The Kasur-born nightingale - Noor Jehan, lovingly known as Melody Queen contributed so much to the shaping of Pakistani melodic culture that it is not possible to encompass all that in this short piece of writing. Her real name was Allah Wasi, one of the eleven children of professional musician Madad Ali. Since her childhood she showed a keen interest in a range of styles, including traditional folk and popular theatre.
Kitnee raatein jaag guzareen
Kitnee khushian in per wareen
Geeton mein tab yeh bol dhaley
Gaaye gi duniya geet mere (How many nights have I passed unslept
How many joys, have I sacrificed
Only then, have these words moulded into songs
The world will sing my songs)
Mauseeqar (1962)
Realising her potential for singing, her father sent her to Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan to learn classical singing. He instructed her in the traditions of the classical forms of 'thumri', 'dhrupad' and 'khyal'. Wasai drew the attention of Punjabi musician Ghulam Ahmed Chishti, who later introduced her to stage. Once her vocational training came to an end, Wasai pursued a career in singing and usually took part in live song performances prior to screening of films in theatres.
The family moved to Calcutta in hope of developing the movie careers of Wasai and her sisters. There the renowned singer, Mukhtar Begum, encouraged Wasai and her siblings to join film companies and introduced them to theatre through her husband, producer Agha Hashar Kashmiri. It was here that Wasai received the stage name Baby Noor Jehan. Noor Jehan later adopted Mukhtar Begum's way of performance and sari attire.
Starting her career at the tender age of seven from Calcutta about mid-1930s, she rose to the apex of glory within a short span of ten years. The first song she recorded in her mellifluous voice was in 1937 for the film 'Heer Sayal', produced by Maiden Theatre, Calcutta, in which she also performed the role of child Heer. When she was ten, Baby Noor Jehan shifted to Lahore along with her family. Here in 1939 she lent her voice for the recording of a song 'Shaala jawaniaan maane', in film 'Gul Bakauli', which was composed by Master Ghulam Haider. That song became instantly popular. 'Yamla Jat' was her third film, and music wizard Ghulam Haider also composed its tunes. After that, it was a complete success story for an artiste who started her career as a child and blossomed into a frontline singing actress (later as a playback singer) during her youth.
Noor Jehan remained a singing actress for about 30 years. During that period she sang for many eminent composers such as Master Ghulam Haider, Naushad Ali, Sajjad Hussain, K.Datta, Feroze Nizami, Rasheed Attray, G.A. Chishti, Khurshid Anwar and Master Inayat Hussain. She was gifted with a natural singing voice that was suited for the conveyance of all kinds of moods and emotions she won the hearts of millions of cinegoers in the Sub-continent. Her last film as an actress was 'Koel', which was produced in Lahore. All songs of that film composed by Khurshid Anwar won the hearts of the listeners. Her voice overcame all the barriers, spreading her charisma across the width and breadth of the Sub-continent.
Film 'Khandaan' produced in Lahore in 1941, and in Bombay with the release of Anmol Gharri, she rose to the heights of popularity. Prior to 'Khandaan' Jehan was cast as a child artist. Khandaan's success saw her shifting to Bombay. In 1945 Jehan played the lead role, in the movie Badi Maa along side the Mangeshkar sisters, Lata and Asha, who were acting as child stars.
Noor Jehan rendered her voice for four solos in 'Badi Maa' - 'Diya jala kar aap bujhaya', 'Aa intezar hai tera', 'Turn hum to bhula baithe ho' and 'Kisi tarah se mohabbat mein chain paa na sakey'. These songs became inspiration for both the sisters. They learnt much from Melody Queen while acting with her in Badi Maa and shape their vocal technique by following her.
She sang about 50 songs composed by proficient composer Khurshid Anwar.
Khurshid Anwar once said about her singing talent, "Without her voice, I would not have been able to accomplish a tenth of what I have. She has been the only real voice in Pakistan".
In 1945, she achieved a milestone, when she sang a Qawwali with Zohrabai Ambalewali and Amirbai Karnataki, which was "Aahen Na Bhareen Shikave Na Kiye". This was the first ever Qawwali recorded in female voices in subcontinent films.
Noor Jehan's last film in India was 'Mirza Sahibaan' (1947). Noor Jehan sang as many as 127 songs in Indian films and the number of talking films she made from 1932 to 1947 was 69. The number of silents was 12. Fifty-five of her films were made in Bombay, eight in Calcutta, five in Lahore and one in Rangoon (Mynamar).
When Pakistan gained Independence in 1947, She decided to move to Pakistan, along with family. Three years after settling in Pakistan, Noor Jehan starred in her first film in Pakistan, 'Chanwey' (1951), opposite Santosh Kumar, which was also her first Punjabi film as a heroine. Shaukat and Noor Jehan directed this film together making Noor Jehan Pakistan's first female director. Noor Jehan's second film in Pakistan was 'Dopatta' (1952) which turned out to be an even bigger success than 'Chanwey'.
The film 'Mirza Ghalib' (1961) as an actress/singer strengthens her iconic stature. Her rendition of Faiz Ahmed Faiz's 'Mujshe pehli si mohabbat mere mehboob na maang' is a unique example of tarranum (reciting poetry as a song). Noor Jehan last starred in 'Baaji' in 1963, though not in a leading role. Noor Jehan said farewell to acting career in 1963 after a career of 33 years (1930 to 1963). Noor Jehan made 14 films in Pakistan - ten in Urdu while four in Punjabi.
After quitting acting, she took up playback singing. She made her debut as a playback singer in 1960 with 'Salma'. Her first initial playback for a Pakistani film was for 'Jan-e-Bahar' (1958), in which she sang the song 'Kaisa Naseeb Layi Thi'. Her popularity was further boosted with her patriotic songs during the 1965 war between Pakistan and India.
She received many awards for her acting and singing capabilities, including Tamgha-e-Imtiaz in 1966, Pakistan's top civil award. In 1957, Jehan was also awarded the President's Award.
Melody Queen Noor Jehan was very fortunate as the leading composers, both at Bombay and Lahore composed a majority of her popular songs. It will not be an exaggeration to state that those composers would not have been as popular and effective as they became after using her extremely mellifluous and malleable voice.
The songs she recorded in 'Barri Maa', 'Dost', 'Anmol Gharri', 'Lal Haveli', 'Zeenat' and 'Jugnu' reached the lips of millions in the Sub-continent. She was appreciated more for her songs than her acting.
In 1986, Jehan was dignosed with angina after which she under went a surgery. Noor Jehan stayed away from the limelight for three years - a period, which seemed like ages to her fans. On December 23, 2000, Noor Jehan died from heart failure. She was buried in the Gizri Graveyard in Karachi.