Zahrah S. Khan is a British Indian actress and singer known for her contributions to Bollywood films and music.

Family background

Zahrah S Khan was born into the Agha and Khan families, known for their contributions to

Indian cinema The cinema of India, consisting of motion pictures made by the Indian film industry, has had a large effect on world cinema since the second half of the 20th century. Indian cinema is made up of various film industries, each focused on p ...

and sports. Her maternal lineage has been involved in the Indian film industry since the 1940s, beginning with her step-great-grandfather Jugal Kishore Mehra, who started producing films. Anwari Begum, the wife of Jugal Kishore Mehra, starred in the 1930s film ''Heer Ranjha'', an adaptation of an Indian folktale akin to

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

. Following this legacy, Zahrah S Khan's grandmother, Nasreen Mehra, debuted in the film '' Shahjehan'' under director

Abdul Rashid Kardar Abdur Rashid Kardar (2 October 1904 – 22 November 1989) was an Indian film actor, director and producer. He is credited with establishing the film industry in the Bhati Gate locality of Lahore, British India (now in Pakistan). Early life an ...

, acting alongside

K. L. Saigal Kundan Lal Saigal, often abbreviated as K. L. Saigal (11 April 1904 – 18 January 1947), was an Indian singer and actor who worked in Hindi cinema, which was centred in Calcutta (Kolkata) during his time, but is currently based in Bombay (Mumba ...

. Zahrah's mother,

Salma Agha Salma Agha (born 29 October 1954) is a British singer and actress who worked in Pakistani and Indian films in the 1980s and the early 1990s. She is best known for her acting and singing the song "Dil ke Armaan" in the film ''Nikaah'' (1982). ...

, made her debut as an actress and singer with B. R. Chopra in ''Nikaah'' which went on to become a box office hit and ran in a theatre for five years continuously, earning her a Filmfare Award for Best Singer. Zahrah’s paternal side hails from a sports background and her great-grandfather Nasrullah Khan was a squash coach to the Maharaja of Raigadh and then at

Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh Muslim University is a Collegiate university, collegiate, Central university (India), central, and Research university, research university located in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Kh ...

. Post that he became the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

Lord Wavell Field Marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Archibald Percival Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell, (5 May 1883 – 24 May 1950) was a senior officer of the British Army. He served in the Second Boer War, the Bazar Valley Campaign and the First World Wa ...

's squash coach. He even trained Jonah Barrington and had also created the first squash ball in India before the partition. Zahrah's father

Rahmat Khan The Khan squash family, sometimes referred to as the Khan squash dynasty, refers to a Pakistani family that has produced a succession of champion squash players. The dynasty's patriarch was Hashim Khan (1914-2014), whose win at the 1951 Britis ...

himself was a squash coach who trained British open champions in squash as well as the Indian national champions. Zahrah's uncle

Jahangir Khan Jahangir Khan (Pashto, born 10 December 1963) is a former professional Pakistani squash player. He won the World Open title six times, and the British Open title ten times (1982–1991). He is widely regarded as the greatest squash player ...

was a 10-time

British Open The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

winner and was personally trained by her father Rahmat Khan. Through her father she is also the half-sister of singer

Natasha Khan Natasha Khan (born 25 October 1979), known professionally as Bat for Lashes, is an English singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. She has released six studio albums: '' Fur and Gold'' (2006), ''Two Suns'' (2009), '' The Haunt ...

Music career

Zahrah S Khan made her debut in singles with the song ''Khud se Zyada'' and then she took singing as a full-fledged career and sang ''Kya Karte The Saajna'' for the movie '' Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan'' as her first playback in Bollywood.

Discography

Originals/Music Videos

Film songs

Filmography

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Zahrah S 1992 births Living people Actresses from London Singers from London British film actresses British playback singers Bollywood playback singers Actresses in Hindi cinema British expatriate actresses in India British actors of Pakistani descent British musicians of Pakistani descent Expatriate musicians in India British expatriate musicians Khan family (squash) Kapoor family Actresses from Mumbai Singers from Mumbai British people of Pashtun descent 21st-century British actresses 21st-century British women singers People with Overseas Citizenship of India