Legendary Pakistani folk singer Reshma, who died in Lahore on Sunday was known as Nightingale of the Desert.
Reshma, who remained unaffected by fame, had once said that “the borders do not matter to me... because, an artist belongs to all.”
Remembering her origins in the sandy lands in India, she had said: “People in India showered me with a lot of admiration. In Pakistan, people have given me respect. But in India also, they listen to me with lot of love. It does not matter to them that I am a Pakistani singer.”
“Singers of that level and magnitude are an institution in themselves and her passing away means a complete era has passed. It is a huge loss,” Taimur Rahman, lead singer of Pakistani band Laal, told PTI.
Filmmaker Subhash Ghai used her voice in the film, Hero , which featured one of her most famous songs Lambi Judai .
Reshma was once invited to meet the then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi.
The former Pakistan President, Pervez Musharraf, a music lover, had come to her aid and given her Rs. 1 million to help pay off a bank loan.
He also put her on a secured assistance of Pakistani Rs. 10,000 a month.
When she was hospitalised in Lahore’s Doctors Hospital on April 6, 2013, the caretaker government led by Najam Sethi decided to pay all her medical expenses.
‘A voice of passion’
Indian and Pakistani music industries mourned Reshma, describing her as a ‘voice of passion’ and ‘an inspiration to many.’
Her funeral was held in Lahore and attended by her relatives and well wishers.
