Ahmed, a student at medical College. Vital signs kept
producing rocking hits like “Aisa Na Ho”, “Rahi”, “Yehi
Zameen”, “Hum Tum” and “Aitebar”. Their videos even
sketched swinging moods, ranging from ecstasy to extreme
angst. “Dil Dil Pakistan” showed patriotism, “Tum Mil
Gaye” depicted marital failure and ending relationships.
“Wo Kaun Thi” depicted a typical college boy’s flirtatious
attitude, with writing love letters, standing outside college
gates, and talking to girls on the phone. “Gorey” and
“Sanwali Saloni” had cultural roots, shot in Kailash and
Thar, respectively. All of these were luminously directed.
One thing that I liked about their videos was that females
were never exploited. They even used to model in their
own videos and almost eighty percent of the videos were
shot without any female models. Even then they were big
miraculous hits. Videos like “Wo Kaun Thi”, “Yehi
Zameen”, “Chehra”, “Do Pal”, “Aise Hum Jiyen”, “Mera
Dil”, “Maula”, “Musafir”, “Yaad Karna” and “Dil Dil
Pakistan” didn’t have even a single female model.

My younger brother was so inspired that he decided to play

the cover for “Dil Dil” on his Parents’ Day in 1989. He
asked us to get the same kind of jeans and shirt, that Junaid
was wearing in the song and a small guitar as well. For the
whole night he kept practicing the song, though he was so
young that couldn’t utter words properly.
Developing a youth culture was not a cup of cake in 80’s; it
was a time when no one could talk openly about musical
shows or concerts. The credit goes to some highly
innovative and fresh musical programs like “Music 89”,
which introduced/promoted many upcoming singers and
bands, including Vital Signs and Jupiters. Late Nazia
Hasan along with sibling Zoheb and Uncle Sargam hosted
it and another program “Dhanak” as well. It aired songs
like “Aha”, “Paisa”, ”Dosti” (Jupiters) and ”Do Pal”, with
music of “Do Pal Ka Jeevan” in the background. Songs
like “Gorey”, and “Do Pal” were blockbusters and
picturized in 90’s, with more vivid directorial efforts.
(Shoman) Shoaib Mansoor was the first one to depict the
exceptional caliber of the young men, and directed a mini-
series “Dhundlay Raastay”, featuring all the four members
of Vital Signs, Tabinda Sheikh and Nayyar Kamal. The
play was written by legendary Hasina Moeen and directed
by Shoman. I felt that it could have been made in a better
manner, because it was comparatively meager than other
masterpiece works of the two legends. Though it managed
to show well how members of Vital Signs worked together
towards achieving their objectives. The mini play threw
light on the early stardom journey of the four young
enthusiastic men, their interests, passions and priorities.
My favorite dialogue in the play is, “Are you mad? Kia
hum loag tere liye sirf musicians hein?”

The first album was a super hit with songs like “Do Pal” ,
“Dil Dil Pakistan”, ”Samjhana” ,”Musafir”, “Chehra” and
“Yeh Sham”. All these tracks depicted different moods. It is
indeed one of the most memorable VS works. It also
included an instrumental track “Samina”, which is an
amazing piece of work and was used as a soundtrack for
“Dhundlay Raastay” too. The second album best tracks are
“Mera Dil”, ”Bazaar”, and “Tere Liye”. It also had “Rahi”,
“Aisa Na Ho” and “Ajnabi”, “Rahi” was a very romantic
and heartrending track, whereas “Aisa Na Ho” was
somewhat related with the political situation. “Ajnabi” was
a very slow, romantic and gloomy song, with a charming
Seema Rizvi in it. In 1993, the band came with a startling
program named “Guitar 93”. I remember it used to be my
favorite program and next day in school, we used to
discuss their songs and hum during the recess. The third
album had magnificent tracks like “Aitebar”, “Challa”,
“Wo Kaun Thi”, “Yehi Zameen” and “Yarian”. “Yarian”
and “Sanwali Saloni” tunes were even copied for
Bollywood films in 1990s. The last album “Hum Tum” had
tracks like “Jana Jana”, “Guzray Zamane Wali”, “Der Ho
Gai”, “Main Chup Raha”, “Unka Khayal” and
“Namumkin”. If one analyzes critically, there is a colossal
difference between the first and last VS albums: The
change is not only noticed in terms of dressing only, but
also in compositions as well. From plain college boy-like
dressing to heavy jackets and long hair, VS depicted much
mature looks, and a Pink Floyd style in their last album.
Event: Pakistan’s Golden Jubilee, 13th August, 1997, Taj Palace
Hotel, New Delhi, India,
Photograph from My Personal Album
Photograph from My Personal Album
Shahzad Hasan, he has always been a very talented and creative
person, though he is always shy of looking at his audience. I noticed
that always avoided eye-contact with the audience and looked towards
either his band members or instrument. It seemed even quite tricky for
us to ask for an autograph from him, thinking that he might refuse. But
after asking for an autograph, my assumpsion completely altered: I
found him a very sweet and soft-spoken person. Out of all the
celebrities who have given me autographs, his I found the best. It
didn’t comprise any highly logical or philisophical statements, but just
very simple and sincere words.” To Sadaf, love, Shahzad”. Junaid
defines him as a very up right , sincere and sensitive person. Even till
today, I am unable to understand the autographs given by Amir Zaki.
 Event: Pakistan’s Golden Jubilee, 13th August, 1997, Taj Palace
Hotel, New Delhi, India,
Photograph from My Personal Album

These were the times of Ashraf Jehangir Qazi as a High Commissioner

in India. When the show ended, we requested his younger daughter
Maha Qazi, who was doing her masters in anthropology from Quaid-e-
Azam University that time, to ask Begum Qazi if we could have a
picture session with Vital Signs. She forwarded our request to Begum
Qazi very politely. Begum Qazi laughed and said to my mom, “Saba!
Let these girls have some pictures with Vital Signs or else they won’t
sleep for the whole week”. I shall always be grateful to Maha.
 L to R: Amir Zaki, Rohail Hyatt & Junaid Jamshed

Photograph from My Personal Album

The finest part of the event was autograph taking: There weren’t any
papers or notepads available, so we all decided to hide white napkins
from the Hotel and used them for autographs. I still have that signed
white napkin in my closet, even after twelve years. One of us was a
crazy fan of Fakhr-e-Alam(Yatagan), she asked Junaid about him.”I
know him,” was his reply. The other Vital Signs members were a bit
quiet. After the event, there was an official “Parcham Kushai”, flag
hoisting ceremony next day, Vital signs were asked to perform in that
event too, but they excused sympathetically, since they already had
some other commitments and concerts on 14th of August.

A specially designed cake for a very special day

Photograph from My Personal Album
 “Maula”, A wonderful directorial endeavor by Bilal Maqsood

1993 Live Performance

I remember we were posted in New Delhi, my father was
counselor (culture) and there were some nice plans about
celebrating the Fiftieth Anniversary of Pakistan. Most of us
recommended having a concert at Taj on 13th of August,
1997. It was a dazzling evening and indeed one of the most
memorable evenings of my life. The High Commission
staff ordered a big cake of Pakistan’s map for the golden
jubilee anniversary. Vital Signs started the evening with
their hit songs like “Sanwali Saloni”, “Mera Dil”, “Gorey”
and some other famous tracks. The show was nicely hosted
by Junaid Jamshed. They were looking really stunning and
were all dressed in black. Before the VS show, there was a
series of some comical skits and parodies. We were
anxiously waiting for Vital Signs’ performance. I
remember some ladies muttering to each other, “God, I
can’t believe that Pakistani men are so dashing and
stunning, I am ready to go to Pakistan today”. The show
continued for two hours and VS were requested to sing
“Dil Dil Pakistan” in the end. Junaid was a bit reluctant
and asked his audience before singing the song. But the
Indian audience convinced him and they sang their most
super hit patriotic track joyfully.
Some old women in their late 70s started developing a
crush for Junaid. He laughed and said,
”Well, I have young girls going mad in my concerts, but
this is the first time that I can see some old ladies as
well”.
The show was followed by a cake cutting ceremony. The
cake was specially designed like Pakistan’s map; the white
area had thick white cream dressing and the green portion
was topped with green jam. I still remember being the first
one to ask for the biggest piece and still dreaming of some
more pieces. Upon returning home, I excitedly told my
brother about the autographs. He started making fun of me,
“You and autographs, I wonder how Vital Signs gave you
autographs, you were dressed like a nerd geek, wearing
big glasses on even such a multi-colored event.” I had a
fierce fight with him, telling him that I wasn’t a celebrity,
just a fan of them, so they gave me the autographs. Next
day, I anxiously waited for the pictures. Even my Indian
friends were a great fan of the band; they kept asking me
questions about the show.
Even today, almost after two decades, they have a huge list
of fans, listening to their songs and playing covers. They
managed to create relishing and mesmerizing music in a
highly Islamized era, where there wasn’t any concept of
concerts and shows, Vital signs had euphoria and charisma
of their own. They were different individuals with their
unique set of traits. The band produced only four albums
in its eleven years, with very few of the songs going
dreadful flops. Towards the end of 90’s, the members
started drifting away and shifted their core energies to
different fields. They are still legends, but the way they set
a fresh trend in a dictatorship epoch, was distinctly
appraising. Even today, little is known about the band’s
disbanding reasons, but they will always be admired by
millions of aficionados all over the world. Even after the
disbanding, the VS legends have a whole list of fans. Shahi
shifted his energies to music production and mastering,
whereas Rohail’s amazing work can be seen at Coke
studio. Many bands emerged and disbanded during 1990s,
leaving meager information to the fans and world, but
people still remember and want to read more and more
about Vital Signs, even after twenty three years of band
formation.
I attended one concert not of Vital Signs, but of Junaid
Jamshed at Services Club Lahore, in 1999. Tickets were
selling like hot cakes and we managed to get them only one
day prior to the concert. Mom showed keen interest to
attend the concert and we both attended it. I initially
declined to attend the concert, but agreed afterwards. When
the concert started, mom asked me,” I don’t see the
dashing guys who came to India with Junaid,” I
explained her that the band had disbanded and the
members had drifted away.
We got seats in the last rows and were quite unhappy with
our sitting plan. The show was organized by Col. Nawazish
and some other Army people. When suddenly a junior of
my father came to us and asked my mom, ”Bhabi, why you
are sitting in the last rows, I guess Sadaf is getting quite
bored, let us move to the VIP rows.” Mom declined to go
but I agreed to proceed to the front rows. Later the
audience created so much ruckus that Junaid asked girls to
come forward and sit on the carpet, just in front of the
stage. I remember it was pretty cold and there weren’t any
proper heating arrangements, but the girls felt glad to sit on
the carpet. We even sang some songs like “Us Rah Par”,
“Aanknon Ko” and “O Sanama” with him. My father and
little dog came to pick us when the show ended at 11 pm.
Mom and I were very exhausted but kept discussing the
show and other things till late at night.
Since only two of my class fellows attended the show, we
had some very narrow-minded and customary teachers in
our college, who were informed that we had attended the
concert. The grapevine traveled so easily. One of them
asked me especially next day, “Did you attend the
concert; I wasn’t expecting it from you at least.” I felt a
bit appalling, but didn’t say anything to him, since he was
unaware of my fanatical likeliness for the band. In fact
some brats came from very conservative and traditional
families; they kept pointing and telling me that it was quite
ghastly to go to concerts and musical shows and kept
making stupid points. Even those who weren’t able to get
the tickets exhibited the same attitude. It was a typical
“Sour grapes” attitude, indeed and I could feel their envy
easily. Even some other teachers kept speaking ill about
bands and concerts. Those who had attended it merrily
reached a conclusion that it was much better to have that
day off from the college. At least we could have saved
ourselves from nerdy criticism and orthodox remarks, but
there wasn’t any way to avoid the nemesis.
 Late 90s Funnel Shahi Production Endowment

I
t seems a bit unscrupulous while discussing Shahi’s
Production and mixing contributions, if I don’t
discuss a little about the albums finally produced and
mixed by him. Even after the dissolution of Vital Signs,
Shahi has indeterminate energy and creativity of his own.
Vital Signs gave him a lot of name and fame, but he has his
own set of abilities and traits too. His movement to
production side is a pertinent example of that. His highly
ingenuity was noticed when Strings made a comeback after
eight years, with only two members. Rafiq Wazir Ali and
Karim Basher Bhoy weren’t a part of it any more. Their
album “Duur” was released after a protracted hiatus,
produced by Shahi, Nizar Lalani and Strings themselves.
The guys had totally changed their teenage looks and had
emerged into serious, mature gentlemen. “Duur” is one of
the finest produced and brilliantly composed albums by
Strings. It had some very touching tracks like “Duur”,
“Anjane”, “Khirki” and “Ankhein”, though a repeated “Sar
Kiye”, which gave success to Strings during their early
career, was also included in the album with much healthier
riff guitar.
 Strings from their Early Days: “Duur” not only marked the
impeccable return of the strings but also, marked a much escorted, re-
invented and rejuvenated music by them. “Sar Kiye” was example of
re-invented track after eight years. The lyrics, written by Anwar
Maqsood and marvelously composed by Bilal Maqsood, the album
tracks had more riff-rock treatment and subtle instrumentation, which
creates a mood of tranquility. Apart from change in looks and numbers
of members from four to two, one major change of vocals shifting to
Faisal Kapadia was even noticeable. I remember when “Duur” aired,
my brother commented, “Pehle Bilal used to sing na, now its Faisal.”
”Duur” was mixed by Shahi and Ehteshamulhaq.
Welcome back Strings: Much grown up and mature-looking, Bilal and
Faisal formed Strings with their breathtaking come back with “Duur”.
As compared to their initial albums, Strings 1 and Strings
2, “Duur” encompassed many melodious and rhythmic
tracks. Though I didn’t see much glamour in the “Duur”
video shot at Gwadar, but still found it gorgeous, with
touchy lyrics and haunting melody. The crème de la crème
“Duur” escorts one into a blissful world with its soothing
yet loud guitars and drums.

I put an email to Haroon Rashid and asked him about

Shahi. He replied back very passionately and said,
“Well, Shahi is an extremely versatile and multi
talented man. He started off his career as a
talented composer and musician with the Vital
Signs but in the last ten years he has been at the
forefront as one of the premier recording
engineers and producers in the country. Shahi
has played a role in the recording and
engineering of my music since the very first Awaz
album. I highly respect his opinion when it comes
to music engineering. As a human being he is
intelligent, has a great sense of humor and is the
sort of person you can rely on to be a great friend.
He has always made the time for me when I
needed him. I think because Shahi has lately been
 working behind the scenes he is underrated in the
general public. However all of us in the music
field have the highest regard and respect for his
talent. I wish him continued success.”

In 2002, Fakhir Menmood (of Awaz) released his solo

album “Aatish”, which was mixed and produced by Shahi
Hasan. The album did exotically well to initiate the solo
career of Fakhir. “Tera Bina” was a patriotic track, “Dil ki
Batein” was shot in Spain with glimpses of Flamenco
dancers and a very adorable Amina Shafat in the video.
The most romantic track was “Dil Haara”, which featured
an Iranian model Mohini in it. Another magnificent track
was “Ek Wari”, which was used as soundtrack for
Humayun Saeed’s “Chahatein”, featuring Nabeel, Vaneeza
Ahmed, Atiqa Odho and Humayun Saeed. Another track
from the album was used as a soundtrack for late Afreen
Baig’ s directorial debut “Kabhi Kabhi Pyar Mein” under
Evergreen Productions, featuring/starring Adnan Siddiqui,
Jia Ali, Humayun Saeed and Mahnoor Baluch. My favorite
song in the entire album was “Deewana” featuring Resham
and Faakhir both. I won’t say that it was luminously
directed by Babar Shaikh, but cutely directed.
Faakhir “Dilruba”: Magnanimously directed by Asim Raza, Faakhir
seen tiptoeing around ostentatious gypsy flamenco dancers, on the
romantic paved streets of Spain. It featured lovely Pantene Model
Amina Shafat, “te quiero mucho” mean (I want you too much)
“Dewana” featured a gorgeous and glamourous Resham with Fakhir.
Whether “Obe Derta Rawrlem” by Ahmad Zahir or “Dewana” by
Fakhir, both are refreshing. The former had shades of Afghan music
whereas the later one doesn’t have Afghan tinge. I found both
revitalizing and mind-blowing.

I critically think that it’s not replica of Ahmed Zahir “Obe

Derta Rawrlem”, but a little re-inventing and serving old
wine in a new bottle has been done. Even it was a very
romantic song, produced by Gauhar Maqsood, the one by
Fakhir is even refreshing.

Though, Shahi and Faisal Rafi had already started “Man ki

Lagan”, a song which was later used for Pooja Bhatt’s film
Paap in 2003. The film also had another track “Laal”,
composed by them. The film was somewhat disappointing
and flopped at the box office, but the three super tracks
“Mann ki Lagan”, “Garaj Baras” and “Laal” made their
way, though ‘Garaj Baras” was composed by Ali Azmat.
Vocals were provided by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan in “Mann
ki Lagan”, however Ali Azmat gave outstanding vocals on
“Garaj Baras”. “Mann ki Lagan” proved to be a hilarious
breakthrough for Rahat Fateh Ali Khan indeed. His recent
hits include “Jiya Dhadak” and “O Re Piya”.
The tune was already worked but was later used in Paap.
Shahi along with Faisal Rafi paid a visit to India. After a
much awaited venture, this was some really soulful and
supernatural music by Shahi. The beautiful tabla and
refreshing harmonium in the background of “Mann ki
Lagan” makes a magnetic effect for the song, and truly
deserves a listen for its soft and beautifully composed
rhythm. Though, “Garaj Baras” has more rock style,
radiantly composed and performed by Ali Azmat. Faisal
Rafi speaks about Shahi,
“Shahi is an awesome friend, a great teacher, true
believer in the power of music, an innocent soul
and one hell of a bass player.”
I think these simple and precise sentences stretch over his
entire personality.
 Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan (Trip to India): R to L, Shahi
Hasan , Pooja Bhatt, her directorial venture “Paap” had John
Abraham and debutant Udita Goswami, the concept portrayed
conflicts between Divine and worldly desires. Though the film
collapsed commercially, but the music was enchanting. Rahat’s
reminiscent vocals in “Man Ki Lagan” and Shahi’s chaste rapture
leave one in an enchanted reverie. I felt the vocals to be a bit bucolic
but enticing and soft at the same time. A plain tabla and harmonium
leaves a mesmerizing effect. The next entrancing and dazzling song
was “Laal”, with Rahat and Farrukh on vocals. Though the vocals
have a tinge of mournfulness, the track begins slowly and increases its
impetus afterwards, a marvelous “Alaap” indeed. The song still
 remains a masterpiece. “Garaj Baras” brilliantly reflects true
enthusiasm of Ali Azmat. While listening to “Man ki Lagan”, I found
very little resemblance of Rahat’s voice with great Nusrat Fateh, but
never felt at any point that he was trying to copy him. Apart from
“Paap”, Shahi has also mastered directorial venture of Digvijay
Singh, namely “Maya”.

Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan (Trip to India)

Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan (Trip to India)
Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan (Trip to India)
L to R Faisal Rafi, Shahi Hasan
Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan (Trip to India)
Shahi and Faisal on their way to create
a masterpiece “Mann Ki Lagan”
 Waiting for Tour de Force

R
Ushk is a band with brains like Uns Mufti and
Ziyyad Gulzar. The album was critically
acclaimed, but failed to attract the Pakistani
audience and went underrated. “Behti Naar” is a
magnificent track with an endearing jazz feeling and
squashy piano, but the video was banned from music
channels and went disregarded. “Sawal” didn’t appeal
many music lovers besides its haunting music, though it
embodies forlorn soundtracks.
I got interested and planned to ask some questions from
Uns Mufti himself. He replied back very passionately and
courteously. I personally feel that “Sawal” was not meant
for an average audience, besides its in-depth lyrics and
diverse music. I remember Music Channel Charts aired a
song “Jago” by Jazba in 1993, based on Kashmir war. It
occupied No. 1 position for many weeks, since it was clear
to the audience. The same depicted in “Khuahish” is a bit
thorny for viewers to understand what actually the message
is, thus creating too much symbolism.
 “Behti Naar”, directed by Saqib Malik, featured Iraj Manzoor,and
Tariq Amin. Despite Nazia Zuberi’s booming vocals and a bold
directorial attempt, it failed to capture its Pakistani audience. Though,
there were no reasons why people critically condemned it. The bold
Pakistani video was a little objectionable by audience and wasn’t
critically acclaimed much, though it was a bit “different”. Another
short track “Khuahish”, directed by Amean J, featured Aisha focuses
on Iraq war, queered questionable tone, surgical connotation and an
uncompassionate US invasion. The arranging was done by Shahi,
being a part of the post-production.
Shahi had another project in 2007 with Indian singer
Devika Chawla, Manesh Judge, Noor Nodhi and
Anshuman Chandra. Devika‘s album had tracks like
“Kehnde ne Naina”, “Intezaar”, “Pehli Nazar”, “Jeena
Tere Bin”, “Nayyo Lagda”, “Mere Husn ki Garmi”, and
“Ishq Yeh”. The most fascinating track is of course
“Kehnde de Naina”, which was billed “Top 14 Sufi Music
tracks of all Time”, happens to be my favorite too. The
beautiful vocals and a nice mellow starting make the track
gradual and sublime. Devika’s excellent classical training
gives her an amazing control throughout vocal phrases. I
simply loved the awesome vocals and exceptional mix by
Shahi. The nice production truly reflects the tasteful echo
use. The other two compositions are “Intezar” and “Jeena
Tere Bin”, both exotic pieces of work, depicting an
enthralling hodgepodge of ambient sounds, with Devika
adding up a pleasant layer of vocals. Other tracks of the
album “Pehli Nazar” and “Mere Husn ki Garmi” are
produced by Farhan and Anshuman, whereas “Nayyo
Lagda” by Rajiv Sharma and Manesh Judge. The album
also marks the joint efforts of renowned artists from India,
Pakistan and US.
Asking and getting in touch with Devika wasn’t that easy.
After giving her long mails and other information, she
ardently answered my stated questions and gave me some
important pieces of information about Shahi’s contribution
towards her album. In her own words,
“I always had a vision to sing this song
differently, and give it a more modern, yet
classical rendition, and I discussed this and
brainstormed with Shahi about this. Keeping that
in mind, Shahi produced the music for this track
for me, and sent it to me in the US, over the
internet. I recorded the vocals in the US and sent
them to him in Pakistan for mixing and
mastering. The final track was everything and
more than what I had imagined and hoped for!
P.S. - we shot a video for this track in Hyderabad
and Mumbai in India. This track was featured in
Sony's Sufi compilation titled 'Teri Deewani'
featuring other artists such as Nusrat Fateh Ali
Khan, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Kailash Kher and
several others. This was the top selling pop album
in India for the bulk of 2008. In addition to
Kehnde Ne Naina, Shahi also composed and
produced a few other songs in my first self titled
album "Devika". All the vocals were recorded in
the US and sent to him in Pakistan for mixing and
mastering. My second album titled 'Saari Raat' is
scheduled for release in the next few weeks. I
partnered with Shahi for creating this album.
Shahi has produced this album and composed and
written many songs in this album as well. He has
performed some amazing bass guitars and guitars
on a few tracks in the album himself. Shahi is a
great composer and musician; he is very
passionate and a perfectionist about his music. I
really enjoyed working with him to create a
beautiful, soulful album.”
 In 2007, Sony Music released a block buster Sufi music compilation
“Teri Deewani”, that had featured tracks namely “Afreen
Afreen”(Nusrat Fateh ali Khan), “Maula Mere Maula”(Film Anwar,
sung by Roop Kumar Rathod) “Tere Ishq Mein” (Rekha Bhardwaj),
“Jiya Dhadak Dhadak” and “Mann Ki Lagan” (Rahat Fateh Ali
Khan), “Bulla” (Rabbi Shergil), “Saiyan” and “Teri Deewani”
(Kailash Kher), ”Mitwa” (Shafqat Amanat ali), and “Ishq
Nachaya”(Sona). “Tere Bin Nahi Lagda” and “Allah ke Bande” were
also included. The compilation ranked # 1 for six months.
Devika Singing Live: “Inteha Hogai Intezar Ki”
L to R: Asim Khan, Noor Lodhi, Devika Chawla,
Shahi Hasan And Manesh Judge
on Tabla (Cold Fusion Productions)
 Anisha Bakshi Singing Live
L to R: Noor Lodhi, Asim Khan, Anisha Bakshi,
Manesh Judge & Shahi Hasan
From Angeline Malik’s “Rani”, “Dil Tangay” is a Sufi Kafi by Baba
Bhullay Shah with mystical ingredients. Angeline did a great job in
portraying the painful journey of an innocent woman to a political
position. It encompassed greed, apathy, and woman empowerment.
Besides Rani’s transition from a naïve village girl to a brutal political
world, Angeline directorial venture didn’t do as well as “Lahasil”, but
Shahi was noticed for producing magnificent soundtracks, with vocals
by Zafar Ali Khan and Naseebo Lal. “Ranjhan” is a Sufi folk depicting
the love of God and a human desire to attain super powers. Another
amazing one is “Ambi Haeth Mehrma”, a worth downloading
masterpiece. It’s a story about passions, desires, power, innocence and
love.
“There Are No Rules for Good Photographs,
There are Only Good Photographs.” Ansel
Adams

Shahi defines in his own words that “Photography is

another passion besides music.” His creativity and
perfectionism not only reflects in his music, but also in his
photography. With his latest Nikon D90, he loves to
capture beautiful moments and events.

The above are some pictures from Shahi’s own personal

collection. Very few of his fans know that Shahi is a
miraculous photographer as well. I have seen his other
collection of photographs and found them awe-inspiring.

Fayyaz Ahmed defines him as

“History knows him as one of the forces behind
the Vital Signs. He is the groove maker of VS, one
of the best music producers around, and
undisputed king of the art of audio mastering and
generally a very understated and decent guy.”
 “While there is perhaps a province in which the photograph can
tell us nothing more than what we see with our own eyes, there is
another in which it proves to us how little our eyes permit us to see.”
~Dorothea Lange
Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan (My Photography Part 4)

“There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and
the viewer.” ~Ansel Adams
Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan (My Photography Part 4)
 “When you photograph people in color you photograph their
clothes. But when you photograph people in B&W, you photograph
their souls!” ~Ted Grant
Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan
Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan
“A good snapshot stops a moment from running away.” ~Eudora
Welty
Photograph Courtesy Shahi Hasan
Shahi has been working on Najam Sheraz’s new album that
features some renowned musicians like Chris Eaton, Miles
Bould, Dan Wheeler, Mark Edwards, Paul Evans, Matt
Weeks and Collin, Colin Walker and Paul Baton. The song
“Love you more than anything” featuring Hisham is mixed
by Shahi. A very cute video directed by Jalal & Amir, and
some nice experimental work too. Najam speaks and shares
his experience with Shahi,

“Shahzad Hassan Shahi would always hold a very

special place in my heart for introducing me to the
biggest miracle that I have seen in my life ''the
understanding of Quran “Shahi is a dreamer , a
fighter and a true genius unfortunately not as
business minded as his other colleagues are but
the gifts he possesses are far superior ...his
production of my third solo album Jaisay Chaho
(Aao wahan chalain) was way ahead of its time,
India is now waking up to that pop rock sound. I
would appreciate if you do not miss anything I
have said about him.”
 Adding Glamour to Mauj Technicolor

B
efore I started doing some secondary research on
Mauj, I discovered the face book information
which I wouldn’t like to state here. I
downloaded the whole Mauj (Technicolor) and started
listening to each single track. Since it was mastered at
Shahi studio, I needed to analyze it critically to write
something on Shahi. Thanks to music download websites, I
didn’t need to go to the market to purchase a CD,
downloading was much easier. “Pyaar ka Jado” is a track
from third album “Young Tarang” of Hasan siblings, with
Zoheb’s vocals. The album was produced by Zoheb and
Biddu. After listening to the new one, I feel that vocals are
a bit weighty and loud, as compared with Zoheb’s
malleable and slow ones. The excessive use of guitars at
some places in the song makes it a monotone. “Paheliyan”
starts with nice slushy guitar and manages to continue its
way till end. It is the track which brings life to the album
with its beautiful guitar beat and fabulous vocals and
embodies pure aestheticism “Khushfehmi” happens to be
another favorite track, with rangy guitars and bluesy
intonations. “Hasratein” is a highly instrumental track with
pleasant vocals by Momo, improved arpeggio and riffs. I
found it funky, punchy and groovy. It has been mastered by
Shahi.
Omran Shafique “Momo” shares something about his
album,
“I took it to Shahi for final mastering of the
album. He has many years of experience and has
a nice mastering facility, and he understood
where I was coming musically. It seemed to be a
natural fit!”

Accumulating Grandeur to Overload “Pichal

Pairee”

I
t was a usual routine and hectic day with lots of work
and writing. I had just finished downloading Overload
Pichal Pairee and was listening to the first track.
Suddenly my mother entered the study and asked me,
“What kind of music is this?” before I could explain the
music genre to her, she ejaculated, and “It is really a
master-piece work, though I know little about music. From
my childhood, I have been listening to 60’s and 70’s
tracks. I can say that this is a dazzling piece of work.”
I listened to all the tracks charily, after she left the room.
“Mom is right, indeed”, I thought. The album title seemed
appealing to me, though, I have modest knowledge of
Punjabi vocabulary, but still it is beguiling. The title name
usually creates a horror sensation, but it has nothing to do
with it. Before listening to the songs, I had a misconception
of songs portraying some horror like atmosphere like
BSB’s “Everybody”, Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and
Hadiqa’s “Mahi”. I initially assumed Pichal Pairee to be a
finicky fusion of horror and rock.

Pichal Pairee is an inimitable and experimental piece of work by

Overload, brilliantly produced by Farhad. The album is titled in
 Punjabi, but it is contains some English lyrics as well. The album
tracks are vividly mastered by Shahi. It is indeed one of the most
prolific works of Shahi, who happens to be the one of the most
ingenious music producers. His master mind and perfectionism adds
evocative splendor to the album. The album is truly a flamboyant and
glitzy piece of work.
Photograph Courtesy Overload Pichal Pairee

L to R: Meera Rahman, Mahmood Rahman

& Syed Farhad Humayun
After listening to the songs, my assumption altered, since
the composition and lyrics have nothing to do with the
ingredient of horror. The album is an apt permutation of
swinging moods and melodies. The instrumental and
psychedelic genre of music makes it a mesmerizing
sensation. The album comprises tracks like “Dig”, “Saat
Mein”, ”Vichar Gai”, ‘Pichal Pairee”, “Amjad Khan”,
“One Mile High”, “Kaykra”, “Mela Kariye”, and “Dhol
Bajay Ga”. Apart from the alluring effort of Meesha,
Farhad, Sheraz and Mahmood, some additional folks like
Nasir Sain, Shahryar Jabbar, Ustad Allah Loke and Jaffer
Hussian have also marvelously contributed. Meesha’s
transition from a model to singer is fascinating; she has
truly inherited the talent and intellect from her mother,
Saba Hameed.
After a long hiatus, Overload has sustained its unique genre
of rock in Pichal Pairee. It is an experimental oeuvre
attempt. “Dhol Baje Ga” is a predominant delightful and
slightly clamorous track, with vibrant vocals. The drums
and bass beat are highly invigorating in the track, though
the vocals are a bit strident. “Amjad Khan” starts with a
very soft and rhythmic tone, but loses its way afterwards,
but still it is a vibrant track. “Pichal Pairee” sounds a bit
mystifying and reverberated, and unfortunately the most
meager composition. “A Thousand Miracles” starts with a
soft melodious tone, and continues its mellow status,
though the closure is not that malleable as it is in the
beginning. “Vichar Gai” is indeed the most influential and
most exotic song, with Punjabi lyrics. The ravishing beat is
intriguingly portentous, with heavy drums and
conventional base. “Mela Kariye” is a traditional track,
with ordinary melody, and doesn’t evoke a commotion like
other tracks. In fact it doesn’t prove to be a touching folk
melody, though the traditional dhol and drumming makes it
a bit customary. “Kaykra” is a bit speedy and riveting,
whereas “Saat Mein” is very catchy in terms of beat and
tune, miraculously depicts Ustad Allah Loke mode, with
conventional bass held somewhat in the middle of the
track.
After seeing the video, a petite Meesha with a striking face
and Amy Winehouse looks, rocks on vocals. The video
reflected nothing about a Pichal Pairee, but it looked more
like a rock star’s emblematic performance. Even Meesha’s
makeover has been brilliantly done by Shehzad Raza, but
one is unable to find any component of Pichal Pairee (one
with twisted feet) in the video. I was expecting a typical
ghost like makeover, costume and ambiance, before
watching the video. However, the makeover, outfits and set
could have been more dramatic. Even no horror- like
milieu was justly rendered in the video. It could have been
shot while keeping an archetypal Pichal Pairee in mind.
Nevertheless, all the band people look absolutely stunning
in the video.
Syed Farhad Humayun shared something great about
Shahi, though I found his language a bit technical with too
many jargons.
“When the music is recorded in the studio, it is
then mixed - which means the volume level of
each instrument/vocals/sound is brought to a level
that complies with the genre of music being
produced and the impact a band wants to bring to
a record. After the mixing comes the mastering
stage which refers to balancing harsh sounds,
eliminating bad frequencies and giving the entire
album an even feel. Mastering on the album was
done by Shahi Hasan. I hope this answers all.”

Shahi has also been working with Zoe Viccaji and his
personal album, about which I found little information. The
work has already been started at Shahi’s studio and I have
listened to only few of the songs. “Thinking About You”
and “Angel”, where the first one being a breakup song. The
composition and lyrics are really touchy and awesome by
Zoe. Though, Shahi is producing the album.
Another upcoming project of Shahi is an album “Saara
Jahan” by Karavan. I initially talked to Asad Ahmed of the
band, he just told me that it would be released in January.
After “Gardish” in 2002, it is fourth album by Karavan.
The album has been produced and mastered by Shahi. Asad
recollecting his old memories with Shahi, speaks,
“Well Hum Tum was recorded in 2 weeks at
Rohail’s house and Shahi played some great Bass
on it. I think we all co wrote a few songs... “Jaana
Jaana”, “Mein Chup Raha” and “Namumkin”.
Shahi's strength at that time was his Bass playing
and ability to liven up the proceedings with his
humor. We also toured in England with that
album and had a fabulous time there. Shahi is
truly a great guy and friend as well as an
exceptional engineer and producer.”
Photograph Courtesy Haroon Shahid
Shahi has also been mastering the first album of Haroon
Shahid (Smyt). Shahi appreciates the new singer, creativity
and nice musicianship of the upcoming band very
cordially, with little concern over the production of the
album.

Haroon Shahid speaks about his upcoming album, “Well to

start off with, I have a band called SYMT (meaning
direction in Urdu). It’s a two member band me being one
half and Hassan Omer being the other. I am on the vocals
and Hassan on the guitars and sequencing the keyboards on
the album. The other people who are involved with the
band are Farhad Humayon (Overload) and Mehmood
Rehman (Overload). The album was recorded and
produced by Farhad at Riot Studios and he has also played
the drums on the album whereas Mehmood has played the
Bass on the album. They also pretty much feature as our
'Live' session players which are great to have such
experienced players on board right from the beginning.
Hasan and I have written, arranged and composed all the
songs on the album (9 songs in all).
Shahi Hasan came in when we reached a dead end as far as
production goes cause in Lahore there is a dearth of people
who can be trusted with Mastering the album. Therefore,
Shahi was the other option we heard about and knew
whose work and experience is a good enough to do the job
for us. It’s been great working with him. We being new
artists, the manner in which he takes up our opinion and
then works on it is great. The best part on a personal level
was the day he messaged saying he felt that 'three songs
were exceptional' out of the six that he had heard till then.
So all in all it’s really nice working with him! And
Inshallah our future projects will intend to definitely have
him more involved in the production.”
 It’s not years in your life that count but Life in
those Years

I found it really fascinating that so many people speak well

about Shahi. Not even a single person that I contacted
spoke shoddily of him. Though Shahi isn’t in much
limelight or general public, his fans have never seen him
appearing in interviews or live sessions, he usually refrains
from such things and likes working behind the scenes. He
is not only an awesome musician but also a very good
human being as well. He loves exploring new places and
things. I found a note on his visit to old place Nankana
Sahib, where beautifully captures each and every view. He
was so shy in the beginning to provide me with any data so
that I could write on him. Also, he doesn’t make his friends
that easily, first judges a person and then befriends him,
which I think it is a good habit these days. One shouldn’t
trust every one that easily and hastily. After VS journey, he
has been involved in music engineering. Indus World
Music is another amazing project by him and Faisal Rafi.
He holds more than two decades of experience in music,
which adds more diligence to his work.
 Shahi in 80’s

1990’s Mark more ingenuity 00’s Embody more perfectionism

“You can only perceive real beauty in a person as they get older”,
Anouk Aimee
I never found any kind of monotone or repetitive kind of
works that he produces or masters, rather every single
piece is inimitable and diverse.
From hard rock to Sufi tracks, his compositions reflect
deep perfectionism and versatility.
Though he holds a very nice sense of humor and never
hurts you badly. There is a place where his nephew quotes”
Elvis Presley never died”, with Shahi commenting back, “I
know: now Elvis lives in Islamabad”. I knew little about
him before starting the project on him, but kept exploring
different things about his habits and nature from time to
time during the project. He loves travelling and exploring
new places. It was very nice experience for me to write
something on him and bring him in the limelight. Because
initially I even thought the same that he was quite
underrated. Little credit was given to him and he never
complained about it, which shows a humble part of his
nature as well. His aesthetic sense is even amazing: his
passion for photography and the way I have explored him
giving very useful tips to some very professional
photographers, and helping them out. Though, I have tried
to explain him in the best appropriate words, but he says,”
There are words for people like me, but not very many”.
 Shahi Hasan Quotes

“Maximum expectation is actually a curious cutoff point.”

Oct 20th, 2009.
“Sarcasm is the lowest form of humor, I should refrain
from it.” Oct 18th, 2009.
“Happiness is only lack of negative emotions.” Oct 5th,
2009.
“It’s about people you think you know but you don't really
know.” Sep 25th, 2009.
“Generally speaking, the people who are the least defined
in what they believe in and what they stand for are the
ones who are the most insecure in our society. They are
more prone to fall into someone else’s worldview than take
the time to think and decide their own opinions.
This is why so many people of low self-esteem fall into
cults and gangs. These organizations give them a purpose
and a direction they can’t find in their own lives. They
think they find their place and belonging with the group.
Make sure you are the one to define yourself, not through
others’ opinions or plans.” April 30th, 2009
 About the Author

Born on 19 June, 1980, Sadaf Fayyaz was

educated at Little Angel and Bahria College Islamabad. She
completed her bachelor in computer sciences and Masters in
business administration from Bahria University Islamabad. She
was awarded Magna-cum-Laude for her MBA program. She was
an eminent contributor to research paper competition held by
Institute of Bankers Pakistan in 2007. She worked as an intern at
Citi Bank and Askari Commercial Bank Islamabad. After her
masters, she started working as a freelance writer and blogger.
She also worked at Auto Tech as a web content writer in 2008.
Besides writing, music and interior decoration are her two
passions. She is working as a Help Desk Analyst in her father’s
company. In her own words, “After my IBP’s publication, it’s
another serious project that I have worked on”. She has been a
great fan of Vital Signs and a “networked” friend of Shahi
Hasan.