music composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
for
film
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
s and
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
. He was introduced by actor
Waheed Murad
Waheed Murad ( ur, ; 2 October 1938 – 23 November 1983), also known as Chocolate Hero, was a Pakistani film actor, producer and script writer. Famous for his charming expressions, attractive personality, tender voice and unusual talent for a ...
in
Pakistan film industry
Cinema of Pakistan, popularly known as Lollywood ( ur, ), refers to the filmmaking industry in Pakistan. Pakistan is home to several film studios centres, primarily located in its three largest cities – Karachi, Lahore, and Faisalabad.
...
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
Dawn
Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's horizo ...
(newspaper), Published 19 April 2009, Retrieved 28 December 2021
Early life and education
Sohail Rana was born in
Agra
Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...
,
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
, in the home of
Urdu poets
The following is a List of Urdu-language poets.
13th century
15th century
16th century
17th century
18th century
* Mirza Muhammad Rafi, ''Sauda'' (1713–1780)
* Siraj Aurangabadi, ''Siraj'' (1715–1763)
*Mohammad Meer Soz Dehlvi, '' ...
''Mr.& Mrs.Rana Akbarabadi''. The family moved to
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
soon after the
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
of
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
in 1947. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the
University of Karachi
The University of Karachi ( sd, ; informally Karachi University, KU, or UoK) is a public research university located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Established in June 1951 by an act of Parliament and as a successor to the University of Sindh (whic ...
through D.J. Science College initially. Later he received his final B.A. degree from National College,
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
.
Sohail Rana learned music from various
ustad
Ustād or ostād (abbreviated as Ust., Ut. or Ud.; from Persian language, Persian ) is an honorific title used in West Asia, North Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia. It is used in various languages such as Persian language, Persian, , Azerbai ...
s and familiarised himself with the Eastern classical music and the Western music, which added to his experience. Sohail Rana was also musically inspired by veteran Indian film music director
Naushad Ali
Naushad Ali (25 December 1919 – 5 May 2006) was an Indian music director for Hindi films. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest and foremost music directors of the Hindi film industry. He is particularly known for popularising the ...
. For 25 years, they wrote letters to each other. Naushad Ali also used to advise him on film music in those letters. Pakistani music director Feroze Nizami's film music also inspired him.
Career
Films
The film ''Jab Se Dekha Hai Tumhain'' was
Waheed Murad
Waheed Murad ( ur, ; 2 October 1938 – 23 November 1983), also known as Chocolate Hero, was a Pakistani film actor, producer and script writer. Famous for his charming expressions, attractive personality, tender voice and unusual talent for a ...
's second film as a producer and the musical debut of Sohail Rana.
Some other popular songs of his are ''
Ko Ko Korina
"Ko Ko Korina" (Urdu:) is a song which appeared in the 1966 Urdu-language film '' Armaan'' and is considered the first pop song of Pakistan, and often of all South Asia. Produced during the Golden Age of Pakistani cinema, the song's lyrics were ...
'', ''Bay taab ho udhar tum'', ''Jab pyar mein do dil miltay hain'', ''Oont pay baitha mera munna'', which were recorded by Ahmed Rushdi.
Sohail Rana composed the hit songs for the golden jubilee film, ''
Heera Aur Pathar
''Heera Aur Pathar'' () is a 1964 Pakistani Urdu language black-and-white film.
It is the first film of Waheed Murad as a lead actor who also produced it. The film was released on 11 December 1964. Murad introduced film director Pervez Malik f ...
'', released on 11 December 1964. The film completed 68 houseful weeks. The film became a musical hit, and Sohail Rana became a well-known name in the
Pakistani film industry
Cinema of Pakistan, popularly known as Lollywood ( ur, ), refers to the filmmaking industry in Pakistan. Pakistan is home to several film studios centres, primarily located in its three largest cities – Karachi, Lahore, and Faisalabad.
...
. The composition of ''Mujhay tum say mohabbat hai'' (singers: Ahmed Rushdi and ''Najma Niazi'', and ''Ja ja ray chanda ja ray'' (singer: Mala earned him some fame for the above film.
Pakistan’s first
platinum jubilee
A platinum jubilee is a celebration held to mark an anniversary. Among monarchies, it usually refers to a 70th anniversary.
The most recent monarch to celebrate a platinum jubilee is Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and the other Co ...
film was '' Armaan'' (1966). It is an epic tale of broken hearts and broken dreams. The evergreen song ''Akele na jaana'' (singer: Mala), with sixty five musicians back then, the biggest orchestra ever gathered until then in Pakistani cinema. Further, Sohail Rana won the prestigious
Nigar Award
The Nigar Awards ( ur, , translit=Inʿām Negār, lit=Picture Awards) were presented in an annual award show to recognize outstanding achievement in Pakistani cinema. The honors are awarded by Nigar Magazine founded in 1948. The Nigar Awards a ...
and Graduate awards for the best composer for the film Armaan (1966 film).
By the mid-1960s, Sohail Rana had become a successful film composer. He contributed compositions for the film ''
Ehsaan
''Ehsaan'', a Pakistani Urdu black & white film, was another melodious presentation by Waheed Murad & Pervaiz Malik as a duo. The film is a melodious love story, starring Waheed Murad, Zeba, Nirala, Rozina Qureshi, Rozina, Azad and Ibrahim Nafe ...
'', released on 30 June 1967. The film attained Silver Jubilee with such favourite songs as ''Ik naye maur pay'', ''Aye meri zindigi aye meray hum safar'', ''Do akhian, ye do sakhian''. The songs of the film '' Doraha'' were composed by him, and he was also the producer of the film. The famous tracks are ''Mujhay tum nazar say gira to rahay ho'', ''Bhooli huwee hoon dastaan'', ''Tumhain kaisay bata doon tum meri manzil ho''.
Over the years, he composed for the
nazm
''Nazm'' () is a major part of Urdu and Sindhi poetry that is normally written in rhymed verse and also in modern prose-style poems. is a significant genre of Urdu and Sindhi poetry; the other one is known as ''ghazal'' ().
is significantly ...
s, ''Qasm us waqt ki'', ''Jab zindigi karwat badalti hai'' (Film: ''Qasam us waqt ki'', (singer: ''Mujeeb Alam'') also became a popular film song. Sohail Rana produced lilting music for Nigar Pictures ''Meray hum safar'', released in 1972, three of its popular numbers are ''Wada karo milo gey'' (Singer: Ahmed Rushdi, ''Hai bay qarar tamanna'' (singer: Mujeeb Alam) and ''Tujh jaisa dagha baaz'' (singer:
Runa Laila
Runa Laila ( bn, রুনা লায়লা, ur, ; born 17 November 1952) is a Bangladeshi playback singer and composer. She started her career in Pakistan film industry in the late 1960s. Her style of singing is inspired by Pakistani p ...
). Similarly, ''Tujhay apnay dil say mein kaisay bhula doon'' (singer Ahmed Rushdi) is one of the greatest hits from the film ''Shehnai''.Sohail Rana Filmography on IMDb website Retrieved 17 June 2019
From 1974 to 1976, Sohail Rana was appointed as the general manager National Orchestra, for
Pakistan Television Corporation
Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore.
Background
Historical co ...
(PTV), based at
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
center. His musical masterpieces are ''Sohni Dharti'' (singers: Shehnaz Begum,
Mehdi Hassan
Mehdi Hassan Khan ( ur, مہدی حسن خاں , translit=) 18 July 1927 – 13 June 2012) was a Pakistani ghazal singer and playback singer for Lollywood. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential figures in the history of gh ...
, lyricist: Masroor Anwar) have become part and parcel of
Pakistani culture
The Culture of Pakistan ( ur, ) is very unique in terms of its social values revolving around the religion of Islam. The region has formed a distinct cultural unit within the main cultural complex of South Asia, Middle East and Central Asia ...
. Likewise, ''Jeeway Pakistan'', ''Zameen ki goud'', and ''Mein Bhi Pakistan Hoon'' achieved tremendous success. Furthermore, he composed music for 2 MGD's (Mass gymnastic displays) held in 1975 and 1976 in Islamabad. Also in Islamabad in 1989 he composed music for SAF games (South Asian Federation) games with 100 singers, 150 piece brass band and 35 piece orchestra.
The film ''Badal Aur Bijli'' was also a huge success, essentially due to his ''Bansi bajanay walay'' (singer:
Noor Jehan
Noor Jehan ( Punjabi: ) (born () Allah Rakhi Wasai ; 23 September 1926 – 23 December 2000; sometimes spelled Noorjehan),Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen, ''Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema,'' British Film Institute, Oxford University Pres ...
), ''Dheeray dheeray zara paoon utha'' (singers:
Masood Rana
Masood Rana
( ur, , 6 August 1941 – 4 October 1995) was a Pakistani film playback singer. He began his singing career in 1962 with the film ''Inqalab'', became one of the top male singers in both Urdu and Punjabi films for more than thr ...
Habib Wali Mohammad
Habib Wali Mohammad
( ur, ), (16 January 1921 – 3 September 2014) was a Pakistani ghazal and film playback singer.
Early life
Habib Wali Mohammad was born on January 16, 1921 at Rangoon to a conservative Memon people, Memon family, whic ...
and little later a private recording by
Farida Khanum
Farida Khanum (Urdu: ) is a Pakistani classical singer from the city of Kolkata West Bengal. She is also known by her honorific title ''Malika-e-Ghazal'' (The Queen of Ghazal) in both Pakistan and India.
Early life
She was born in the fall of ...
). The Farida Khanum version has been used in an
Indian film
The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Ko ...
Monsoon Wedding
''Monsoon Wedding'' is a 2001 Indian comedy-drama film directed by Mira Nair and written by Sabrina Dhawan. The film stars Naseeruddin Shah, Lillete Dubey, Shefali Shah and Vasundhara Das. The story depicts romantic entanglements during a tradi ...
(though without Sohail Rana's permission). Besides RPG recording company also released an album (Asha) in which two of his compositions "Aaj jaane ki zid na karo" and "Mujhey tum nazar se gira tau rahe ho" were also released.
Apart from that, Sohail Rana also composed music for the films, ''Phir chand niklay ga'' (1970) and ''Usay deikha Usay chaaha'' (1974). He also served as Resident composer in PIA Arts Academy sponsored by
Pakistan International Airlines
Pakistan International Airlines ( ur, ; abbreviated PIA, ur, ) is an international airline that serves as the national flag carrier of Pakistan under the administrative control of the Secretary to the Government of Pakistan for Aviation. It ...
from 1972 to 1974, where he conducted Ballet
Heer Ranjha
''Heer Ranjha'' (or ''Heer and Ranjha'') ( pnb, , ਹੀਰ ਰਾਂਝਾ ) is one of several popular tragic romances of Punjab, other important ones being "Sohni Mahiwal", "Mirza Sahiban" and " Sassi Punnhun". There are several poetic na ...
, composed and re-arranged music for folk dances and under the directorship of
Zia Mohyeddin
Zia Mohyeddin (; born 20 June 1931) is a British-Pakistani actor, producer, director and television broadcaster who has appeared in both Pakistani cinema and television as well as in British cinema and television throughout his career.
Zia M ...
and with a team of eighty-eight dancers, musicians, singers, he toured the whole world performing in prestigious auditoriums and earned the appreciation of international audience.
Sohail Rana also gave music for the films ''Saughat, Dil Dekay Dekho, Dil Diwana, Shehnai'' and ''Baazi''. In total he has composed music for about twenty-four movies. The film ''Hesaab'' which was released in 1986 happened to be the last movie for which Sohail Rana composed music. Three of those movies, ''Guriya'', ''Pagal'' and ''Hulchul'', could not be released. However, popular numbers from the film ''Guriya'' and ''Hulchul'' are available on cassettes and vinyl EPs.
Television
Additionally, he devoted his time to compose over 2000 songs for children. His program for children were telecast from PTV for 19 years from 1968 to 1987, from ''Kaliyoan Ki Mala'', to ''Sang Sang Chaltay Rehna''.
Given below are the names of some of Sohail Rana's well-known students who attained fame for themselves in Pakistani media. Muhammad Ali Shahki, Amjad Hussain, Alamgir, Mona sisters,
Benjamin Sisters The Benjamin Sisters (Urdu: بنجمن سسٹرز) are a Pakistani singing group of three sisters, Nerissa, Beena and Shabana Benjamin. They were introduced to Pakistani showbiz by a notable Pakistani sitar player Javed Allah Ditta.
Singing style
U ...
Adnan Sami
Adnan Sami Khan (born 15 August 1971) is an Indian singer, musician, music composer and pianist. He performs Indian and Western music, including for Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil movies. He has been awarded with Padma Shri (India's fourth hi ...
, Wasim Baig,
Nazia Hasan
Nazia Hassan (3 April 1965 – 13 August 2000) was a Pakistani singer-songwriter, lawyer and social activist. Referred to as the Queen of South Asian pop, she is considered one of the most influential singers in the subcontinent. Starting in ...
,
Zohaib Hassan
Zoheb Hassan (born November 18, 1966) is a Pakistani pop icon, singer, songwriter, producer, and was a part of the superduo Nazia and Zoheb.
Early career and breakthrough
Zoheb and his sister Nazia spent their childhood in Karachi as well as ...
, Nazneen, Fatima Jaffrey, Anwar Ibrahim and
Mehnaz
Mehnaz Begum (1958 – 19 January 2013) was a Pakistani TV, radio, and film singer. She was well known as a film playback singer in the 1970s and 1980s. She was the recipient of Nigar Awards.Na'at by Anwar Ibrahim ''Jaan-e-Madina'' vol. 1 and 2. Both of these cassettes contained the Naats and Humds by Sohail Rana's poet father Rana Akbarabadi.
Sohail Rana also composed the Summit Anthem ''Allah-O-Akbar'', for
Pakistan Television Corporation
Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore.
Background
Historical co ...
, in the voice of
Mehdi Zaheer
Mehdi Zaheer (1927 – 5 April 1988) was a Paksitani musician, singer, poet, and radio producer. He is best known for singing ''Hum Mustfvi Hein'', composing music for Faiz Ahmed Faiz's ghazal Dasht-e-Tanhai (sung by Iqbal Bano), and writing A ...
Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...
, Pakistan, in 1974.
Popular patriotic songs
Life in Canada
Sohail moved to
Mississauga, Ontario
Mississauga ( ), historically known as Toronto Township, is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, adjoining the western border of Toronto. With a popul ...
in Canada in the early 1990s where he has opened a school for singers and musicians. In 1997, Punjabi playwright and director Atamjit Singh visited Canada and also directed his play 'Rishtiaan da Kee Rakhiye Naa' that is based upon
Saadat Hasan Manto
Saadat Hasan Manto (; Punjabi, ur, , ; 11 May 1912 – 18 January 1955) was a Pakistani writer, playwright and author born in Ludhiana, who was active in British India and later, after the 1947 partition of India, in Pakistan.
Writing ma ...
's well-known story
Toba Tek Singh
Toba Tek Singh ( pnb, , ur, ) is a city and capital of Toba Tek Singh District in the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is surrounded by cities of Gojra, Kamalia, Rajana, Pir Mahal and Shorkot.
History
The city and district is named afte ...
. Sohail Rana composed the music of this play that was sung live in Missisauga. The pain of the
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
of
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
in 1947 was revisited jointly by the artistes and spectators of the two countries. Later Sohail Rana was honoured for his music. As of 2005, he was starting to perform live with interactive multi-media and gave series of concerts in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, Canada involving artists from Pakistan and
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
.
He made an appearance on
Geo TV
Geo Television Network is a television channel based in Pakistan. It was established in May 2002 and is owned by the Jang Media Group. The channel began its test transmission on 14 August 2002, with regular transmission beginning on 1 October 2 ...
special in 2009 ''Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo'' (THE TRIBUTE). Sohail Rana was invited to Pakistan by GEO TV, where he, with the stars like
Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan
Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan ( ur, ; ; born 26 February 1965) is a Pakistani pop and classical singer, songwriter, and composer belonging to the Patiala Gharana tradition of music. He was the lead vocalist of the Pakistani pop rock band Fuzön ...
,
Fariha Pervez
Fariha Pervez ( pa, ) is a Pakistani pop singer-songwriter, and a music producer.
She is specially known for the rendition of various popular and famous Ghazals. She started her career anchoring and acting from a very young age on PTV (Pakista ...
Humaira Channa
Humaira Channa, also known as Humera Channa (born on 22 Jun 1970 at Lahore), is a 6 Nigar Award winning film playback singer from Pakistan. She has won 3rd most Nigar Awards in history, ranked only after Noor Jehan and Mehnaz.
Early life and c ...
,
Sajjad Ali
Sajjad Ali (born 1962) is a Pakistani semi-classical, pop and rock singer, poet, actor, film director as well as a film producer from Karachi, Pakistan.Pride of Performance
The Pride of Performance ( ur, ), officially known as Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sports, an ...
in (1981) by the
President of Pakistan
The president of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=s̤adr-i Pākiṣṭān), officially the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is the ceremonial head of state of Pakistan and the commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces.EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
in (1974) for his vinyl album, ''Khyber Mail''
*
Pakistani television
Television in Pakistan started in 1964 and the first live transmission of Pakistan Television began on 26 November 1964, in Lahore.Pakistan Television Corporation
Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore.
Background
Historical co ...
(PTV)
*
Sitara-i-Imtiaz
The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially meritorious contribution to the ...
(Star of Excellence) Award by the
President of Pakistan
The president of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=s̤adr-i Pākiṣṭān), officially the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is the ceremonial head of state of Pakistan and the commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces.Nigar Award
The Nigar Awards ( ur, , translit=Inʿām Negār, lit=Picture Awards) were presented in an annual award show to recognize outstanding achievement in Pakistani cinema. The honors are awarded by Nigar Magazine founded in 1948. The Nigar Awards a ...
as Best Music Director for Armaan (1966 film)
He was also given the United Nations ''Peace Messenger Award'', conferred on him, at the United Nations headquarters in New York in 1987.