Irfan Khan (

Pashto Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani (). Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official langua ...

: عرفان خان) is a

Pakistani Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

pop singer. Retrieved July 16, 2016 singing in both

and Urdu. His claim to fame came with the release of a Pashto single "Pekhawar Khu Pekhawar De" which translates into "Peshawar Is Peshawar", a song he wrote in a tribute to his hometown. He recently recorded a single with

Hadiqa Kiyani Hadiqa Kiani (in Punjabi and ur, ) is a Pakistani singer, Songwriter, Guitarist, composer, actress, and philanthropist. She has received numerous local and international awards and also has performed at the Royal Albert Hall and The Kenn ...

called "Jaanan". "Jaanan" was Irfan's title song from his Album by the same name. "Jaanan" proved to be a superhit song all over Pakistan in 2010. It even made it to the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

' "What they are..." section.

Background

Irfan Khan was born on May 5, 1982 in

Mardan Mardān (Pashto and ; Urdu ; Pashto: ) is a city in the Mardan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan. Located in the Valley of Peshawar, Mardan is the second-largest city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (after Peshawar). It is a fast-growing ...

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

. his father worked as a Manager for a Pakistani Bank. Irfan started his education at the age of 6 in Swat and later on in Azad Kashmir. He did his Matriculation examination (10th grade) from Peshawar Model School, intermediate examinations (12th grade) from

Edwardes College Edwardes College Peshawar is a semi-government degree The college's undergraduate and graduate degree programs lead to the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.), 4 year BS Programme in English and Computer Science, Master of Bus ...

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

and got his BA Degree in Communication Design from the

University of Peshawar The University of Peshawar ( ps, د پېښور پوهنتون; hnd, پشور یونیورسٹی; ur, ; abbreviated UoP; known more popularly as Peshawar University) is a public research university located in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pa ...

and degree in

hospitality Hospitality is the relationship between a guest and a host, wherein the host receives the guest with some amount of goodwill, including the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers. Louis, chevalier de Jaucourt describes ...

and hotel management.

Career

From the epoch of schooling he took part in Naat competitions. In college, he realized his passion for music, where he started exploring

Pashto music Pashto music ( ps, ) or ''Də ṭang-ṭakór'' is commonly performed in Afghanistan and Pakistan among Pashtun people. Genres Tappa Tappa ( ps, ټپه) is the oldest and most popular genre of the Pashto poetry. The Tappa is a composition of ...

. Fortunately this was the beginning of new era in Pashtun media. He recorded his first Pashto single "Pekhawar Khu Pekhawar de" which Khyber TV broadcast, and which became an instant hit and put Irfan in the growing Pashto music scene. Irfan went on to record his first Pashto album "Brekhna" which was very well received within the Pashtun community in

Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ...

and overseas. The songs soon emerged all over internet and were downloaded all around the world. His song "Zema De Stergo Na Panaa Gulaba" was especially well received overseas, which describes the longing of expatriates for their homeland.http://www.rferl.org/content/gandhara_taliban_pashtun_music_buneri/2241153.html, Irfan Khan (singer) on Radio Free Europe, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Published December 7, 2010. Retrieved July 16, 2016 Irfan went on to participate on various television shows and live performances including a solo concert in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

and in

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

''Chounay Day''

Irfan has also launched his first

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

and

Islamabad Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital ...

. He also recorded a video for the title song from this Album in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. And he has recorded a video of the song "Janaan" with

Hadiqa Kiani Hadiqa Kiani (in Punjabi and ur, ) is a Pakistani singer, Songwriter, Guitarist, composer, actress, and philanthropist. She has received numerous local and international awards and also has performed at the Royal Albert Hall and The Kennedy ...

References

External links

Irfan Khan mentioned in Times of India Article "Dying notes: Music goes out of Peshawar as artists face militants’ ire"
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20111005052219/http://www.desrevespleinlemonde.com/reves_adultes_pakistan.htm Irfan khan mentioned in French book des reves plein le mondebr>Irfan khan interview with Express tribune
*https://www.bbc.com/pashto/news/story/2007/08/070831_mmn_ 1982 births Living people Pashto-language singers Pakistani expatriates in the United Arab Emirates Pakistani pop singers Pakistani male singers Pashtun people People from Peshawar University of Peshawar alumni {{Pakistan-singer-stub