Hira Devi Waiba Age, Death, Husband, Children, Family, Biography

Bio/Wiki
Profession	Singer
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	5' 2" (158 cm)
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Copper Brown
Career
Awards, Honours, Achievements	• Mitrasen Purashkar by Nepali Akademi of Darjeeling (1986) • Mitrasen Smriti Puraskar by Sikkim govenment (1996) • Agam Singh Giri Puraskar (2001) • Sadhana Samman • Madhurima Phul Kumari Mahato Award • Bhanu Academy Puraskar • Gorkha Saheed Sewa Samiti’s Lifetime Achievement Award • Gorkha Dakshina Bahu (Knighthood of Nepal)
Personal Life
Date of Birth	9 September 1940 (Monday)
Birthplace	Ambootia village, Kurseong, Darjeeling, Bengal Presidency, British India (now in Darjeeling, West Bengal, India)
Date of Death	19 January 2011
Place of Death	North Bengal Medical College Hospital, Siliguri, West Bengal
Age (at the time of death)	70 Years
Death Cause	Burn injuries due to a fire accident at home
Zodiac sign	Virgo
Nationality	• British Indian (1940 - 1947) • Indian (1947 onwards)
Hometown	Kadamtala, Siliguri (West Bengal)
College/University	• Government College (Darjeeling, West Bengal) • Shree Ramakrishna B. T. College (Darjeeling, West Bengal)
Educational Qualification(s)	• B. A. from Government College, Darjeeling, West Bengal • B.Ed from Shree Ramakrishna B. T. College, Darjeeling, West Bengal
Religion	Buddhism
Ethnicity	Tamang (in Nepal)
Relationships & More
Marital Status (at the time of death)	Married
Family
Husband/Spouse	Ratan Lal Aditya
Children	Son-Satya Aditya Waiba (music producer) Daughter-Navneet Aditya Waiba (singer)
Parents	Mother- Tshering Dolma Waiba Father- Singh Man Singh Waiba

Some Lesser Known Facts About Hira Devi Waiba

• Hira Devi Waiba belongs to a family of musicians. Her ancestors had roots in Palpa, Nepal but they migrated to the Ambootia Tea Estate in Kurseong.
  

  Hira Devi Waiba during schooldays

• Passing on Nepali folk music from generation to generation was a custom in her family; therefore, Hira Devi Waiba’s father started training her in Nepali folk singing in her childhood years.

• Hira Devi worked as an announcer in the All India Radio from 1963 to 1965.
  

  Hira Devi Waiba when she was an announcer at All India Radio

• She mainly sang Eastern Nepali and Tamang Selo folk songs.

• Hira Devi used to sing Nepali folk songs on local stages until her first 3 songs were recorded for Radio Nepal in Kurseong in 1966. These songs (‘Wara dauri jada, para dauri jada,’ ‘Lyaidiachan tehi pani man parena,’ and ‘Mayalu binti cha hai mero’) went viral, pushing Hira Devi Waiba to learn professional singing.
  

  Hira Devi Waiba while recording at the studio of Nepal Radio

• Hira Devi was the first singer whose songs were recorded and released as an album by a leading music company in Nepal named ‘Music Nepal.’

• During her music career, she sang around 300 Nepali folk songs during this period.
  

  Hira Devi Waiba performing live in the 1970s

• In 1974 and 1978, Hira Devi recorded cut albums with HMV (a U.K.-based music retailer brand), becoming the first Nepali folk singer to have an HMV cut album under her name. She also remains to be the only one to have done this.

• She was the first singer to record a Tamang Selo (a genre of Nepali folk music) song. That song is ‘Chura ta Hoina Astura.’ Prior to this song, Nepal used to release only remastered songs and compilations.

• Hira Devi was a plant lover. She loved gardening.
  

  Facebook post of Hira Devi Waiba’s son and a comment by her daughter about her love for plants

• Hira Devi was also a writer. She enjoyed writing down her thoughts and often turned them into poems and songs.

• She was fond of wearing heels. It is said that she never walked out of her house without wearing her high heels.

• Hira Devi could play instruments like madal, harmonium, and damphu.

• She worked with big labels like Radio Nepal, All India Radio (AIR), His Masters Voice (HMV), and British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

• In memory of her father, Singh Man Singh Waiba, Hira Devi started an academy for music and dance called ‘SM Waiba International Music and Dance Academy.’ This was opened in 2008 at her home in Kadamtala on the outskirts of Siliguri.

• Hira Devi’s children released a music album, ‘Ama Lai Shraddhanjali – Tribute to Mother,’ to commemorate her art in 2017. This album consists of all the hit songs of Hira Devi Waiba, sung by her daughter, Navneet Aditya Waiba. Its music production and release were managed by her son, Satya Aditya Waiba.
  

  Hira Devi Waiba’s children at the launch of the album ‘Ama Lai Shradhanjali’

• Talking about the fire accident tragedy that took Hira Devi’s life, her family members said,
  

  With her back against a fire that had been lit in a pot on the balcony, she was making a list of groceries for the caretaker to fetch. The flannel gown she was wearing caught fire. The caretaker tried to douse the flames by draping her in garments strung outside but in vain.”

• Hira Devi Waiba is considered to be the pioneer of Nepali folk songs known for her efforts to preserve the culture of Nepali folk music by recording and popularizing it. This contribution earned her the title ‘Lok Geet Samragi’ (The Queen of Nepali Folk Songs).