Aneela Mirza, or Anila Mirza (born 8 October 1974) is a Danish singer who has found success as a member of the pop group Toy-Box and as a solo artist under the name of "Aneela".
She was born and raised in Denmark. Her mother is half-Iranian and half-Pakistani, and her father is a Parsi. Her parents met in Indonesia before moving to Denmark.
She was part of the Danish pop group Toy-Box which enjoyed worldwide success in the late-1990s and early-2000s, selling over 4.5 million albums. The group released two albums of bubblegum dance music, Fantastic and Toy Ride, and had several hit singles including "Tarzan & Jane" and "Best Friend".
After the group's break-up, Aneela embarked on a solo career and released her first solo single, "Bombay Dreams", in 2005. The song was a collaboration with pop singer Arash with whom she worked on several other songs as well, including "Chori Chori" (which is set to the tune of Snow's song "Informer"). Apart from her solo career, Aneela has also produced and written for Danish artist Burhan G, R&B producer Saqib and many more.
Mirza (/ˈmɜːrzə/ or /mɪəˈzɑː/) is a historical title of Persian origin, denoting the rank of a high nobleman or Prince. It is usually defined in English as a royal or imperial Prince of the Blood.
Today, Mirza is used as a name to identify patriarchal lineage to royal aristocracies of Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Indian Subcontinent. Historically, it was used as a title by and signified patriarchal lineage to the imperial families of the Turkish Empire, Persia, Circassia, Shirvan, Mughals (aka Moguls) and Muslim Rajputs. It was also a title bestowed upon members of the highest aristocracies in Tatar states, such as the Khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan.
Under Catherine the Great, empress of Russia, the Mirzas gained equal rights with the Russian nobility due to their extreme wealth. In return, the Mirzas financed her Russo-Turkish war against the Ottoman Empire. Abdul Mirza was given the title Prince Yusupov, and his descendant Prince Felix Yusupov married a niece of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia.