Fazal Malik Akif

Fazal Malik Akif is a Pashto singer and songwriter, who gained popularity in the 1970s for introducing a modern and eclectic twist to traditional Pashto folk compositions. He is widely regarded as the first pathan pop star for collaborating indigenous instruments such as the rubab, harmonium and tabla with contemporary synthesizers, accordion, drums and electric guitar. He typically sang in his native language of Pashto, but his repertoire extends to Urdu, Punjabi, Hindko, Sindhi, Balochi, Saraiki and Farsi.

Akif was born in Kohat, Pakistan in 1947. Born FazaleMalik, he added the pen name Akif in 1971 when he came across the word in Islamic literature. Akif derives from the word Itikaf, loosely translated as someone who cannot be moved. His father Fazal Karim Asif was a prominent lawyer and mother Zubaida Khanum was a housewife.

Source: Wikipedia