Naghma (Dari: نغمه ښاپېرۍ; Pashto: نغمه ښاپېرۍ, born 1 January 1964) is an Afghan singer who started her career in the early 1980s. Similar to that of Sonny & Cher, she sang alongside Mangal during the 1980s and early 1990s. Naghma's songs are mostly in Dari and Pashto, the two major languages of Afghanistan.[2]
Early years
Naghma stated in a recent interview on Mashriq TV that she was born in Kandahar, Afghanistan.[1] Her exact birthplace and date of birth are not reported. She was the eldest daughter in a family of five boys and three girls,[citation needed] and was given the nickname Shahpari or Shahpary (نغمه ښاپېرۍ). Her father was Sayed Suleiman Shah, a Farsiwan from Deh Sabz District of Kabul Province.[3] Her mother Bibi Mashala was a Pashtun from Kandahar. Both of Afghanistan's major languages were spoken in their house. Her father died when Naghma was five years old. As a young girl, she developed an interest in music since elementary school in Kandahar. At the age of around sixteen years, she moved to Kabul with her paternal uncle and continued her secondary education at Rabia Balkhi Lece, where she began performing as a vocalist in a girl's band. This was around the time of the April Revolution of 1978, when the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan took control of Kabul and other parts of the country.[4]
Career
A year before finishing high school she married Mangal, an already popular Afghan singer from Laghman Province. They were instant celebrities, recording hits that are famous to this day. Her early songs were based on southern Afghan music, most of which were folkloric in nature.[citation needed] She additionally sang a song for the Afghan Air Force and Air Defense, titled “Lalaya Hawabaza (Beloved Pilot) in which she stood in the cabin of an Afghan Mil Mi-8.[5]
She and the family left Afghanistan to take residence in India for about two years and from there to Dubai in the UAE.[6] After staying there for two years, the family proceeded to Pakistan.[3] There, they became very successful with an enthusiastic crowd of Afghan exiles who were nostalgic for their native music. Her financial situation by this time had improved significantly. In 2000, the family immigrated to the United States as refugees.[2] Naghma and Mangal connected with the Afghan-American community of Northern California.
In March 2014, she became the first Afghan to receive the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz and the Pride of Performance, the highest Pakistani Presidential Awards handed to artists, sportsmen, scientists and writers. It was a proud moment for Naghma who has always been a strong voice for the Afghan refugees in Pakistan. Naghma encourages Afghan refugees to try and go back to Afghanistan through her aid work and music to rebuild the country.[citation needed]
Personal life
Naghma and Mangal divorced in 2006 and later she married the son of Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi of Logar Province. They also broke off the marriage.[7] Naghma has four children, they are Anwar, Khyber, Lima and Madina.[8]
Discography
She has recorded over 500 songs in a period of 32 years in Afghanistan, Pakistan and also in the United States.
This list is incomplete
