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HomeGo To PakistanSinging in each other’s tongue—Buhe Bariyan in Beijing echoes China-Pakistan friendship

Singing in each other’s tongue—Buhe Bariyan in Beijing echoes China-Pakistan friendship

China has been known to frequently deploy a soft approach to diplomacy by frequently holding events that see singers and dancers engage in other cultures.

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China’s latest attempt at cultural diplomacy is making waves in Pakistan after a Chinese music teacher’s rendition of Hadiqa Kiani’s Buhe Bariyan in Beijing went viral. As part of Pakistan’s Independence Day celebrations, 39-year-old Hou Wei Vicky, who teaches music at Pakistan Embassy College, Beijing, performed the song before a Chinese audience.

A clip of the performance, shared by Moin Ul Haq, Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, on Twitter went viral. Pakistanis were quick to congratulate Vicky, with many noting that her diction was perfect, if not flawless.

“Oh my god, she sang close to our legend @Hadiqa_Kiani. She did justice to the song! Worth Laudable!” said one Twitter user.

 

Naila Khan from Kiani’s team told ThePrint, “Vicky is a very talented artist who respects Pakistan. Hadiqa and she performed together in Beijing, China in 2006 actually. Hadiqa sang a song in Mandarin and Vicky sang Hadiqa’s song Boohey Barian as a gesture of the long-standing friendship between Pakistan and China.”

China has been known to frequently deploy a soft approach to diplomacy by frequently holding events that see singers and dancers engage in other cultures. This was seen close to home in 2019, as the Chinese ambassador to Nepal, Hou Yanqi, danced to a Nepalese folk song. And going far back, in 2008 China sent the China Philharmonic Orchestra to play at the Vatican in an attempt to revive the relationship between the Catholic Church and China.


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Love for Hindi songs

Hou Wei Vicky performed at a Food and Culture Festival organised by the Pakistan Embassy as part of the country’s Independence Day celebrations.

The festival, aimed at promoting Pakistani food, culture, history, and products, was held over two days, featured big names and was meant to celebrate the relationship between the two countries.

This isn’t Vicky’s first attempt at exploring South Asian languages through music. In 2009, Hindustan Times did an article on her for singing Hindi songs at a Chinese restaurant. The daughter of Peking Opera artists, Vicky was encouraged by her parents to practise singing Hindi songs.

“The first time I heard Hindi songs, I couldn’t understand the meaning but the songs made me feel so happy,” she had told Hindustan Times in 2009. She’s a huge fan of ‘70s and ’80s Bollywood music. “I delete new songs on my MP3 within a month. But I never delete a Lata song,” she had said back then.

She visited India in 2006 and brought back with her a harmonium. She learnt Kathak and would teach Bollywood dance to the locals.


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Song knows no borders

‘Buhe Bariyan’ was written by Kiani’s mother for her platinum-selling album, Roshni (1998). A Punjabi folk song, it talks about a heroine overcoming different obstacles to demonstrate her love for her man. The melody and powerful lyrics catapulted the song into the hall of fame. The song is extremely popular in the subcontinent as people from across borders frequently gather under the song’s Youtube video and reminisce old times.

The rendition has made waves in India with artists offering their own versions, the latest by Kanika Kapoor in April 2022. However, Kiani called out Kapoor and Saregama for having published the song without her permission on Instagram. “Another day and another shameless rendition of a song my mother wrote. No one asked for my permission, no one has given me royalties. They just take the song that my mother wrote and I recorded and use it as an easy money-making scheme,” she said in her Instagram story.

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