Volunteers transport the body of legendary classical singer Mehdi Hassan from a hospital in Karachi on June 13, 2012. Pakistan's legendary classical singer Mehdi Hassan, who captivated millions of music fans across South Asia, died on June 13 after a long illness his family said. He was 84. Hassan, known as Shahenshah-e-Ghazal, or the king of classical singing among Urdu speakers across the world, died in a private hospital in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi.