Aziz Mian

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Aziz Mian
Aziz Mian Qawwal
Background information
Birth name	Abdul Aziz
Also known as	Aziz Mian Mairthi Aziz Mian Qawwal
Born	April 17, 1942
Origin	Lahore, Pakistan
Died	December 6, 2000
Genre(s)	Qawwali
Occupation(s)	Singer-songwriter Musician
Instrument(s)	Harmonium
Years active	1970 - 2000

Aziz Mian (Urdu: عزیز میاں) (April 17, 1942 – December 6, 2000) was one of Pakistan's most famous singers of Qawwali. He was born in Delhi, India.

Aziz Mian was one of the more traditional Pakistani qawwals. His voice was raspy and powerful, but this was not the reason for his success. Aziz Mian was not only a great singer but also a great philosopher. He was the only prominent qawwal to write his own lyrics (though, like others, he also sang songs written by other poets). Aziz Mian obtained a degree in Urdu and Arabic from the University of Punjab, Lahore.

His real name was Abdul Aziz but his exclamation "Mian" (Urdu: میاں), which he used a lot in his qawwalis, became part of his name. He introduced himself as Aziz Mian Mairthi. "Mairthi" refers to "Mairath", a city in India, from which he migrated to Pakistan after the creation of the new country.

In the early days of his career, he was nicknamed "Fauji Qawwal" (Urdu: فوجی قوال) (meaning "Military Qawwal") because most of his early stage-performances were in military barracks for army personnel.

He was arrested multiple times on minor charges but was vindicated.

Aziz Mian's qawwalis focused more on chorus and on emphasising the main point of the qawwali through repetition; very little attention was paid to the musical part of the qawwali. Aziz Mian had a knack for reciting poetry to the effect that touched the audience's hearts. He brought a lot of passion to his live performances. One of the trademarks of his stage performances was his habit of getting carried away and rising to his knees (from the normal sitting position) while reciting poetry in the middle of a qawwali, losing contact with the microphone in the process.

Although Aziz Mian mainly sang religious qawwalis, he also had some success in the romantic field. Aziz Mian's most famous qawwali's are "Main Sharabi Sharabi", also known as "Teri Soorat", "Allah Hee Jaanay Kaun Bashar Hai", "Ya Nabi" also known as "Nabi Nabi Ya" and many more.

He was fond of discussing religious and Sufi paradoxes in his qawwalis. He directly addressed Allah (God) and complained about the misery of man (the best creation of the Almighty). Most of the poetry in which Aziz Mian addressed Allah was written by Allama Iqbal. Pakistani comedian Umar Sharif has said in one of his stand-up shows about Aziz Mian: "Other people have disputes on earth, his disputes are in heaven. He altercates with Allah."

Aziz Mian is responsible for the longest commercially released qawwali, "Hashr Ke Roz Yeh Poochhunga", which runs slightly over 115 minutes, and was originally released on four cassettes.

1 Main Sharabi Sharabi
2 Some Lyrics from his Qawwalis
3 Death
4 External links

[edit] Main Sharabi Sharabi

Sabri Brothers criticised his most famous qawwali "Main Sharabi Sharabi" (I am an Alcoholic, I am an Alcoholic) with their own qawwali "Peena Veena Chhor Sharabi" (Quit Drinking, Alcoholic). Aziz Mian retorted with "Hai Kam-Bakht Too Ne Pee Hee Nahi" (Alas You Haven't Drunk). After the release of Aziz Mian's response, "Main Sharabi Sharabi" is coupled with "Hai Kam-Bakht Too Ne Pee Hee Nahi" in newly released volumes.

[edit] Some Lyrics from his Qawwalis

Hai Allah tera naam to woh tha jo be-ginti lete
Kya lutf jo gin gin ke tera naam liya
O lord, your name deserves to be taken countlessly.
What joy can there be in carefully counting it out?
(Aashiqi Dillagi Nahin Hoti)

Kho gaya hai kya khuda jo dhoondhta phirta hai tu?
Has God gone and got lost that you go searching for him everywhere?
(Aashiqi Dillagi Nahin Hoti)

Hai Allah, waiz ki bandagi hai jahannum ke khauf se
Maine gunah kiye tujhe ghaffar samajh kar
Only their fear of hell kept them pious, Lord,
Whereas me, I sinned freely trusting in your mercy
(Hashr Ke Roz Main Poochhunga)

[edit] Death

Aziz Mian died from complications of hepatitis in Tehran (Iran) on December 6, 2000. He was in Iran at the invitation of the Iranian government, to perform on the occasion of Imam Ali's (cousin of Prophet Muhammad) death anniversary. Aziz Mian has two sons Imran and Tabrez, who are following in his footsteps. Both qawwals are very similar in style to Aziz Mian himself.