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Runa Laila ( bn, রুনা লায়লা, ur, ; born 17 November 1952) is a
Bangladeshi Bangladeshis ( bn, বাংলাদেশী ) are the citizens of Bangladesh, a South Asian country centered on the transnational historical region of Bengal along the eponymous bay. Bangladeshi citizenship was formed in 1971, when the ...
playback singer and composer. She started her career in
Pakistan film industry Cinema of Pakistan, popularly known as Lollywood ( ur, ), refers to the filmmaking industry in Pakistan. Pakistan is home to several film studios centres, primarily located in its three largest cities – Karachi, Lahore, and Faisalabad. ...
in the late 1960s. Her style of singing is inspired by Pakistani
playback singer A playback singer, also known as a ghost singer, is a singer whose singing is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras; the actual singer does not ap ...
Ahmed Rushdi ), Rushdi Sahab ( ur, ) , birth_date = , birth_place =Hyderabad Deccan, British India , death_date = , death_place = Karachi, Pakistan , origin = Pakistani , instrument = Vocalist , genre = , ...
and she also made a pair with him after replacing another singer
Mala Mala may refer to: Comics * Mala (Amazon), an Amazon from Wonder Woman's side of the DC Universe * Mala (Kryptonian), a villain from Superman's corner of the DC Universe Films and television * ''Mala'' (1941 film), a Bollywood drama film * , ...
. Her playback singing in films – ''The Rain'' (1976), ''
Jadur Banshi ''Jadur Bashi'' ( bn, যাদুর বাঁশি) is a 1977 Bengali romantic film directed by Abdul Latif Bachchu. Story, screenplay and dialogue written by Ahmed Zaman Chowdhury. Apu Sarwar has played the main character in the film. Along w ...
'' (1977), ''Accident'' (1989), ''Ontore Ontore'' (1994), ''Devdas'' (2013) and ''Priya Tumi Shukhi Hou'' (2014) - earned her seven Bangladesh National Film Awards for Best Female Playback Singer. She won the Best Music Composer award for the film ''
Ekti Cinemar Golpo ''Ekti Cinemar Golpo'' ( bn, একটি সিনেমার গল্প, lit=Story of a film) is a 2018 Bangladeshi film starring Indian actress Rituparna Sengupta and Bangladeshi stars Alamgir, Champa and Arifin Shuvoo. Alamgir produced and ...
'' (2018).


Early life

Laila was born in
Sylhet Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate ...
to Syed Mohammed Imdad Ali, a civil servant posted in
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 ...
, and Amina Laila. She started taking dance lessons of
Kathak Kathak ( hi, कथक; ur, کتھک) is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance. It is the classical dance from of Uttar Pradesh. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern Ind ...
and
Bharatanatyam Bharatanatyam () is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of ...
genre. In those days,
Ahmed Rushdi ), Rushdi Sahab ( ur, ) , birth_date = , birth_place =Hyderabad Deccan, British India , death_date = , death_place = Karachi, Pakistan , origin = Pakistani , instrument = Vocalist , genre = , ...
was the leading film singer who introduced
rock n roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...
,
disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric p ...
and other modern genres to South Asian music. Following Rushdi's success,
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...
bands specialising in
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
started performing at various night clubs and hotel lobbies in Karachi,
Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern Indi ...
,
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...
,
Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest ...
and
Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th List of largest cities, most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is th ...
. Laila became a fan of singer Ahmed Rushdi whom she considered her guru (teacher), and tried to emulate not only his singing style but also the way he used to perform on the stage. She then learned classical music with her elder sister Dina Laila (d. 1976). While she was a student of Saint Lawrence Convent, she won an inter-school singing competition in Karachi in the then
West Pakistan West Pakistan ( ur, , translit=Mag̱ẖribī Pākistān, ; bn, পশ্চিম পাকিস্তান, translit=Pôścim Pakistan) was one of the two Provincial exclaves created during the One Unit Scheme in 1955 in Pakistan. It was ...
. She, along with her sister, were trained by Ustad Abdul Kader Peyarang and Ustad Habibuddin Ahmed. Her cousin, Anjumara Begum, had already been a known singer. When Laila was 12, she performed as a playback singer for a male child actor in the Urdu language film ''Jugnu''. The song was titled ''Gudia Si Munni Meri''.


Career

In 1966, Laila made her breakthrough in the Pakistani film industry with the song ''Unki Nazron Sey Mohabbat Ka Jo Paigham Mila'' for the Urdu film ''Hum Dono''. She used to perform on PTV. In PTV, she had a show called ''Bazm E Laila''. She started appearing on the ''Zia Mohyuddin Show'' (1972–74) and later sang songs for films in the 1970s such as the film Umrao Jaan Ada (1972). Laila moved to Bangladesh along with her family in 1974. Her first Bengali song was ''O Amar Jibon Shathi'' for the film Jibon Shathi (1976), composed by
Satya Saha Satya Saha (25 December 1934 – 27 January 1999) was a Bangladeshi composer, and musician. His notable composed songs are "Chena Chena Lage" by Shyamal Mitra, "Dukkho Amar Basor Raater Palonko", "Chhiti Dio Protidin" by Sabina Yasmin, "Mon Bole ...
. Shortly after had her first concert in India in 1974 in Mumbai. She started in Bollywood with director
Jaidev Jaidev (3 August 1918 – 6 January 1987; born Jaidev Verma) was a music composer in Hindi films, most known for his work in films: '' Hum Dono'' (1961), '' Reshma Aur Shera'' (1971), ''Prem Parbat'' (1973), ''Gharaonda'' (1977) and '' Gaman ...
, whom she met in Delhi, got her the chance to play at the inauguration of
Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest b ...
. She first worked with the music composer Kalyanji-Anandji for the title song of a film called Ek Se Badhkar Ek (1976). She gained popularity in India with the songs ''O Mera Babu Chail Chabila'' and ''
Dama Dam Mast Qalandar ''Dama Dam Mast Qalandar'' () is a spiritual Sufi qawwali written in the honour of the most revered Sufi saint of Sindh, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (1177–1274) of Sehwan Sharif. The original poem was initially written by the 13th-century Sufi poe ...
''. In 1974, she recorded ''Shaadher Lau'' in Kolkata. Laila's name has been written on the
Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
for recording 30 songs within 3 days. In 1982, she won Golden Disk Award as her album Superuna composed by
Bappi Lahiri Bappi Aparesh Lahiri (born Alokesh Aparesh Lahiri; 27 November 1952 – 15 February 2022), also known as Bappi Da was an Indian singer, composer and record producer. He popularised the use of synthesised disco music in Indian music industry and ...
was sold over 1 lakh copies on the first day of its release. In October 2009, she released ''Kala Sha Kala'', a collection of Punjabi wedding songs, in India. In 2012, Laila served as a judge on the show Sur Kshetra, an Indian television contest show for amateur singers. She described her relationship with fellow judge
Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian  playback singer, entrepreneur and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in th ...
as that of sisters. In 2014, she collaborated with
Sabina Yasmin Sabina Yasmin (born 4 September 1953) is a Bangladeshi singer. She is best known as a playback singer in Bengali cinema. She has won Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer a record 14 times. She has recorded more than 1, ...
on a song for a television play ''"Dalchhut Projapoti"'', the first time they worked on a song together. Runa has sung in seventeen languages including her native
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
,
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
,
Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
,
Sindhi Sindhi may refer to: *something from, or related to Sindh, a province of Pakistan * Sindhi people, an ethnic group from the Sindh region * Sindhi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them People with the name * Sarkash Sindhi (1940–2012 ...
,
Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...
,
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 ...
, Baluchi,
Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
, Persian, Malay, Nepalese, Japanese,
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
,
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
,
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
and English.


Personal life

Laila has been married three times. She first married Khawaza Javed Kaiser, secondly a Swiss citizen named Ron Daniel and then actor Alamgir. She has a daughter Tani. Her grandson Zain Islam had been selected for the Arsenal progression center in 2012 when he was eight. Her other grandson Aaron Islam is also there.


Charity

After her sister died in 1976 from cancer, Laila held several charity concerts in Dhaka. The money raised was used to build a cancer hospital in Dhaka. Laila was named a
SAARC The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional intergovernmental organization and geopolitical union of states in South Asia. Its member states are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan ...
Goodwill Ambassador for HIV/AIDS. She is the first Bangladeshi to hold this post. She visited New Delhi in 2013 on her first trip as the SAARC ambassador. She met India's External and Health ministers.


Discography

* ''Sincerely Yours'' (1973) * ''Runa Laila Sings Songs Of Talib-Ul-Maulla'' (1974) * ''Great Ghazals - Runa Laila (Style)'' (1981) * ''Runa in Pakistan (Geet) and (Ghazals)'' (1980) * ''
Bappi Lahiri Bappi Aparesh Lahiri (born Alokesh Aparesh Lahiri; 27 November 1952 – 15 February 2022), also known as Bappi Da was an Indian singer, composer and record producer. He popularised the use of synthesised disco music in Indian music industry and ...
Presents Runa Laila - Superuna'' (1982) * ''Runa Goes Disco'' (1982) * ''Sings For Umrao Jaan Ada (Ghazals)'' (1985) * ''Ganga Amar Ma Padma Amar Ma'' (1996) * ''Bazm-E-Laila'' (2007) * ''Runa Laila-Kala Siah Kala'' (2010)


Awards

* Radio Mirchi Music Award presented by
Radio Mirchi Radio Mirchi (also known as 98.3 Mirchi) is a nationwide network of private FM radio stations in India. It is owned by the EntertainmentNetwork India Ltd (ENIL), which is one of the subsidiaries of The Times Group. ''Mirchi'' is Hindi for re ...
at
Nazrul Mancha Nazrul Mancha ( Bengali: নজরুল মঞ্চ) is an auditorium in Kolkata, India. Named after Bengali poet Kazi Nazrul Islam, the auditorium is notably used as the venue for the Dover Lane Music Conference in January each year, where aud ...
in
Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
(2015) *
Independence Day Award The Independence Day Award ( bn, স্বাধীনতা পদক), also termed Independence Award ( bn, স্বাধীনতা পুরস্কার), Swadhinata Padak, and Swadhinata Puroskar, is the highest state award given by t ...
, Bangladesh *
Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer ( bn, জাতীয় চলচ্চিত্র পুরস্কার) is the highest award for female film playback singers in Bangladesh. History Bangladesh National Fil ...
(1976, 1977, 1989, 1994, 2012, 2013 and 2014) * Sheltech Award, Bangladesh * Lux-Channel I Lifetime Performance Award, Bangladesh * Saigal Award, India *
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 ...
, Pakistan (1968, 1970) * Critics Award, Pakistan * Graduate Award, Pakistan * Firoza Begum Memorial Gold Medal, Bangladesh


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Laila, Runa Living people 1952 births People from Sylhet 20th-century Bangladeshi women singers 20th-century Bangladeshi singers Women ghazal singers Bengali playback singers Bollywood playback singers Sindhi-language singers Punjabi-language singers Bangladeshi ghazal singers Nigar Award winners Pakistani emigrants to Bangladesh Best Female Playback Singer National Film Award (Bangladesh) winners Recipients of the Independence Day Award Honorary Fellows of Bangla Academy Best Female Singer Bachsas Award winners Best Music Composer National Film Award (Bangladesh) winners 21st-century Bangladeshi women singers 21st-century Bangladeshi singers