Hadiqa Kiyani - Early Life

Early Life

Kiani was born in Rawalpindi, Pakistan and grew up in Lahore. She is the third of three children to mother Khawar, a principal of a local government girls school. When she was three years old, her father died from natural causes, and thus the family were left to fend for themselves. Khawar began working as the principal of a government all-girl school while Kiani and her older siblings were growing up. After her father's death and the resulting loss of financial support, the family had to use the school as a temporary home. Kiani and both her siblings had a talent for music, and so her mother enlisted her in the Pakistan National Council of the Arts. Kiani then performed in front of a crowd of a thousand people at Liaqat Memorial Pindi Hall.

At an early age, she began showing an interest in singing and music. Whilst living in Rawalpindi, she went on to study at Viqar-un-Nisa Noon Girls High School Pindi. She represented Pakistan in International Children Festivals in Turkey, Jordan, Bulgaria, and Greece, winning various medals along the way. She also used to be on Sohail Rana's Rang Barangi Dunya; a weekly musical show for children. Kiani thanked her family for being supportive in her singing career, citing them as "patient and enthusiastic with a heart of gold".

The family moved to Lahore when she was in eighth grade. She enrolled at Kinnaird College and due to her exceptional academic performance, she earned a Masters degree in Psychology. Kiani still dreamed to become an singer, and signed on to Lips Records in 1994.