New Delhi, June 9 :    New Delhi, June 9:  In the 1980s, Pakistani dictator Zia-ul Haq had used cricket as a diplomatic tool to repair damaged Indo-Pak relations. Now Atal Bihari Vajpayee has turned to ghazals to unite the people of the two countries. The Prime Minister, recovering from a knee-joint replacement surgery at Mumbai's Breach Candy hospital, has written to famous Pakistani ghazal singer Mehdi Hasan to highlight the popularity of ghazals on both sides of the border and its virtues as an unifying force. 'Its (ghazal's) equal popularity on both sides of the border illustrates that a life of peace and goodwill, and a readiness to appreciate the best of each other is a national aspiration of our two peoples,' Vajpayee wrote in a letter to the maestro, now recuperating in a Karachi hospital after a stroke. The remarks are significant. Hasan is one of the most popular ghazal singers from Pakistan to have toured India over the past few decades. His ghazals, Ranjish hi sahi, Phool hi phool khil uthey hai, Mohabbat karne wale kam na honge are as popular on this side of the border as they are in Pakistan. Coming after Vajpayee's invitation to Pakistan chief executive Pervez Musharraf for talks, the remarks signal Delhi's desire not only to normalise ties with Islamabad but also to build good-neighbourly relations. They are also in line with India's policy of stressing on people-to-people contact and exchange of cultural troupes to put relations between the estranged neighbours back on track. In the get-well message to Hasan, who recently suffered a massive heart attack, Vajpayee said: 'I join millions of your fans in India in praying for your speedy and complete recovery so that the world of music may continue to have one of its greatest living exponents around for a long time to come.' Vajpayee reminded Hasan that the ghazals he sang at his residence in New Delhi in 1978 were 'still fresh in memory'. 'This is true of all those who have savoured your music at numerous concerts you have given in India through the past several decades,' he wrote. 'Your music, like the great artistes of India and Pakistan, reminds us of the many common bonds of culture and spirituality that unite our two countries.' Vajpayee is known to be a lover of Urdu and Hindustani music and poetry. But what made him write the letter was Hasan's remarks in an interview with the Pakistani newspaper, Dawn. The singer had talked about the love and appreciation shown by Indians to his music. 'Jo haq, Pakistanion ko meri ghazlon pe hain, wohi Hindustanion ko bhi hai. Unhone mujhe kam pyar nahin diya (I don't think people of India have any less right on my ghazals than those in Pakistan. The love that was showered on me in India was no less),' Hasan had told the interviewer. Vajpayee said he was touched by the statement and stressed that 'music and poetry knows no boundary'. Wishing him speedy recovery, he expressed hope that Hasan would be able to come to India again and visit Luna, his birthplace in Rajasthan. 'I will be too happy to welcome you to my house once again,' the Prime Minister said.