Indian sculptor Manjit Singh Gill honours late Pakistani legend Shaukat Ali with bust

MOGA/KARACHI: Renowned Indian sculptor Manjit Singh Gill has honoured late Pakistani legend Shaukat Ali with a what appears to be a larger-than-life-size bust.

According to an Indian Express report, which came just two days after the Pakistani folk singer's death, Manjit Singh Gill's artwork was installed at a park in Ghal Kalan village.

In its report on Shaukat Ali and the Moga-based sculptor's tribute to him, the publication wrote that the Pakistani singer was one of the "veteran personalities known for their extraordinary work in promoting Punjabi folk music, language, and culture".

The publication reported that Chadhda Punjab, or India's Punjab, also mourned Ali's death. The singer had liver cirrhosis since almost a year back and was being treated since then, his son, Imran Ali, told the Indian Express over phone.

“He had recovered but four months back his condition again deteriorated and his liver stopped working completely. He died at a hospital in Lahore Friday,” he said.

Ali, his son added, sang his first song — "Pagdi Utaar Chora" — in 1962 and was honoured with a silver jubilee award for it.

Gill, according to Geo Urdu, has also made statues of world-renowned philanthropist and humanitarian Abdul Sattar Edhi — who passed away in 2016 — and Punjabi poet Bashir Husain Najmi, popularly known by his pen name, Baba Najmi, in the past.

The 77-year-old folk singer had passed away in Lahore on April 2, his son Ameer had confirmed at the time, after his health deteriorated and he underwent treatment at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Lahore.

The ghazal maestro had been facing multiple health issues — including diabetes and a liver transplant — and had undergone a heart bypass surgery a few years ago.

He was one of the most prolific artists of the Pakistani music industry, with a career spanning five decades, singing ghazals, songs, national anthems, and Punjabi folk tunes.

His song "Jaag Utha Hai Sara Watan" became very popular across the country and his patriotic songs reignited passion among the Pakistanis during the wars of 1965 and 1971.

A familiar face at the state-run channel, PTV, since the 1970s, Ali was awarded the Pride of Performance (1990), Pride of Punjab, and Voice of Punjab (1976) award.