Music composer Feroze Nizami remembered

ISLAMABAD, Nov 15 (APP):Famous Pakistani music composer Feroz Nizami was remembered on the occasion of his death anniversary on Tuesday.

Born on November 10, 1910, in Lahore, his real name was Ferozuddin Ahmad. He received his education from the Government Islamia College. He also studied Sufism and Metaphysics. He was the brother of Pakistani cricketer Nazar Mohammad and writer Siraj Nizami.

Before his debut in Urdu and Hindi films, Feroz Nizami received his training in classical music from the classical music teacher Abdul Wahid Khan of the Kirana Gharana. After completing his training, he left his job with All India Radio and went to Mumbai to seek a job in the film industry.

He composed different types of music throughout his career and used classical, semi-classical, thumris, and western music. He started his career in 1943 with Vishwas film, in which he worked with Chhelalal, an Indian music director.

He then composed music in 1946 for Neik Parveen’s film, but some of its compositions were good. Later in 1947, Noor Jehan and her husband Shaukat Hussain Rizvi’s production company in Mumbai recruited him to score the music for the film Jugnu, a music blockbuster film of the 1940s.

After the partition, he migrated to Lahore and started working as a music director in the Pakistani film industry with his first film Hamri Basti (1949).

However, four years later, Noor Jehan produced the Pakistani film, Chann Vey, and his compositions for the film were praised in the Indian subcontinent. In 1952, he scored music for the Dopatta film, the only high-grossed Pakistani film of the 1950s.

He composed music for several Lollywood films during in the decades of 1960s and seventies.

Feroze Nizami’s last film as a music composer was Zar Zan Zamin released in 1974.

During his last days, he extensively researched music and wrote books on the musical subject such as Ramooz e Moseeqi and Israr e Moseeqi, and an autobiographical book titled Sarchashma e Hayat, comprising a detailed account of his life.

He is also credited for introducing the greatest Indian singer Mohammed Rafi to the Indian film industry.

Feroze Nizami died on November 15, 1975, in Lahore.