[4][5][6] The Nigar Awards were introduced in 1957 by Ilyas Rashidi, also known as Baba-e-Filmi Sahafat (translation: The Father of Film Journalism) in Pakistan.

[1][3][4] The award was an extension of the Nigar Magazine, which was also founded by Rashidi in 1948 and was Pakistan's first weekly newspaper dedicated solely to Pakistani cinema.

[1] Ilyas Rashidi acquired experience in entertainment journalism through his association with Umer Azad (his older brother) and his daily newspaper Anjam, which had shifted its offices from Delhi to Karachi in 1947.

The first award distribution ceremony was held on 17 July 1958 (for films released in 1957) at Evernew Studios in Lahore, Pakistan.

[3][1][2] Instead of the usual practice of envelope opening, the awards committee prints the names of the winners on the back of the invitation cards that are sent to all invitees.