Attia was born in Lucknow into the liberal Kidwai clan of Oudh. Her father Shahid Hosain Kidwai, was the Cambridge-educated Taluqdar of Gadia, and her mother, Begum Nisar Fatima came from the Alvi family of Kakori. From her father she inherited a keen interest in politics and nationalism. From her mother's family of poets and scholars she drew a knowledge of Urdu, Persian and Arabic. She was the first woman from her background to graduate from Lucknow University, after having attended La Martiniere School for Girls and Isabella Thoburn College, Lucknow.