“Na SharBano Na Tou Mai Gulli” is a song, written by Ghulam Hussain Shohaz [one of the legendary Baloch poets] and sung by Arif Baloch [a famous Baloch singer]. This song was written to answer a poet’s critics on Ghulam Hussain’s poetries. He criticized that Ghulam Hussain only wrote on his land and its half-broken woods, and could not do anything else.
Arif Baloch, born in Master Faqeer Mohammad’s home in Koshkalat, Turbat, learnt music under the guidance of Ustad Sattar. He began his musical life with Noor Khan Bezanjo. He brought a revolution in the classical and modern Balochi music.
He has been a great singer of Balochi musical industry. He has always been singing very precious poets’ verses which include Mubarak Qazi, Syed Zahoor Shah Hashumi, Ghulam Hussain Shohaz, Karim Dashti and many more. His first album was Sachan.
The way Arif Baloch has sung this song with beautiful background music, he made it one of the hit songs of all times. It is as beautiful as I cannot wholly justify by penning down the charm of this song in words. It is one of my all time favorite songs.
The poet, Ghulam Hussain Shohaz, has perfectly described the adorableness of his culture in a way which has made me to express my feelings on a page. I agree with each point of the poet. He says very well as to why we should not represent another history which does not identify us. He is all for his own, hence his culture, traditions and history are always on top priority.
He answers to the critic as to why we should not explain someone else’s culture which does not belong to our existence and why to love the beauty of a place where, at the end, we are outsiders. You can generally have a look over them once you are wholly fair and justified with your own land. He says his land always comes first for him – anywhere in the world.
I totally agree with Ghulam Hussain that there is no land for us expect our own homeland. History witnesses the ones who have left their existence or culture to show themselves special by adopting others’ culture, have always been lost in the glances of history. No doubt, world is full of different cultures, but they do not show my history and my existence, he replies to the critic. He further elaborates that we have our own history which has its own beauty.
Baloch have, undoubtedly, a very rich and ancient history. Our culture’s precious love stories like Hani and Shay Mureed with the moral as not to take steps back on your given words, no matter how hard the first step is; their love story is immortal.
We have in our culture the warriors with historical backgrounds which define the bravery of Baloch females shoulder by shoulder with their brothers and fathers in the battlefields. Banuk Banadi, sister of the Great Chakar, made a remarkable history by commanding the army troop during the war in India for Mughal empire.
The beautiful poetries of Ghalib cannot be ignored neither a word to define his works, but the words of Syed Hashumi are the words of Balochistan – the true face one can see Balochistan in words. The poetries of Mubarak Qazi represent the history of Balochistan. They make one ponder deeply of the life in Balochistan.
There is no word to reject singers from other soils as Mohammad Rafi, but we cannot overlook Noor Khan Bezanjo who dedicated his life to promote Balochi music and has been successful. If you reject him, it means, you are rejecting your own existence.
This reply of Ghulam Hussain Shohaz to the foreign critic deserves to be listened over and over again. It really speaks very well as to how to prioritize the Baloch land before praising others if you are a Baloch.
I recommend everyone to listen to this song once in your life. It will awake your comatose soul. Ghulam Hussain Shohaz is equally fair with his works for Baloch, Balochi and Balochistan. He deserves to be read and listened to and, of course, sung.