LAHORE: If there is one Pakistani musician who has only recently emerged on the scene and taken it by storm, it has to be Asrar. His unkempt look and rustic voice, accompanied by tremendous vocal prowess, have earned him more fame than most of his contemporaries have managed to achieve. Be it the dance number Shakar Wadaan Re or the whimsical Malango, the soulful Ishq Ka Dastoor or the Bollywood chart topper Afghan Jalebi, there’s no questioning Asrar’s versatility and remarkable promise.
Although it has been a while since the Phantom song came out, the singer chose to remain tight-lipped over it and never once shared it on the social media. Talking to The Express Tribune about his Bollywood debut with the controversial film, he said, “I was contacted by Pritam whom I hold in high regard. When the composition and lyrics were shared with me, I was happy and I went for it.” However, Asrar was not impressed with the song’s video that saw Katrina Kaif in a tavern full of revellers and belly dancers. “I am not saying that I am very pious. It’s just that I was in another zone altogether and when the film got banned, I didn’t talk about it,” he said. The song went on to become one of the biggest Bollywood hits of recent times. “It was a huge deal for me because Pritam picked me over several big names in both India and Pakistan.”
Folk singer Akhtar Chanal Zahri also sang a version of the song and recently claimed that he wasn’t paid for his services. When asked whether Asrar had a similar experience, he said, “There were some problems but I would not like to get into the details.”
Nonetheless, Afghan Jalebi bought him all the more attention across the border and he now has more Bollywood projects in the pipeline about which he is not yet ready to disclose much.
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