Proving that Atif Aslam is a fan of his fans, the Pakistani singing icon touched a chord with millions by showering love on a daring young girl who jumped on the stage during a concert in Dhaka to hug her idol.
Aslam is visiting Bangladesh for a series of concerts in different cities and will also be performing in Nepal in the later leg of his tour.
That beautiful moment, showing the passionate girl rushing onto the stage breaking through the security barrier to embrace the singer, videoed by another concert-goer, has gone beyond viral.
Aslam's heartfelt engagement has garnered tonnes of praise on the Internet.
Singing celebrities usually do not like fans invading the stage; however, what Aslam did was extraordinary and humbling and stirred a myriad of responses on the social media website X.
A user said: "Everyone who attended his show saying one thing about him, 'Atif is so humble'." "Cringe. Imagine if it was the other way around. The woman should be fined," another commented on X.Others underscored the significance of personal space for celebs. "Now switch the roles, and imagine the response," wrote one of the X users.
Aslam was covering Dama Dam Mast Qalandar, one of the most popular sufi numbers in South Asia as well as across the world, when the young girl climbed onto the stage and hugged Aslam tightly and started chanting: "I love you, I love you". In response, Atif said: "I love you too".
What went on between the fan and the idol was hard to decipher because the crowd was more than charged and everyone was cheering Aslam for his compassionate gesture. After that little chit-chat, the girl was persuaded off the stage.
This is not the first time Aslam has exhibited such grace on stage. Once, during a concert in the US, a fan showered dollars on him, a practice common in South Asia where people throw money on the singers and dancers. Aslam had the music paused and politely encouraged the fans to donate the money to a better cause.
There's a lot of talk going around about this. Some people pointed out how crucial it was for famous people to have their own personal space, while others hailed Aslam for humbly handling the situation with care and understanding.