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Nazia Hassan

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Nazia Hassan

Nazia Hassan (Template:Lang-ur) (April 3, 1965 – August 13, 2000[1]) was an iconic Pakistani pop singer. Her song "Aap Jaisa Koi" from the film Qurbani made her a legend and pop icon in Pakistan and all of South Asia in the 1980s where she is admired and loved even today, several years after her death.

She was best known with the titles of The Queen of Pop Singing and Sweetheart of Pakistan. She was the most influential and popular female singer and probably one of the few real pop singer of the 1980s and the 1990s in both India and Pakistan.

Early life and Career

Nazia Hassan was born in Karachi, Pakistan and from an early age showed interest in music.[2] Nazia's professional career started at the age of fifteen when she provided the lead vocals for the song Aap Jaisa Koi from a Bollywood film titled Qurbani (1980), by Indian producer-director Feroz Khan. Nazia was introduced to Feroz by his friend in the United Kingdom. The song was a huge success in India and despite Nazia being a Pakistani, she gained overnight fame there.[3]

She then collaborated with Biddu, a UK-based Indian music producer who was also the composer of Aap Jaisa Koi, on numerous other projects. Biddu had previously made several hit-songs for various singers like Tina Charles and Carl Douglas. In 1981, Nazia released her first mega-hit, Disco Deewane. The album broke record sales in Pakistan and India and even topped the charts in the West Indies, Latin America and Russia. This album also had vocals of her brother, Zoheb Hassan. Nazia also released her later albums, which included Star/Boom Boom (1982), Young Tarang (1984), Hotline (1987), and Camera Camera (1992). Nazia and Zoheb appeared with music maestro Sohail Rana's Pakistani television program for children, "Sung Sung". In 1988, Nazia and Zoheb also hosted the groundbreaking show Music '89 produced by Shoaib Mansoor.

After the huge success of their music, selling millions of albums worldwide, EMI Music International also Nazia and Zoheb, making them as the first South Asian artists to be signed by an international music label.

Nazia and Zoheb's television interviews were shown on TV in India, Pakistan, Dubai, UK (big names like David Soul, David Essex, Zia Mohiuddin conducted the interviews on BBC, ITV, Channel 4 etc) and many other countries.

Legacy

Pakistan's vibrant contemporary music scene owes itself to Nazia Hassan's redefinition of pop. In fact, the biggest nineties bands including the Vital Signs and the Jupiters got a platform on "Music '89". Nazia also had a seismic impact in India. India Today magazine voted her as one of the 50 people who helped change the face of India. She has contributed to the development of the present isomorphism of Bollywood music and pop: “She set - well ahead of its time - the personal album trend in India”, spawning the likes of Alisha Chinai, Lucky Ali and Shweta Shetty.

In fact, such was Nazia’s success that in Bollywood there is an intriguing story stating that she outdid both in terms of sales and popularity the Indian playback singer, Lata Mangeshkar. ” Lata's biographer Raju Bharatan poses the following question: “Were there, then, no serious challenges to Lata Mangeshkar in her long singing career?” The answer surprises: “…there was a happening in Lata's life and times that made a mere teenager a near despair for her. That teenybopper was Nazia Hasan.” He continues, “Lata’s film Aasha…just could not catch up with Nazia's Aap jaisa koi for 14 weeks running, hard as it tried! The year 1980 in Hindi film music thus belonged to a UK based Pakistani singer – a slip of a girl who came to India via England to capture subcontinental hearts. There was no way even the velvet voice of Lata could scale down Nazia during that spell.”

Besides music, Nazia has the honour of starting a noble trend of working for the under privileged and poor. All their money earned from music was spent for charity. Nazia supported the “Inner Wheel Club” of India to help with funds for them. In Pakistan, an organization “BAN” for fighting against the curse of narcotics was established. She belonged to many charity organizations and worked with her mother Muniza Basir in the low income areas of Karachi to help the needy and sick. Nazia worked with Javed Jabbar, former Information Minister, to raise funds for children in Rajasthan. She went to a very large number of schools to collect toys for the poor children and gave talks on the subject of social awareness for the under privileged. Nazia never forgot the love and support of all the schools and always spoke with great affection for them. The worthy staff and the students of St Joseph’s Convent, Mama Parsi School and many others had gone out of their way to help the cause.

Surprisingly, music was only a hobby for Nazia and though her achievements in this field were any one’s dream come true, she lived away from the glitzy world and led a secluded and simple life. She completed her education in the UK, got a law degree and then worked in the United Nations in the Security Council. Nazia continued her social work even in New York and worked for children from the UN platform.

She is known to be the "Sweetheart of Pakistan" and "The Nightingale of East". Nazia Hassan is still the symbol of grace, sacred beauty and innocence and is frequently compared to Princess Diana as she was known to possess a heart of gold. Nazia spent her teenage between Karachi and London where she would go on to read law at a London University.[citation needed]. Nazia was married on March 30 1995 to Mirza Ishtiaq Baig. This marriage was a complete failure and Nazia Hassan got divorced just before her demise.

Death

Nazia Hassan died on August 13, 2000 in London of lung cancer at the age of 35.[1] She was admitted to North Finchley Hospice three days earlier when her condition deteriorated. She showed signs of mild recovery on Saturday and it was thought that doctors would allow her to go home. But early Sunday morning, her mother, Muneeza Hasan, was called to the hospital where her daughter had started coughing heavily at around 9:15am. She died within minutes.

Nazia Hassan's son Arez, who was born on April 7 1997 and was only three when his mother succumbed to cancer, was taken into the care of Nazia's parents. He is continuing the charitable work that his mother initiated via the Nazia Hassan Charitable Foundation.

The Government of Pakistan has conferred upon Nazia Hassan the highest civilian award Pride of Performance. The award was presented to Mrs. Muniza Basir, mother of Nazia Hassan, by the President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf in an official ceremony held at Islamabad on 23 March 2002.

Nazia's Family

Nazia’s father Mr. Basir Hassan is a known businessman and her mother Mrs. Muneezeh Basir was an active social worker in her youth. Nazia’s grandfather and Basir Hassan’s father, Nawab Syed Saghiruddin Hassan was the President & Vice President of Muslim League, Delhi and owners of the 1st Ginning Mill in Multan, Pakistan. Some of their friends included Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan, the first Prime Minister of Pakistan and Justice Wajihuddin.

Nazia’s great grandfather, Khan Bahadur Syed Basiruddin Hassan was very active in social work. He was the founder of Anjuman-e-Himayat-e-Islam, Governor of Lady Dufferin Hospital, and Trustee of Fateh Puri Mosque and built seven primary schools in Delhi.

'Made in India' controversy

In early-1990s, Indian composer Biddu, with whom Nazia had collaborated on numerous projects, composed a song titled "Made in India" and wanted Nazia to provide lead vocals for it. However, Nazia turned the offer down. She told song-writer and music director Biddu that she could not bring herself to sing something that may insult some Pakistanis. Despite Nazia being a Pakistani, she was able to gain immense popularity in India too and was also a recipient of the prestigious Filmfare Award.

The song was eventually offered to Indian singer Alisha Chinai. The song was a huge success and is considered to mark the beginning of the era of Indipop.[4]

Nazia Hassan Foundation

The Nazia Hassan Foundation has been established by Nazia's family, her parents Basir & Muniza and sister Zahra, in continuation of her life long charitable and social efforts to make the world a better place to live in for all irrespective of colour, creed or religion.

Discography

Albums

Films (Playback Singer)

TV appearances

  • Kaliyon Ke Mala (1975) -- Appearance as a child artist - Nazia Hassan sung Dosti Asa Naata
  • Sang Sang Chalien (1977) -- Appearance as a child artist
  • Disco Deewane (BBC Show 1981)
  • Disco Deewane (DD 1 1981)
  • BBC News (1981)
  • Zia Moh-u-Din Show (Channel 4 1981)
  • David Sole (1981)
  • David Essex (1981)
  • Young Tarang Show (DD 1 1984)
  • Aap Ke Liye (PTV 1985)
  • PTV Election Transmission (1985)
  • Show Time (PTV 1986)
  • Yes Sir No Sir (PTV 1987)
  • TV Hits (1987)
  • BBC Show (1987)
  • PTV Awards (1988)
  • Then He Kissed ME (1988)
  • Music '89 (1989); Hosted by Nazia Hassan & Zoheb Hassan
  • Dhanak (1989); Hosted by Nazia Hassan
  • PTV 25 (1990)
  • Mehman-i-Khasosi (1990)
  • Studio 2 (1990)
  • Eid Show (1992)
  • Eye Witness (1993)
  • Kaliyan (1990 - 1991)
  • Pro Audio Show (1995)
  • Nawrang (1995); Hosted by Nazia Hassan and Dr. Farooq Baig
  • Sawaire Sawaire (PTV 1997)
  • PTV World (1998)
  • Zee TV (1999, Nazia Hassan's last TV appearance)

TV commercials

  • Sitara Sapna Lawn
  • Lipton (1990)
  • Lipton (1991)
  • Lipton (1992)

Documentary

Awards

  1. Filmfare Best Female Playback Award
  2. Double Platinum
  3. Platinum
  4. Golden Discs
  5. Pride of Performance

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Jai Kumar (2000-08-23). "Obituary: Nazia Hassan". guardian.co.uk. The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-05-18.
  2. ^ http://www.jazbah.org/naziah1.php
  3. ^ http://www.rediff.com/entertai/2000/sep/27nazia.htm
  4. ^ http://www.hindu.com/mp/2005/07/11/stories/2005071100460100.htm
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