[2][3] Qasim was of Kashmiri descent and was born as Qasem Jo in the Gozar Barana district of the Afghan capital city of Kabul during the late 1870s.

[6] Qasim attended a madrasa, an Arabic educational institution, which specialized solely in religious studies; as such, he learned music theory from his father.

[6] He also learned to play such musical instruments such as the sitar and the tabla, as well as a number of languages, including Dari from his mother, Pashto from his teacher, Urdu from his father, and Arabic from his religious school.

From the age of 20 onward, Qasim provided his musical services to various Afghan sovereigns, including Emir Abdur Rahman Khan,[8] who was known as the "Bismarck of Afghanistan" and who made him the court's royal singer.

Qasim opened a music school and, as a result of his talents, received the title of "Ustad" (master) from Habibullah Khan.