Punjabi folk singer Shaukat Ali has passed away in Lahore at the age of 78.
Family members have confirmed his death. According to his son Ameer Shaukat Ali, the funeral prayers will be offered today between Maghrib and Isha at at Samsani Johar Town in Lahore.
He had been undergoing treatment at the Combined Military Hospital in the city for almost a month. His son Ameer Shaukat Ali had said in a video posted a few days earlier that his father was being treated by the Army on the directives of Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
He had been admitted to the intensive care unit due to liver failure.
He had faced multiple medical issues, including diabetes and a liver transplant.
Moreover, he had undergone a heart bypass surgery a few years ago.
The singer was from Malakwal in Mandi Bahauddin district and is survived by three sons Imran, Ameer and Mohsin.
The Ghazal maestro was one of the most prolific artists of the Pakistani music industry, with a singing career spanning five decades.
Born into an artistic family in Malakwal, he had begun his singing career in the 1960s with film songs.
He was introduced in 1963 by musician M Ashraf in the film Tees Maar Khan and cemented his place in ghazals, songs, national anthems and Punjabi folk songs.
Shaukat Ali was dubbed the voice of Punjab in 1976 and performed at the Asian Games in New Delhi in 1982. He was known for his patriotic songs Saathion Mujahidon Jaag Utha Hai Sara Watan, Mera Puttar Pakistan Da and Apna Quaid Aik Hai during the 1965 and 1971 wars and began his career as a playback singer in a Punjabi movie in 1963.
He was famous for singing lok geet, ghazals and Punjabi songs.
Moreover, he sang sufi kalaams in his career with Heer Ranjha of Waris Shah and Saif ul Maluk, to name a few.
He was awarded the Pride of Performance award in 1990 by the President of Pakistan.
Shaukat, known for his war-time patriotic songs in the wars of 1965 and 1971, such as Saathion Mujahidon Jaag Utha Hai Sara Watan and Apna Quaid Aik Hai among many others, had been unwell for the past several years.
