Biography

Arif Lohar is a professional singer based out of the finance capital of India, Mumbai. Born in Pakistan, Arif usually sings with a chimta, a native instrument resembling tongs. His folk music represents the traditional folk heritage of Pakistan. Arif Lohar has performed in more than 50 foreign tours around the world during the last 20 years, including tours of the United States, UAE, and the UK. In 2004, he performed in China for the opening of the Asian Games, which had a crowd of close to a million. He once performed in North Korea for the Late President, Kim Jong-il, as part of an international delegation of goodwill and peace. He has also played multiple lead roles in Punjabi movies and produced three songs for the soundtrack of Jugni, a Syed Noor Film. The movie was the highest-grossing Pakistani film of 2012. Arif Lohar was awarded the Pride of Performance Award, the highest civil award in Pakistan, by the Pakistani Government in 2005. To date, he has more than 150 music albums to his credit (including many LPs and singles), mostly in Punjabi. In 2006, he made headlines in the Punjabi music world by releasing his album, 21st Century Jugni, with music arranged, produced, and mastered by Mukhtar Sahota in Wolverhampton, UK, which was released by Internalmusic UK. Arif Lohar participated in Coke Studio, a Pakistani LIVE session programme by Rohail Hayat, in 2010. During Coke Studio Season 3, Arif Lohar performed 'Alif Allah (Jugni)' with Meesha Shafi, an upcoming musician. Lohar's performance for Coke Studio featured two other songs: 'Alif Allah Chambey Dey Booti/Jugni', a collaboration that became an international success, and 'Mirza'. Saif Ali Khan, actor and filmmaker, bought the rights to 'Jugni' for use as a feature song in Cocktail, his Bollywood movie. Other variants of 'Jugni' have also been featured in Bollywood films, including an adapted version that first appeared on in the movie, Diary of a Butterfly. He also wrote a song for the Bollywood film, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. He has also sung in several Punjabi films in India and Pakistan.