Allah Rakhi Wasai (21 September 1926 – 23 December 2000) better known by her stage name Noor Jehan or Noor Jahan and her honorific title Malika-e-Tarannum was a Pakistani singer and actress who worked both in India and Pakistan. Her career spanned seven decades (1930s-1990s). In the Indian subcontinent she was renowned as one of the greatest and most influential singers of all times and was given the honorific title of Malika-e-Tarannum (Urdu: ملکہ ترنم‎, the queen of melody). in Pakistan.

Born into a family with music traditions,Noor Jehan was pushed by her parents to follow in their musical footsteps and become a singer but she was more interested in acting in films. She recorded about 10,000 songs in various languages of India and Pakistan including Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi and Sindhi. Along with Ahmed Rushdi, she holds the record for having given voice to the largest number of film songs in the history of Pakistani cinema. She is also considered to be the first female Pakistani film director.

Noor Jehan was awarded the Pakistan President's Award in 1965 for her acting and singing capabilities,especially for singing patriotic songs passionately during 1965 India-Pakistan war.

Biographie

Jehan married Shaukat Hussain Rizvi in 1942, the marriage ended in 1953 with divorce; the couple had three children, including their singer daughter Zil-e-Huma. She married Ejaz Durrani in 1959. The second marriage also produced three children but also ended in divorce in 1979.