Komal Rizvi

Rizvi was born in Dubai and then raised in England and Nigeria. As a teenager, she came to Pakistan and launched her career in Karachi where she was also a student.[1][2]

She started her career at age 16 when her talent was spotted by a family friend of her brother Hasan Rizvi, who is a dancer and an entrepreneur and also performed with Komal at various fashion events.[3][4][5][6]

She released her first song in 1999 which went on to become the super hit bhangra song "Bauji bauji bhangra saaday naal paoji". She became an overnight sensation.[1][7][2]

Rizvi then moved onto hosting with her debut show BPL Oye in Mumbai, India.[1]

She often writes the lyrics of her own songs.[8]

Rizvi's first screen role was for Pakistan Television (PTV), the super hit Hawaain in 1997,[1] followed by Lehrein. TV serials like Kabhi Kabhi, Teesra Peher and Samandar Hai Darmiyan helped establish her as one of the leading actresses of the Pakistani television industry. She received a lot of praise for her role in Hum TV's Mujhe Roothney Na Dena.[1]

Despite the critical acclaim she has received for her acting, Rizvi is very selective about her acting projects as she tries to maintain her main focus on singing.[2] "There are a few things that I look at before accepting a role. The major thing is the script and the production team. I accept only if the script is strong, realistic and relatable. I don't accept to act if the part I am going to play and the script are not good enough," Rizvi said in an interview given to You! Magazine.[1]

In September 2016, it was reported that Rizvi would star in a Hollywood movie under the banner of a Canadian production house. This new film, named Afreen, was scheduled to be released in 2017. Rizvi said in a newspaper interview, about the film's subject and plot, "It's an anti-ISIS and a pro-Muslim film".[9]

Rizvi started her TV hosting career with BPL Oye. The highlight of her hosting career remains the TV show she did for Channel V in India where she interviewed some of the biggest names of the Indian industry.[1][10]

Rizvi has also hosted Karachi Nights With Komal, Hum TV Mornings With Komal and Nachley, and the popular dance reality show for ARY.

Rizvi was a part of Coke Studio’s third season where she performed "Daaneh Pe Daanah" with folk singer Akhtar Chanal Zahri. Originally written and composed by Zahri himself, the song fondly sings the praises of the province Balochistan he hails from. Presenting an unconventional alliance, this Coke Studio rendition of the popular folk song fused with Sindhi Sufi classic "Lal Meri Path" took both well-loved anthems to a new level in 2011.[11] Reborn against the backdrop of a modern funk groove, the song became a colorful musical demonstration of diversity with Zahri and Rizvi, two strong yet vastly different personalities, combining their voices in a symbolic celebration of individuality.[1]

Rizvi also performed "Lambi Judaai",[1] a classic Reshma number. Reshma caused a stir across the border in India when "Lambi Judaai" from the soundtrack of 1983 Bollywood film Hero became a massive hit. Coke Studio presented the nostalgic melody against a fluid backdrop of rich chordal elements to take on the quality of a ballad from the 1950s.[1]

Both the numbers were featured on the Top 10 all-time hits of Coke Studio. Rizvi is the only female singer to be featured twice on that list.[2]

• Komal Rizvi on IMDb
• Komal Rizvi's channel on YouTube