He was not a sophisticated person, he did not possess a great voice, neither was he ever thought of as a brilliant composer. His lyrics, despite having the honesty of a soul singer, will never feature in the pages of a literary giant. His presence on the stage, though passionate, was at the most archaic. He talked like a commoner and even at his best would be considered a misfit among the shiny and bright.
But, Azam Khan was still a HERO. He would walk on the road and nobody would even bother to look back, yet on stage he could draw thousands and create mad frenzy among his followers. The youth and the young took him up to their hearts and affectionately called him 'the GURU (teacher)'. He was the GURU of a whole generation!
Azam Khan had the gift of 'simplicity' in his stride and the advantage of being the 'first'. He fought in the liberation war of the country as a guerilla fighter; during the same period, he roamed around the country singing folk and inspirational songs. And he had the courage of trying his mundane, daily words in the tunes of western pop music. No one before him tried that, let alone singing them in public. He was frowned upon by almost all. Yet he persevered. In doing so, he eventually captured the imagination of a whole generation. After all, it's the youth who determines the path of the future.
At the end, Azam Khan prevailed. His style lived on to regenerate in to the pop and subsequent band music culture of the country. He was followed by the millions in his life; and in death, his absence is being mourned by the millions. This is the story of our hero, the hero of our time!
