Pathanay Khan (born Ghulam Muhammad; 1926 – 9 March 2000) was one of the most revered folk and Sufi singers of the Saraiki region, celebrated for his soulful renditions of Kafis and Ghazals drawn from the poetry of Khwaja Ghulam Farid, Shah Hussain and Bulleh Shah. Born in Basti Tambu Wali near Kot Addu in the heart of the Thal Desert, he left school after the seventh grade and was raised largely by his mother, who supported the family as a village baker while he learned to sing under his first teacher, Baba Mir Khan.
As a child he was named Ghulam Muhammad, but after a serious illness a local spiritual guide advised his mother to change his name; her decision to call him Pathanay Khan, she believed, saved his life.
Radio Pakistan Multan played a pivotal role in launching his career, broadcasting his voice across South Punjab and beyond. Pathanay Khan often credited the station with lifting, in his words, “a man of clay” to artistic recognition. In 1976, then Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto invited him to Islamabad for a private performance; Bhutto was reportedly moved to tears by his singing.
His 1984 debut album, Main Vee Jana Jhok Ranjhan, remains one of the most beloved Saraiki folk recordings, and he continued releasing music through the 1980s and 1990s, including Kafis in 1999. In recognition of his contribution to Pakistani folk music, he received the Pride of Performance Award from the President of Pakistan in 1979.
Pathanay Khan passed away on 9 March 2000 in his native Kot Addu after a protracted illness. His voice remains one of the defining sounds of Saraiki Sufi music, still played at shrines, festivals and homes across South Punjab today.
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