The American magazine Time has featured Pakistani singer and songwriter Ali Sethi in the TIME100 Next list for 2022 in its ‘Innovators’ category for his hot single Pasoori.
Commenting on Sethi’s achievement, the award-winning Indian writer Amitav Ghosh said,
Sethi’s great gift is that he is able to use an ancient form of music from the region, the classic raga, to challenge and expand notion of gender, sexuality, and belonging. Pasoori is a virtuoso demonstration of how artists can, in subtle ways, subvert the restrictions that are imposed upon them by new forms of authoritarianism and intolerance. Through his music, as well as his writing, Sethi shows us that differences in culture, language, religion, and gender do not need to be antagonistic; they can, and always have, enriched us, and given us some of our greatest works of art.
On the other hand, the singer himself wrote “Proud to be included in the 2022 TIME100 Next list — that too with a writeup from guru Amitav Ghosh” on his Instagram which he shared with an old-world portrait of himself taken by photographer Umar Nadeem.
Sethi has much to thank Coke Studio for because of the globally resounding success of his hit song Pasoori for his success in 2022. The Punjabi song has close to 400 million views on YouTube, and despite the persistent tension with neighboring India, the song has found a huge following there as well.
Ali Sethi is the son of former PCB Chairman and journalist, Najam Sethi, and is one of the most talented young singers in the industry. Be it classics such as Chan Kithan or the more upbeat ones like Tinak Dhin, the singer has his own way of ruling over the hearts of his fans.
His latest song, Pasoori, which was released during season 14 of Coke Studio, is one of the few songs that has transcended borders and has earned him a place on Time’s coveted list.
