Birth name Nadira Origin Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan Genre(s) Ghazal Occupation(s) Ghazal Singer Munni Begum (Urdu:منی بیگم) Munni Begum is a Famous Ghazal Singer from Pakistan and now based in Chicago, IL, USA. Her real name is Nadira (Urdu:نادرہ) but she prefers to go by "Munni" Begum. Early life Though she is a renowned and world famous performer, Munni Begum has a uniquely unassuming and understated manner. She was Born in Murshidabad, West Bengal, India. The youngest child of seven children, she first started taking music lessons from the famous singer Ustad Khwaja Ghulam Mustafa Warsi. Subsequently, she studied in the school of music for three years and thereafter she launched her career. She has two daughters and a son named. Muniba Hasnain, Minara Shoaib and Syed Mohammad Asad Ali. Her parents migrated to East Pakistan in the early 1950s; East Pakistan later became independent Bangladesh. She studied in PAF Shaheen School, Dhaka, however she moved to Pakistan before graduating from high school, due to the War of 1971. She began career as a singer in Karachi in 1970s. Begum released her first album of ghazals in 1976. It became a smash hit and broke all previous records. On March 23, 2008 Governor Dr Ishrat-ul-Ibad Khan has conferred the Pride of Performance award upon legendary female singer Munni Begum at a simple ceremony held at Governor's House in Karachi. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.