From the looks of it, it seems like icon & singer Hadiqa Kiani is a fan of the Turkish series, Dirilis Ertugrul. She recently released a re-mastered version of her rendition of the popular Turkish track Sen Ağlama, originally sung by Sezen Aksu. She took to Twitter to announce her tribute to the show in the words: “In 2005, I had the honour of singing the Turkish song #SenAğlama at the AKM Opera House. Today, I have remastered that song as a tribute to @TRTErtugrulPTV series, #SezenAksu, and to the people of Turkey. May our love and bond be forever strong.”
https://twitter.com/Hadiqa_Kiani/status/1273912866039455746?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1273912866039455746&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftribune.com.pk%2Fstory%2F2246756%2F4-hadiqa-kianis-heartfelt-tribute-dirilis-ertugrul%2F
What makes this rendition even more special is that it is accompanied by clips from the Turkish show “Dirilis Ertugrul as Hadiqa’s soulful voice fills your ears.
What’s amazing is that Hadiqa’s love for Turkey and its culture is not a new development following the super popular television show. She took to Instagram to explain via a lengthy, heartfelt note:
“The love between Turkey and Pakistan is unlike the love of any other country. My maternal ancestors are from İzmir, Turkey and I have had an affinity for the country since my childhood.
“As a child, I would [represent] Pakistan in the International Children’s Festival in Turkey and in 2005 I returned to the great country to once again represent Pakistan at the iconic Atatürk Cultural Center and Opera House. The highlight of that trip was to sing the hauntingly beautiful “Sen Ağlama” (a Turkish song by living legend Sezen Aksu) to a standing ovation, the love I felt from the country of Turkey was unmatched,” she further said.
The singer added, “I remember telling the audience that as Turkey stood beside Pakistan in good and bad times, I wanted to convey the love of Pakistani people for the Turks.
“Now in 2020, a new milestone in the relationship between Pakistan and Turkey was cemented by the mammoth success of Ertuğrul in Pakistan and we thought of no better time to pay a public tribute to the people of Turkey by officially releasing my original performance of “Sen Ağlama.” The friendship between the two countries will continue to shine through culture, art and love,”.
While this might be the first time that a Pakistani singer has sung a song in the Turkish language, we’re sure that this won’t be last.