It is difficult to comprehend how and why songs were thought to be an essential part of sub-continental films mix right from the beginning of the sound era. Hollywood's first musical, The Jazz Singer, may have inspired the trend -- but this remains a far-fetched possibility. A more conceivable reason could be the socio-cultural pattern of a society in which song and dance have always been perceived as the finest medium of meaningful expression as well as a favored form of recreation. To evaluate and appreciate the cinema of the subcontinent, it is imperative to understand its peculiar affinity to music, song, and dance in the context of the historical framework of the region.



PROFILES
Pakistani Singers

Ahmed Rushdi
Irene Parveen
Mala
Mehdi Hassan
Naheed Akhtar
Naseem Begum
Zubaida Khanum
Mehdi Hassan
Zeenat Begum
Naseem Akhtar
Munawwar Sultana
Mujeeb Alam
Firdousi Begum
Bashir Ahmed
Noor Jehan
Kauser Parveen
Naheed Niazi