Nazia Hassan Age, Death, Husband, Family, Biography & More

Bio/Wiki
Profession(s)	• Singer • Songwriter • Lawyer • Social activist
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	in centimeters- 168 cm in meters- 1.68 m in feet & inches- 5’ 6”
Weight (approx.)	in kilograms- 55 kg in pounds- 121 lbs
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Black
Career
Debut	Song: 'Aap Jaisa Koi' for the film "Qurbani" (1980) Album: Disco Deewane (1981)
Last Album	"Camera Camera" (1992)
Awards, Honours, Achievements	• Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer for the song "Aap Jaisa Koi" in 1981 • Pride of Performance Award (posthumously); the award was received by her mother in 2002 • Golden Disc Award • Double Platinum Award • Voted in 'Top 50 Influential People' by Indian Today magazine • Listed by Global Voices Online (an international community of writers, bloggers, and digital activists) in "Young, Independent women who made a Space for Themselves in Pakistan Music Industry" on 31 October 2014 • Listed in "11 Female Pioneers of Pakistan" by ARY News in 2014
Personal Life
Date of Birth	3 April 1965 (Saturday)
Birthplace	Karachi, Pakistan
Date of Death	13 August 2000
Place of Death	London, UK
Age (at the time of death)	35 Years
Death Cause	Lung Cancer
Zodiac sign	Aries
Nationality	Pakistani
Hometown	Karachi
College/University	• Richmond American University, London • London University
Educational Qualification(s)	• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Economics from Richmond American University, London • LLB from London University
Controversy	Testimony against her former husband: Before her death in 2000, Nazia Hassan submitted testimony in the UK High Court, against her ex-husband Ishtiaq Baig. In an interview, her brother, Zoheb Hassan, talked about this and revealed that, in the testimony, Nazia mentioned that Ishtiaq used to harass her mentally and physically, and once tried to poison her. She has also mentioned that before marrying her, Ishtiaq had two marriages, first with the Filipina dancer Hazel, with whom he has a son named Imran Baig, and second with the Pakistani actress Shazia. She claimed that Ishtiaq kept his previous marriages secret from her family.
Relationships & More
Marital Status (at the time of death)	Divorced
Marriage Date	30 March 1995
Family
Husband/Spouse	Mirza Ishtiaq Baig (div. 2000)
Children	Son- Arez Hassan Daughter- None
Parents	Father- Basir Hassan (businessman) Mother- Muniza Basir (social worker)
Siblings	Brother- Zoheb Hassan (singer) Sister- Zara Hassan

Some Lesser Known Facts About Nazia Hassan

• Nazia Hassan was a Pakistani singer, songwriter, lawyer, and social activist who is known for singing the song ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ for the 1980 Bollywood film “Qurbani.” In the 1980s, she introduced the Pakistani audience to pop music after which she earned the title of the ‘Queen of South Asian Pop’ by her fans.

• At the age of ten, she appeared on television for the first time, as a child artist, in the show ‘Kaliyon Ke Mala’ (1975), which aired on Pakistan Television Network (PTV). She also sang the song ‘Dosti Aisa Naata’ in the show.

• When she was fifteen years old, she met the Bollywood film director Feroz Khan at a party in London, where Feroz heard her singing and got impressed with her voice. Later, he requested Nazia to give audition as a playback singer for his film “Qurbani.” Nazia was selected by Biddu Appaiah, who was the music composer of the film and sang the song ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ for the film in 1980.

• The song ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ later became a superhit in the film and proved to be a breakthrough for Nazia’s career. In 1981, she received the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer for singing the song; making her the first Pakistani to receive the award at the young age of 15.

• In 1981, Nazia formed a pop duo along with her younger brother Zoheb, which they named ‘Nazia and Zoheb.’ In the same year, they launched their debut album “Disco Deewane,” which became a super hit at that time. The album became one of the top-selling albums, breaking sales records as at that time, more than 65 million of its copies were sold in India and Pakistan. The album also became one of the top-selling albums in the West Indies, Latin America, and Russia, at that time. It got popular with the title “Dreamer Deewane” in Western countries.

• Following the release of their album “Disco Deewane,” Nazia and Zoheb were signed by the EMI Group, making them the first Pakistani singers to be signed by an international music company for a project.

• The following year, the duo of Nazia and Zoheb, released their second album ‘Boom Boom,’ consisting of ten tracks. In 1983, Nazia was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer for this album; however, the singer didn’t win it.
  

  Cover of the album ‘Boom Boom’

• Nazia and Zoheb were offered to act in the 1982 Bollywood film “Star,” but both siblings refused to act in the film. However, some of the songs from their album “Boom Boom” were later featured in the film.

• The sibling duo launched their third album “Young Tarang” in 1983 in Pakistan. It was the first Pakistani album that featured music videos. The following year, it was released worldwide and became one of the most popular video albums in Asia. The most famous track of the album is “Ankien Milane Wale.”
  

  Cover of the album ‘Young Tarang’

• In 1987, the duo released their fourth album “Hotline” which consists of 13 songs. The song “Aan Haan” from this album received a huge appreciation from the audience.
  

  Cover of the album ‘Hotline’

• Nazia and Zoheb Hassan were interviewed on music maestro Sohail Rana’s show, Sung Sung in 1998.

• In 1989, the duo hosted the TV show “Music ’89,” the first pop-music stage show to be aired on television in Pakistan. In the same year, Nazia Hassan hosted another show “Dhanak” which aired on PTV.

• In 1991, Nazia and Zoheb recorded their fifth and last album “Camera Camera.” They announced before the release of the album in 1992, that the album would be their last project together as Nazia wanted to quit singing and wanted to focus more on her personal life.

• In an interview, Nazia Hassan talked about how at the beginning of her singing career the people of Pakistan refused to accept her genre. She said,
  

  Yes some people don’t even consider it music; well it’s the kind of the music we dig, take it or leave it. They say classical music is the only real music. Whenever I’m attending a classical music recital, I feel like I’m attending a funeral. You have to sit grim and still — no coughing, no talking lest people think you are being impolite.”

• In 1995, the music composer Biddu composed the song “Made in India” and requested Nazia to sing it, but the singer refused to sing the song as she thought that it might offend Pakistan. The song was later sung by the Indian singer Alisha Chinai.

• On 9 March 2002, Nazia Hassan Tribute Concert was held in Karachi, where the famous Pakistani rock bands ‘Vital Signs’ and ‘Jupiters’ performed together on stage to pay a tribute to her.

• In 2007, a biographical documentary film, “A Music  Fairy,” was made by Pakistani director and producer Ahmad Haseeb to pay a tribute to Nazia Hassan. Later, the film was screened at the Kara Film Festival and the University of Ankara. Haseeb won the Best Documentary award at the Kara Film Festival for this film.

• In the 2012 Bollywood film “Miss Lovely” starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui, her song ‘Dum dum de de’ from the album “Young Tarang” (1984) was featured. In the same year, the remake of her song ‘Disco Deewane’ was featured in the Bollywood film ‘Student of the Year,” which was sung by Sunidhi Chauhan.

• In 2014, Zoheb Hassan and Zoe Viccaji ( Pakistani singer) paid a tribute to Nazia Hassan by singing her song ‘Jaana’ on the music show ‘Coke Studio Pakistan Season 7.’

• Apart from her singing, she is also known for her philanthropic activities. Her fans often compare her with Princess Diana and called her ‘Lady Diana of Southeast Asia.’ She was an active member of various funding organisations such as the ‘Inner Wheel Club of India’ and ‘Voice of Women,’ which worked for the betterment of the children and women living in the underprivileged areas of Karachi. 

• Nazia Hassan has formed an organisation named ‘BAN (Battle Against Narcotics)’ that works for drug de-addiction in Pakistan. She has also supported the project that worked for making health facilities easily available to the people in Lyari Town by introducing mobile clinics there.

• In 1991, she joined the United Nations Security Council at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City, where she worked for almost two years, and later she started working with UNICEF. She has also earned a scholarship for Leadership Program at Columbia University, which she later refused to accept as she was diagnosed with cancer at that time. 

• Nazia has made various funds for providing education to children who belong to poor families. She has worked with the former Pakistani Information Minister Javed Jabbar to raise funds for poor children in Tharparkar and Rajasthan. 

• In 2003, her parents started a charitable organisation named “Nazia Hassan Foundation” which works for the betterment of unprivileged people irrespective of their caste, creed, and religion.
  

  Nazia Hassan Foundation

• In 2016, a school was opened by her parents for grooming and educating children who work on the street. The school offer students a five years professional course in different fields. The school was earlier named “Nazia Hassan Foundation,” which was later changed to “Nazia Hassan’s Schools for Studying. In an interview, Nazia’s mother talked about this and said,
  

  Our school aspires to offer these children a course on whatever they are already doing as a profession, while also teaching them basic subjects such as English, Mathematics, computer skills and History. The aim is to brush up skills that would help them flourish in their profession, while also being capable of going and taking up their work in any other place.”

• Nazia Hassan was cheated on by her former husband Ishtiaq Baig, with a Pakistani actress. In an interview with Daily Jang, Nazia talked about being maltreated by her former husband and said that he denied to bear her medical expenses for her cancer treatment after which she was taken care of by her family. She also revealed that Ishtiaq forced her not to speak the truth about their marital relationship to the media.  

• In the 2022 Bollywood film “An Action Hero,” the remake of Nazia’s song ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ was featured as an item song performed by Malaika Arora and Ayushmann Khurrana. Pakistani actor Adnan Siddiqui took to Twitter to criticise the actors for ruining the song.

Is there something in the air that the world has suddenly developed a penchant for ruining perfect classics? Even re-creation requires talent. Nazia Hassan must be turning in her grave. #AapJaisaKoi nahi..

— Adnan Siddiqui (@adnanactor) November 28, 2022

• After the death of Nazia Hassan on 13 August 2000 in London, she was buried at Hendon Cemetery, London (Muslim Section) on 5 September 2000 as per Islamic rites.