London: Bhangra singer Malkit Singh (pictured) has been made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) by the British Queen in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

"I have worked very hard on my music. And although I had won medals in India when I was in college, my musical journey actually began in Britain," Singh, 45, said from his Birmingham home.

When his name was included in the MBE list last year, the bhangra singer had said he might greet Queen Elizabeth II with a boisterous 'chak de phatte' - a Punjabi phrase typifying the exuberance of the language.

In the event, he merely thanked the Queen at the ceremony Wednesday.

Malkit Singh is the first Punjabi singer to figure in the prestigious Queen's Honours List, which is published twice every year to honour people with a record of distinguished and long-standing service to the nation or the community.

Singh, born in Husseinpur village of Jalandhar district, came to Britain in 1984 from Punjab and cut his first album two years later - it became a trail blazer as Bhangra grew in popularity in dance halls and night clubs all over Britain.