Iqbal Bano

Iqbal Bano (), PP (1935 - 21 April 2009) was a highly acclaimed female Ghazal singer from Pakistan. She was best known for her semi-classical Urdu ghazal songs and classical thumris, but also sang easy-listening numbers in 1950s films.

Early life

Iqbal Bano was born in Delhi, British India. From a young age, she developed a love for music. It was a crucial moment of her life when her friend's father told Bano's father, "My daughters do sing reasonably well, but Iqbal is blessed in singing. She will become a big name if you begin her training." Her father allowed her to study music. When Bano was a teenager she migrated to Pakistan along with her family.

In Delhi, she studied under Ustad Chaand Khan of the Delhi Gharana, an expert in all kinds of pure classical and light classical forms of vocal music. He instructed her in pure classical music and light classical music within the framework of classical forms of thumri and dadra. She was duly initiated Gaandaabandh shagird of her Ustad.

Career

Ustad Chaand Khan referred her to All India Radio, Delhi, where she sang on the radio.

In 1952, aged 17, she married into a land-owning family in...
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