Naghma was born as Shaperei in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Like many other Afghan families, the Russian invasion and the subsequent Afghan civil war forced Naghhma and her family to leave Afghanistan temporarily. She first moved to India, then settled in Pakistan for a period and eventually settled in the United States in the year 2000.

With impending civil war, the couple left Afghanistan in 1992. Eventually they settled in Islamabad, Pakistan. There, they became very successful with an enthusiastic crowd of Afghan refugees who had fled the impeding Afghan civil war and who were nostalgic for their native music. Their financial situation by this time had improved significantly. In 2000, they left Pakistan and immigrated to the United States.

After establishing contact with the Afghan community of northern California, the duo held a series of performances.