[1] Ustad Hashem was born and raised in a musical family, which originally came from Kasur in Punjab, but settled in the 19th century in Kabul as court musicians.
[2][3] Both he and his brothers appeared regularly on Afghan Television and Radio prior to the Russian invasion of Afghanistan and the subsequent wars.
[2][4][5] He accompanied regularly other famous Afghan musicians like Ahmad Zahir and Ustad Mahwash on his tabla.
[2][6] He was the teacher and mentor of Ustad Mahwash,[2][7][8] the first Afghan female master musician and Zuleikha, a US American dancer and artist.
[1][2][12][13] Following the Russian invasion of Afghanistan he had to flee his home country[1][2] and emigrated to Germany where he died in 1994,[2] killed by one of his former students for reasons unknown.