It has been 17 years since Pakistan?s most iconic female singer, Noor Jehan, passed away. Renowned as one of the greatest and most influential singers of her time in South Asia, Noor Jehan was given the honorific title of Malika-e-Tarannum.

Born as Allah Wasai on September 21, 1926, in Kasur, Noor Jehan started her musical career from Calcutta at the age of nine as a child singer.

After partition, she moved from Bombay and started her film career in Pakistan as an actress and a singer, and the first female film director with the film Chann Wey in 1951.

Her last film as an actress was Ghalib which was released in 1961.

Noor Jehan recorded about 10,000 songs in various languages, including Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi and Sindhi.

She had ruled the film industry for more than 35 years and was not only a celebrated playback but also a gifted ghazal singer.

In 1957, Noor Jehan was awarded the President's Award for her acting and singing prowess.

On December 23, 2000, Noor Jehan passed away as a result of heart failure and was buried in Karachi.