Musarrat Nazir Khawaja ( ur, ; born 13 October 1937) is a Pakistani singer and film actress, who acted in many

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Punjabi films. She, many years later, also sang solo, mostly wedding and

folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be c ...

Early life

Her parents were a Punjabi middle-class family Kashmiri origin from

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. ...

. Her father Khwaja Nazir Ahmed, worked as a registered contractor in

Municipal corporation A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally owne ...

. Early in her life, her parents wanted her to be a doctor, and provided her with the best possible education they could afford. Musarrat passed the matriculation examination (10th grade) with distinction and passed the intermediate examination (12th grade) from

Kinnaird College The Kinnaird College for Women (KCW) is a university located in Lahore, Pakistan. It is a women's liberal arts university. Kinnaird was established in 1913 by the Zenana Bible and Medical Mission. In 1919, Presbyterian Mission Church and the C ...

Career

She had keen interest in music and began singing for

Radio Pakistan Radio Pakistan serves as the national public broadcaster for radio in Pakistan. Although some local stations predate Radio Pakistan's founding, it is the oldest existing broadcasting network in Pakistan. The network was established on 14 August ...

in the early 1950s. However, insufficient money from the radio took her to the film director,

Anwar Kamal Pasha Anwar Kamal Pasha ( ur, ), (23 February 1925 – 13 October 1987) was the pioneer in the Pakistan film industry and an early Pakistani film director and producer from Lahore, Pakistan. Life and career Pasha was a graduate from the For ...

in 1955. She explained to Pasha about her strong desire to sing for the movies. Instead, Pasha suggested to her to become an actress. Musarrat needed her parents' approval. Pasha himself met Musarrat's father and convinced him to allow his daughter to work in the movie industry as a singer and actress. Anwar Kamal Pasha changed Musarrat's name to ''Chandani'' and signed her up for a side role in his movie. Hence, Chandani made her debut with

Sabiha Khanum Sabiha Khanum ( ur, ; born Mukhtar Begum; 16 October 1935 – 13 June 2020), was a Pakistani film actress. She is also known as the "First Lady of Pakistani Cinema", and is often recognized for her role in Pakistani cinema during the 1950s an ...

and

Nayyar Sultana Nayyar Sultana (born Tayyaba Bano; 1937 – 27 October 1992), sometimes referred to in Pakistan as ''Malka-i-Jazbaat'' (Queen of Sentiments), was a Pakistani film actress. She became one of the foremost screen actresses of Lollywood in the 1 ...

in Pasha's film ''Qatil'' in 1955. Her role was secondary but effective. Sheikh Lateef of ''Capital Films'',

planned to make a Punjabi film, 'Pattan (1955)'. Lateef's friend, poet and script writer, Baba Aalam Siah Posh, advised him to cast Chandani (Musarrat Nazir) in the film. Sheikh Lateef agreed. This was the debut of Musarrat Nazir in Punjabi films, with a nickname Chandani. Then Chandani appeared in the hit Punjabi film, ''Pattan'' (1955), with her real name, Musarrat Nazir. She played the lead role opposite Santosh Kumar in ''Pattan'' (1955). The producer was Sheikh Lateef and the film was directed by Luqman. The film ''Pattan'' opened the doors for Musarrat in the Punjabi film industry, which led her to the hit film ''Patay Khan'' (1955). She was the supporting actress. The film was produced by film actress Shammi and Musarrat Nazir acted in a supporting role along with

Noor Jehan Noor Jehan ( Punjabi: ) (born () Allah Rakhi Wasai ; 23 September 1926 – 23 December 2000; sometimes spelled Noorjehan),Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen, ''Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema,'' British Film Institute, Oxford University Pres ...

and

Aslam Pervaiz Aslam Parvez (12 February 1932 – 21 November 1984) was a Pakistani film actor. Career Born as Chaudhary Muhammad Aslam into a family of traders in Lahore, Punjab, British India on 12 February 1932. Aslam Parvez entered the Pakistani f ...

. Her main competitor actresses, in those days, were

, Yasmin and

Personal life

She was born on 13 October 1937. She is married to a physician Arshad Majeed and has lived in Canada since 1965. They have three grown-up children in 2005. Musarrat Nazir gave up her film career that was then at its peak for her would-be husband and agreed to move to Canada with him. Musarrat Nazir and Arshad Majeed wanted to return to Pakistan and settle in

in the late 1970s. Arshad Majeed wanted to set up a hospital in Lahore and they had gone ahead and bought a home there for this purpose which they still own and maintain in 2005. After spending a lot of money, months of struggle and running around, Arshad Majeed gave up.

Filmography

Musarrat also gave performances in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

cinema's greatest melodramas like the films ''Mahi Munda'' (1956) and ''Yakke Wali'' (1957). Following is the list of Musarrat's films: *''Qatil'' (1955) *''Pattan'' (1955), *''Paatay Khan'' (1955) *''Mahi Munda'' (1956) *''Peengaan'' (1956) *Qismet'' (1956) *''Mirza Sahiban'' (1956) *''Guddi Gudda'' (1956) *'' Baghi'' (1956), *''Aankh Ka Nasha'' (1957) *''Baap Ka Gunah'' (1957) *''Palkaan'' (1957) *''

Yakke Wali ''Yakke Wali'' is a 1957 Pakistani Punjabi language film directed by M. J. Rana and produced by Bari Malik. It tells the story of a woman who earns a living by driving a tanga. Musarrat Nazir played the title role in the film with Sudhir, M. A ...

'' (1957) *''Naya Zamana'' (1957) *''Sehti'' (1957) *''Jatti'' (1958) *''Zehr-e-Ishq'' (1958) *''Street number 77'' *''Seestaan'' (1957) *''Thandi Sarak'' (1957) *''Jaan-E-Bahar'' (1958) *''Lukkan Miti'' (1959) *''Jaidad'' (1959) *''

Kartar Singh Kartar Singh (born 7 October 1953) is an Indian wrestler who won gold medals at the Asian Games in 1978 and 1986. He stood 7th at the 1984 Summer Olympics – Men's freestyle 100 kg Wrestling. Life Kartar Singh was born in Sur ...

'' *'' Raaz'' (1959) *''Sola Aanay'' (1959) *''Jhoomer'' (1959) *''Gul Badan'' (1960) *''Naukari'' (1960) *''Sunehre Sapne'' (1961) *''

Shaheed ''Shaheed'' ( , , ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a martyr in Islam. The word is used frequently in the Quran in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); ...

'' (1962) *''Ishq Par Zor Nahin'' (1963) *''Chotay Sarkaar'' *''Mangol'' (1961) *''Muftbar'' (1961) *''Gulfam'' (1961) *''Bahadur'' (1967) The film song ''Us bay wafa ka sheher hai'' in the mega-hit film ''

'' (1962), is considered to be one of the popular songs in 2022. Even after she retired from her film career in 1963, she had continued to sing for

Pakistan Television Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore. Background Historical co ...

until recently.

Discography

Musarrat Nazir made an appearance on

Pakistani television Television in Pakistan started in 1964 and the first live transmission of Pakistan Television began on 26 November 1964, in Lahore.Tariq Aziz Show ''Bazm-e-Tariq Aziz'' (formerly ''Neelam Ghar'' and ''Tariq Aziz Show'') was a quiz-format game show hosted by Tariq Aziz on PTV which started in 1975 and lasted for many years. It was renamed as ''Tariq Aziz Show'' in 1997 and in 2006 took th ...

in 1983. Songs from that show became highly popular in Pakistan. Her popular songs are listed below: * ''Gulshan ki baharon mein'' * ''Mera laung gawacha'' (1983), song lyrics by

Khawaja Pervez Khawaja Pervez ( ur, ), (28 December 1930 – 20 June 2011) was a prominent Pakistani film composer- lyricist and film songwriter for both Urdu and Punjabi language films. His real name was Khawaja Ghulam Mohiuddin. His professional caree ...

was a runaway hit song * ''Chalay to kat hi jaaye ga safar aahistah, aahistah'' * ''Apnay haathoan ki lakiroan mein'' * ''Lathe di chader uttay saleti rung mahiya'', a traditional folk song of western Punjab * ''Chitta kukkar banairey tay'' * ''Mehndi ni mehndi'' * ''Jogi'' (1985)

Awards and nominations

Nigar Award The Nigar Awards ( ur, , translit=Inʿām Negār, lit=Picture Awards) were presented in an annual award show to recognize outstanding achievement in Pakistani cinema. The honors are awarded by Nigar Magazine founded in 1948. The Nigar Awards a ...

for Best Actress in 1958, for the film ''Zehr-E-Ishq''. *

for Best Actress in 1959, for the film ''Jhoomer''. *

for Best Actress in 1962, for the film ''Shaheed''. *

Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance ( ur, ), officially known as Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sports, an ...

Award from the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=s̤adr-i Pākiṣṭān), officially the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is the ceremonial head of state of Pakistan and the commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces.1940 births Living people Pakistani musicians Punjabi-language singers Pakistani people of Kashmiri descent Punjabi people Kinnaird College for Women University alumni Actresses from Lahore Singers from Lahore Pakistani film actresses Recipients of the Pride of Performance Nigar Award winners 20th-century Pakistani actresses Pakistani folk singers Pakistani emigrants to Canada 20th-century Pakistani women singers