Remembering the ‘Pop Queen’ Nazia Hassan on her 20th death anniversary

The legendary pop singer Nazia Hassan, who fought a long battle with lung cancer, died in London on 13 August 2000 at the age of 35.

However, August 13 marks the death anniversary of the most iconic figures in the history of Pakistani music, Nazia Hassan.

The ultimate “pop queen” of the 80s and 90s, Nazia was Pakistan’s sweetheart whose songs were on everyone’s playlist.

She was born on April 3, 1965, and gained popularity through Pakistan Television’s (PTV) programme Sung Sung.

By profession, she was a lawyer and a social activist. Nazia started her music career at the mere age of 10.

She enjoyed widespread popularity across South and Southeast Asia and has been termed as the “Queen of Pop” in South Asia. She, along with her brother Zoheb Hassan, went on to sell over 65 million records worldwide.

Hassan made her singing debut with the song Aap Jaisa Koi, from, the Indian film Qurbani (1980). Her debut album, Disco Deewane (1981), charted in fourteen countries worldwide and became the best-selling Asian pop record up at the time.

She received numerous national and international awards and became the first Pakistani to win the Filmfare Award at the young age of 15.

In addition to singing in films, Hassan was also a philanthropist and was appointed by UNICEF as its cultural ambassador in 1991. Her last album, Camera Camera (1992), was part of a campaign against drugs.

However, despite all the fame and success, her brother Zoheb in an interview revealed that the music sweetheart, “died an unhappy person, she died in pain.”

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