Noor Jehan

Noor Jehan was born as Allah Wasai on 21 September 1926 into a Punjabi Muslim family in Kot Murad Khan, near Kasur, Punjab, British India. She was one of eight children of Imdad Ali and Fateh Bibi. From an early age, she displayed a keen interest in music and began singing at the age of six. Her father recognized her talent and arranged for her to receive formal training in classical music. She studied under Ustad Ghulam Mohammad and later with Kajjanbai, focusing on the Patiala Gharana style of Hindustani classical music, including forms like thumri, dhrupad, and khyal. By age nine, she had attracted the attention of Punjabi musician Ghulam Ahmed Chishti, who composed early pieces for her and introduced her to stage performances in Lahore in 1935. Her family later moved to Calcutta in the mid 1930s in hopes of establishing careers in the performing arts for her and her elder sisters, Eiden Bai and Haider Bandi. Theatre owner Diwan Sardari Lal supported their relocation, and Noor Jehan continued her training while participating in musical theatre. The acclaimed singer Mukhtar Begum, wife of playwright Agha Hashar Kashmiri, mentored the young performer and helped her enter the film industry. It was during this time that she adopted the stage name Baby Noor Jehan. == Career ==

Career in British India Noor Jehan began to sing at the age of six and showed a keen interest in a range of styles, including traditional folk and popular theatre. At the age of nine, Noor Jehan drew the attention of Punjabi musician Ghulam Ahmed Chishti, who would later introduce her to the stage in Lahore. From 1945 to 1947 and her subsequent move to Pakistan, Noor Jehan was one of the biggest film actresses of the Indian Film Industry. Alongside Suraiya, she was the biggest star in the country before Independence. Acting career in Pakistan In 1947, Rizvi and Jehan decided to move to Pakistan, upon the independence of the British Indian Empire, and had resulted in partition of India. She had an understanding and friendship with many singers of Asia, for example with Alam Lohar and many more. In the 1990s, Jehan also sang for then débutante actresses Neeli and Reema. Lionel Richie, Bob Geldof, Madonna, Boy George, and Duran Duran were some of the performers at the star-studded event which was attended, amongst many others, by thespian John Gielgud, Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter, and Oscar-winning actress Dame Peggy Ashcroft. She has also sung "Saiyan Saadey Naal", a song of well-known Pakistani folk singer, songwriter and composer for the film Dam Mast Kalander/Aalmi Gunday. ==Personal life==

In 1941, Noor Jehan married Shaukat Hussain Rizvi of Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India. In 1947, Shaukat Rizvi decided to migrate to Pakistan, and Noor Jehan moved too, ending her career in India. Noor Jehan was also in a relationship with cricketer Nazar Mohammad. She married Ejaz Durrani in 1959. The second marriage also produced three children but also ended in divorce in 1971. She also had affair with actor Yousuf Khan. ==Last years and death==

Jehan suffered from chest pains in 1986 on a tour of North America and was diagnosed with angina pectoris, after which she underwent bypass surgery. According to her daughter, Shazia Hassan, she was suffering from chronic kidney disease in her last years and was on dialysis. In 2000, Jehan was hospitalised at Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, and suffered a heart attack. She was buried at the in Karachi. ==Awards and honours==

Noor Jehan received more than 15 Nigar Awards for Best Female Playback Singer, eight for Best Urdu Singer Female and the rest for Punjabi Playback. She has also received the Millennium Singer Award in Pakistan. • In 1945, for the film Zeenat, she was awarded a gold medal by Z.A. Bukhari. • Noor Jehan was ranked eighth in a list of Most Influential Pakistanis. • Mohammad Rafi always wished to make duets with her. Asha Bhosle, a Bollywood playback singer, stated in an interview: ::Jehan was one of my favourite singers and when I listened to her Ghazals, I realized how unusual compositions were those, so I decided to take them to a larger audience which they deserve. :She added that; ::The world will never see a singer like her. Just as people have not seen another Mohammad Rafi and Kishore Kumar there would never be another Noor Jehan. • British weekly newspaper Eastern Eye ranked Noor Jehan at 16th in a list of 20 Bollywood singers of all time. The entertainment editor of Eastern Eye wrote that: ::Jehan was the first female singing star of the Indian cinema and helped to lay the foundation of playback singing as we know it. She inspired a generation of singers including Lata Mangeshkar before single-handedly kick-starting music In Pakistan and inspired subsequent generations there. • In 1945, she became the first woman in the subcontinent to sing Qawwali in the film Zeenat. American Queen of Pop Madonna commented that, "I can copy every singer but not Noor Jehan". • In 1957, she received President's Award for her acting and singing in film Intezaar. It was the same film for which Khwaja Khurshid Anwar also received President's Award for Best Music Director. • In 1965, she received Special Nigar Award for her wartime songs. • In 1965, she was awarded Pride of Performance by the president of Pakistan for her singing and acting capabilities. • In 1965, she received Tamgha-e-Imtiaz from the army for her moral support in the Indo-Pak war. • In 1972, she received Silver Disc Award for Best Ghazal Singer followed by Farida Khanum and Roshan Ara Begum was the first to receive the award. • She was the only Pakistani singer to sing with the Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum. • In 1981, she received Special Nigar Award for her excellence in 30 years of her career in Pakistan. • In 1987, she received NTM Life Time Achievement Award. • In 1991, she became the first Pakistani singer to sing at the Royal Albert Hall London. • In 1996, she received Sitara-e-Imtiaz. • In 1998, she received PTV Life Time Achievement Award. • In 1999, she received Millennium Award for her services to Pakistani cinema. • In August 2014, she was declared as the Greatest Female Singer Of Pakistan of all times. • In August 2017, she was ranked at the top of Female Pakistani Singers. • She also retained the designation Cultural Ambassador of Pakistan. • On 21 September 2017, Google Doodle commemorated her 91st birthday. ==Filmography==

Films == In popular culture ==

• Director Sarmad Khoosat's television series Piya Naam Ka Diya was about a singer, inspired loosely by Jehan's life. • In Pakistani film, Manto the role of Jehan was played by Saba Qamar. • In 2022, Pakistani television actress Ayeza Khan paid tribute to Jehan by adapting her look in TV drama Laapata. • In 2022, a commemorative tribute to Jehan featured within the 'FaceoftheMonth' series by Indian film scholar, Ashish Dwivedi, published in The Edge Magazine. == Notes ==