Bollywood Home » Singers » Suraiya Suraiya Jamaal Sheikh is more popular as Suraiya in the Bollywood film industry. She was not only a great singer, but also a famous actress. Born on the 15th of June in the 1929, this Singer and actress ruled Bollywood between the period of 1940s and 1950s.

Suraiya was a versatile singer. She sang different kinds of songs. She mostly sung for the Bollywood movies in which she acted. Apart from the romantic songs, many of her frothy numbers became famous. Her memorable songs include " nain diwane", " woh paas rahe ya door rahe nazaron mein samaye rehte hain", "Tu mera chand'", " man mor huwa matwala", and "Taratari". Apart from these songs, "aiso se jee na lagaye koi'" and " kise maloom tha" also became popular. Both these famous songs by Suraiya have gloomy tunes that touch the heart directly and bring tears to our eyes. As a singer, she rated herself among the celebrated singers like Nurjehan, Amirbai, Begam akhtar and Zohrabai Ambalewal. She sang successfully for twenty long years. In her years of singing she found a musical mentor in Nausad.

A film By Prakash Pictures required a girl who could act as well as sing. The great singer G.M. Durrani recommended Suraiya's name for this film. In this film called "Station Master", Suraiya sang two songs.

Out of these two songs, "saajan ghar aye ayeri aali" was a solo performance. This is how her career as an actress and singer began. Again, she sung for the film "Sharda". She sang in the eternally remembered films like "Nadaan", "Dillagi", "Dard", "Dastaan", "Anmol Ghadi", and "Deewana". Suraiya also sang several songs under the direction of the celebrated music composer Anil Biswas.

The personal life of Suraiya was really miserable. She was engaged in a romantic relationship with the "evergreen actor" Dev Anand. She acted in six films with Dev Anand. Once, while shooting a song in a boat, Suraiya was about to drown. It is DevAnand who rescued her life. After this, Suraiya fell in love with Dev Anand. Suraiya was also about to marry Dev Anand. But it was Suraiya's grandmother who did not want the marriage to happen. Therefore, Suraiya remained unmarried throughout her life.

But Suraiya suddenly withdrew herself from films and music. This famous Bollywood singer breathed her last at the Harkison das Hospital in Mumbai on 31st of January in the year 2004. She was seventy four years old when she died.

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