Mughal-e-Azam
File:Mughal-e-Azam.jpg
Directed by	K. Asif
Produced by	K. Asif
Written by	Aman Kamal Amrohi K. Asif Wajahat Mirza Ehsan Rizvi
Starring	Prithviraj Kapoor Dilip Kumar Madhubala Durga Khote Nigar Sultana
Music by	Naushad
Cinematography	R.D. Mathur
Editing by	Dharamvir
Studio	Sterling Investment Corporation Pvt. Ltd.
Release date(s)	5 August 1960
Running time	191 minutes
Country	‹See Tfd› India
Language	Hindi Urdu
Budget	1.5 crore (US$299,250)[1]
Box office	5.5 crore (US$1.1 million)[2]

Mughal-E-Azam (Hindi: मुग़ल-ए-आज़म; Urdu: مغلِ اعظم; English: The Greatest of the Mughals) is a 1960 Bollywood historical epic film^[3] directed by K. Asif and produced under the banner of Sterling Investment Corporation Pvt Ltd. The film re-tells a popular Indian tale, which was previously filmed as Loves of a Mughal Prince (1928) and Anarkali (1953). It is loosely based on an episode in the life of the Mughal Prince Salim, who went on to become the Emperor Jahangir.

With its unmatched production, K. Asif's magnum opus took twelve total years and $330,000 to complete this movie. This was when a typical Bollywood film would cost just around $200,000. The film created box office records in India when released. The film netted 5.5 crore at the box office worldwide. Adjusted for inflation, this amounts to 132.7 crore. It held the record for the highest grossing film ever until the 1975 film Sholay broke its unadjusted record.^[4] In 2004, Sterling Investment Corp Pvt Ltd released a restored colour version of the film. This again was a huge success and the film successfully completed 25 weeks at the Box Office.

Mughal-E-Azam is one of the classic hits and considered a milestone in Indian cinema.^[5] This was one of only two films K. Asif completed. When he died in 1971, he left behind two unfinished films, Sasta Khoon Mahenga Paani and Love and God, the latter released by K. C. Bokadia in 1986.

Plot[link]

Emperor Akbar (Prithviraj) and his Rajput wife, Jodha Bai (Durga) pray for a son. Akbar offers rituals to initiate the birth of a successor. After a child is born, the news is brought to the emperor by a maid. Overjoyed at his prayers being answered, the Emperor gives to the maid his ring and promises to grant her any one wish she asks.

The son, Prince Salim, grows to be a weak and pleasure-loving boy. His father sends him to war to learn courage and discipline. After 14 years, Salim returns as a distinguished soldier (Dilip Kumar). Salim falls in love with Anarkali (Madhubala), a court-dancer. (It was Anarkali's mother to whom Akbar gave his ring after Salim's birth). Salim wants to marry Anarkali and arranges secret meetings between her and himself. However, the jealous Bahaar, a dancer of a higher rank, wants the crown of India and she attempts to make the prince love her so she may ascend to queenship. She exposes the love between Salim and the dancer Anarkali. Salim pleads for Anarkali's hand, but his father objects and throws Anarkali into prison. Despite imprisonment, Anarkali refuses to reject Salim.

Salim rebels against his Akbar, is defeated in battle, and is sentenced to death by his own father. Before his sentencing, Akbar's subjects spontaneously erupt into a gathering and plead before the Emperor to not kill his only son, and the Empire's only prince. Anarkali too pleads for Salim's life in exchange for her own, and is condemned to death by entombment alive. Before her sentence is carried out, she pleads for a few hours alone with Salim as his make-believe wife. She is granted the wish, as she agrees to drug him afterwards so that he cannot interfere with her entombment. As she is being walled up, Akbar is reminded that he still owes a favour to Anarkali's mother, since she informed him of the birth of his son. Anarkali's mother takes advantage of this, and begs for her daughter's life. The emperor relents, and arranges for Anarkali's secret escape into exile. Unfortunately for Salim, it is still announced that Anarkali was killed, and he is heartbroken.

Cast[link]

• Prithviraj Kapoor as Akbar
• Dilip Kumar as Prince Salim
• Madhubala as Anarkali (Nadira)
• Durga Khote as Jodha Bai
• Nigar Sultana as Bahar
• Ajit as Durjan Singh
• M. Kumar as Sculptor Sangtaraash
• Murad as Raja Mann Singh
• Jilloo Bai as Anarkali's Mother
• Sheela Delaya as Suraiya, Anarkali's Sister
• Jalal Agha as Young Prince Salim

Production[link]

Background[link]

K. Asif first started work on the project in 1944, with financier, Shiraz Ali, owner of the famous Mahalaxmi Studio, Mumbai. He casted Chandramohan, Sapru and Nargis for the roles of Akbar, Salim and Anarkali, but the project was shelved because of political tension. Communal rioting stopped filming and shortly after the Partition of India in 1947, Shiraz Ali migrated to Pakistan, leaving Asif without a financier.^[6] He finally found one in business tycoon Shapoorji Pallonji but it took Asif almost four years to get his film on the floor.

The film was started again in 1951 with an all new cast of Prithviraj Kapoor, Madhubala, Dilip Kumar, Durga Khote and Ajit. In this version, Tabla maestro Ustad Zakir Hussain says, "I was considered for the role of the young Salim. But the role was eventually played by Jalal Agha.".^[7] Jhansi Ki Rani (1953), was the first colour film in India and by 1957 colour was creeping into Indian films. K Asif shot one reel in colour which included the song Pyar Kiya to Darna Kya. Impressed by the results, he shot three more reels in colour (towards the end of the film). Now, K. Asif wanted to remake the whole film in colour, but the distributors lost patience, who were not willing to accept any further delay. Asif released the film with 15% in colour and remaining 85% in Black & White. Asif dream to see the full film in colour remained unfulfilled till 2004, when Sterling Investment Corp Pvt Ltd., got the film restored and coloured and released a new version with great fanfare.^[8]

Most tales of Salim and Anarkali end with the death of the latter, even though the movie version is slightly more optimistic. However, Salim is still left to believe that Anarkali is dead and the lovers are separated for the rest of their lives.

This was the most expensive film ever made in Indian history up to that time, and for some time after. Tailors were brought from Delhi to stitch the costumes, specialists from Surat-Khambayat were employed for the embroidery, Hyderabadi goldsmiths made the jewellery, Kolhapuri craftsmen designed the crowns, Rajasthani ironsmiths crafted the weapons, and the elaborate footwear was ordered from Agra. For the battle sequence, 2000 camels, 4000 horses and 8000 troops were used, many of them soldiers on loan from the Indian Army. All together the film cost 1.5 crores ( 38.29 crores in present terms).

The statue of Lord Krishna used in the film is made of pure gold. The heavy chains Madhubala wore in the film were authentic, not the lightweight models worn in those days. It was her greatest ordeal in the film and she was bedridden for days nursing the bruises caused by wearing those chains.

Filming[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

The song "Ae Mohabbat Zindabad" had singer Mohammed Rafi with a chorus of 100 singers. The song "Pyar Kiya To Darna Kiya" has an unusual history to it: it cost Rs. 1 million at a time when a film would be made for less than a million; it was written and re-written 105 times by the lyricist, Shakeel Badayuni, before the music director, Naushad, could approve of it; it was shot in the renowned Sheesh Mahal (Palace of Mirrors); and in those days of sound recording, editing and mixing, as there was no way to provide the reverberation of sound, Naushad had Lata Mangeshkar sing the song in a studio bathroom. Prithviraj Kapoor would look into a mirror as tall as himself before each shot. When Asif asked him why he did so, he replied, "I do so to get under the skin of the character."

Its most famous dance sequence takes place in the Sheesh Mahal (Palace of Mirrors) of the Lahore Fort, where Anarkali dances for the Mughal Emperor and his court, singing Pyar Kiya to Darna Kya, "I have loved, so what is there to fear?" This song was one of three sequences shot in Technicolor, while the rest of the movie was in black and white. The singing is, of course, playback singing by Lata Mangeshkar and lip-synched by Madhubala.

This song has more to it, than actually appears. It is said that the small engraved mirrors in the area where the song was shot, would sparkle under the camera's intense lights and made it impossible to shoot. Even consultants from Hollywood told Director K. Asif to give up on the idea provided the impossible task of shooting against such intense glare. Asif thought of an idea: all those small mirrors, roughly in thousands, would be covered in a very very thin covering of wax, so that they did not reflect any light and still you can see as clean as it can be without any blur. One version of the story states that Asif confined himself to the set for days on end in various standing, sitting and lying down positions until he could find that single spot where the problem was rectified and the immortal pyar kiya tau darna kya was filmed.

For the battle sequence, 2,000 camels, 4,000 horses and 8,000 troops were used, many of them soldiers on loan from the Indian Army. This was arranged through special permission through the Indian Ministry of Defence-a rare occurrence today. The soldiers came from the Jaipur regiment of the Indian army.

The movie was originally shot three times, once each for lips moving for Hindi, Tamil and English dialogs. The Tamil version of the movie did very poorly, so the dream of having Shakespearean actors from Britain doing the dubbing in English was dropped.

Additional crew included assistant director Rashid Abbasi, chief assistant director Khalid Akhtar, and art director M. K. Syed.

Music[link]

The well acclaimed and successful soundtrack was composed by renowned musician Naushad and lyrics penned by Shakeel Badayuni. Mughal-E-Azam's soundtrack was named by Planet Bollywood as the second best Bollywood soundtrack ever.^[9] Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan did a very rare classical number, "Prem Jogan", that went on to become a classic.

Release[link]

Box office[link]

The film was finally released on 5 August 1960, and in 150 theatres all over the country simultaneously, which itself was a record in those days. It became an instant hit and collected a record revenue which remained unsurpassed till G.P. Sippy’s Sholay broke it 15 years later.^[4] The film netted 5.5 crore at the box office worldwide. Adjusted for inflation, this amounts to 132.7 crore and is ranked as an "All-Time Blockbuster".^[2]

Reception[link]

In 2004, Bollywood Hungama's Taran Adarsh noted "The grandiose look, the haunting musical score, the breathtaking battle scenes, the splendid performances, the heart-rending emotions, the legendary romance between Salim and Anarkali and of course, the confrontation scenes between Akbar and Salim? MUGHAL-E-AZAM will always remain a benchmark." He called the film a milestone in Indian cinema.^[5] Anupama Chopra included the film at the top of her list of "The 20 Best Hindi Films Ever Made", writing "The romance between the prince and the dancing girl is the best Hindi film ever made. With its powerful performances, thunderous father-son drama and spectacular song and dance sequences, Mughal-e-Azam is the apotheosis of the Hindi film form."^[24] Outlook Magazine, in an edition of May 2008, wrote that one of the scenes between Anarkali and Prince Salim, when he brushes her with a feather, is the most erotic scene in the history of Indian cinema.^[25]

Awards[link]

1961 National Film Awards

• National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi (President's Silver Medal)^[26]

1961 Filmfare Awards

• Filmfare Best Movie Award: K. Asif
• Filmfare Best Cinematographer Award: R.D. Mathur
• Filmfare Best Dialogue Award: Amanullah Khan, Kamal Amrohi, Wajahat Mirza, Ehsan Rizvi
• The film was also nominated for, but did not win: Best Director (K. Asif), Best Actress (Madhubala), Music Director (Naushad), and Playback Singer (Lata Mangeshkar)^[27]

1961 Academy Awards (United States)

• Indian Submission for Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 33rd Academy Awards (not nominated)

Re-release[link]

In November 2004, the whole film was restored and colourized in a year-long process undertaken by Sterling Investment Corp Pvt Ltd. (a company part of Shapoorji Pallonji Group), the original financiers of the film. For this purpose, it hired the services of IAAA (Indian Academy of Arts and Animation), Acris Laboratories, Rajtaru Studios and other firms and re-released the film with huge marketing. This is the first full feature-length film to be revived/colourized for a theatrical re-release in the history of world cinema. Some Hollywood movies have been colourized, but only for re-release on home video.

During the re-release, the film ran for 25 weeks, despite premiering against Yash Chopra's Veer Zaara, Abbas Mustan's Aitraaz, and Ram Gopal Verma's Naach. In 2006, Mughal-e-Azam opened doors for the release of Indian films in Pakistan, which had banned such releases since 1965.^[28]

Books[link]

• The Immortal Dialogue of K. Asif’s Mughal-E-Azam, with a foreword by Javed Akhtar, by Nasreen Munni Kabir, Suhail Akhtar. October 2006. ISBN 978-0-19-568496-4
• Mughal-e-Azam : Ek Noor-Naqhat Bhari Daastaan, with a foreword by Salim Khan, by Sandeepa Padlia. January 2006
• Mughal-e-azam, by Shakil Warsi. Rupa & Company, 2009. ISBN 81-291-1321-X

See also[link]

Bollywood portal

• List of submissions to the 33rd Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
• List of Indian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film

References[link]

External links[link]

• Mughal-e-Azam at the Internet Movie Database
• Mughal-e-Azam at Bollywood Hungama
• Mughal-e-Azam at AllRovi
• Mughal-e-Azam 50th Anniversary Website
• Mughal-e-Azam Bhopal Post Article (Hindi)
• University of Iowa article

v t e Bollywood (Hindi cinema) Directors · Actors · Playback singers · Music Directors · Songs · Bibliography Hindi films A–Z—Highest-grossing Films by year: 1930s · 1940 · 1941 · 1942 · 1943 · 1944 · 1945 · 1946 · 1947 · 1948 · 1949 · 1950 · 1951 · 1952 · 1953 · 1954 · 1955 · 1956 · 1957 · 1958 · 1959 · 1960 · 1961 · 1962 · 1963 · 1964 · 1965 · 1966 · 1967 · 1968 · 1969 · 1970 · 1971 · 1972 · 1973 · 1974 · 1975 · 1976 · 1977 · 1978 · 1979 · 1980 · 1981 · 1982 · 1983 · 1984 · 1985 · 1986 · 1987 · 1988 · 1989 · 1990 · 1991 · 1992 · 1993 · 1994 · 1995 · 1996 · 1997 · 1998 · 1999 · 2000 · 2001 · 2002 · 2003 · 2004 · 2005 · 2006 · 2007 · 2008 · 2009 · 2010 · 2011 · 2012

Lata Mangeshkar
Mangeshkar in 2008
Background information
Born	(1929-09-28) September 28, 1929 (age 82) Indore, Central India Agency, British India
Genres	Film music (playback singing)
Occupations	Singer
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1942–present

Lata Mangeshkar (born September 28, 1929) is a singer from India. She is one of the best-known and most respected playback singers in India.^[1][2] Mangeshkar's career started in 1942 and has spanned over six and a half decades. She has recorded songs for over a thousand Hindi films and has sung songs in over thirty-six regional Indian languages and foreign languages, though primarily in Hindi. She is the elder sister of singer Asha Bhosle, Hridayanath Mangeshkar, Usha Mangeshkar and Meena Mangeshkar. She is the second vocalist to have ever been awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour.^[3]

Mangeshkar was featured in the Guinness Book of World Records from 1974 to 1991 for having made the most recordings in the world. The claim was that she had recorded approximately 25,000 solo, duet, and chorus-backed songs in 20 Indian languages between 1948 to 1974. Over the years, while several sources have supported this claim, others have raised concerns over its veracity, claiming that this number was highly exaggerated and that Mangeshkar's younger sister, Asha Bhosle, had more song recordings than she had.^[4][5] In 2011 Guinness officially acknowledged Bhosle as the most recorded artist in music history.^[6]

Early life[link]

Lata Mangeshkar was born in Sikh Mohalla,^[7] in the princely state of Indore, part of the Central India Agency (now part of Madhya Pradesh). Her father, Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar who belonged to a Gomantak Maratha Samaj family from Goa, was a classical singer and theater actor. Her mother Shevanti (Shudhamati) who was from Thalner, Maharashtra, was Deenanath's second wife. The family's last name used to be Hardikar; Deenanath changed it to Mangeshkar in order to identify his family with his native town, Mangeshi in Goa. Lata was named "Hema" at her birth. Her parents later renamed her Lata after a female character, Latika, in one of her father's plays, BhaawBandhan.^[8] Lata is the eldest child of her parents. Meena, Asha, Usha and Hridayanath are her siblings in sequence.

Mangeshkar took her first lessons from her father. At the age of five, she started to work as an actress in her father's musical plays (Sangeet Natak in Marathi). On the first day in the school, she started teaching songs to other children. When the teacher stopped her, she was so angry that she stopped going to the school.^[8] Other sources cite that she left school because they would not allow her to bring Asha with her, as she would often bring her younger sister with her.

Singing career[link]

Early career in the 1940s[link]

In 1942, when Mangeshkar was 13, her father died of heart disease. Master Vinayak (Vinayak Damodar Karnataki), the owner of Navyug Chitrapat movie company and a close friend of the Mangeshkar family, took care of them

Mangeshkar sang the song "Naachu Yaa Gade, Khelu Saari Mani Haus Bhaari" which was composed by Sadashivrao Nevrekar for Vasant Joglekar's Marathi-language movie Kiti Hasaal (1942), but the song was dropped from the final cut. Vinayak gave her a small role in Navyug Chitrapat's Marathi movie Pahili Mangalaa-gaur (1942), in which she sang "Natali Chaitraachi Navalaai" which was composed by Dada Chandekar.^[8] Her first Hindi song was "Mata Ek Sapoot Ki Duniya Badal De Tu" for the Marathi film, Gajaabhaau (1943). Mangeshkar moved to Mumbai in 1945 when Master Vinayak's company moved its headquarters there. She started taking lessons in Hindustani classical music from Ustad Amanat Ali Khan . She sang “Paa Lagoon Kar Jori” for Vasant Joglekar's Hindi-language movie Aap Ki Seva Mein (1946),^[8] which was composed by Datta Davjekar. Mangeshkar and her sister Asha played minor roles in Vinayak's first Hindi-language movie, Badi Maa (1945). In that movie, Lata also sang a bhajan, “Maata Tere Charnon Mein.” She was introduced to music director Vasant Desai during the recording of Vinayak's second Hindi-language movie, Subhadra (1946).

Following the partition of India in 1947, Ustad Amanat Ali Khan migrated to newly formed Pakistan, so Mangeshkar started to learn classical music under Amanat Khan Devaswale. Pandit Tulsidas Sharma, a pupil of Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, also trained her.

After Vinayak's death in 1948, music director Ghulam Haider mentored her as a singer. Haider introduced Mangeshkar to producer Sashadhar Mukherjee, who was working then on the movie Shaheed (1948), but Mukherjee dismissed Mangeshkar's voice as "too thin."^[8] An annoyed Haider responded that in the coming years the producers and the directors would "fall at Lata's feet" and "beg her" to sing in their movies. Haider gave Lata her first major break with the song “Dil Mera Toda,” from the movie Majboor (1948).^[8]

Initially, Mangeshkar is said to have imitated the acclaimed singer Noor Jehan, but later she developed her own style of singing.^[8] Lyrics of songs in Hindi movies are primarily composed by Urdu poets and contain a higher proportion of Urdu words, including the dialogue. Actor Dilip Kumar once made a mildly disapproving remark about Mangeshkar's Maharashtrian accent while singing Hindi/Urdu songs; so for a period of time, Lata took lessons in Urdu from an Urdu teacher named Shafi.^[9]

One of her first major hits was “Aayega Aanewaala,” a song in the movie Mahal (1949), which was composed by music director Khemchand Prakash and lip-synced on screen by actress Madhubala.

1950s[link]

Mangeshkar as a young woman

In the 1950s, Mangeshkar sang songs composed by various music directors of the period, including Anil Biswas (in films such as Tarana and Heer), Shankar-Jaikishan, Naushad, S. D. Burman, C. Ramchandra, Hemant Kumar, Salil Chowdhury, Khayyam, Ravi, Sajjad Hussain, Roshan, Kalyanji-Anandji, Vasant Desai, Sudhir Phadke, Hansraj Behl, Madan Mohan, and Usha Khanna.

Mangeshkar sang many raga-based songs for Naushad in movies such as Baiju Bawra (1952), Mughal-E-Azam (1960), and Kohinoor (1960). Ae Chorre Ki Jaat Badi Bewafa, a duet with G. M. Durrani, was her first song for composer, Naushad. The duo, Shankar-Jaikishan, chose Mangeshkar for Aag, Aah (1953), Shree 420 (1955), and Chori Chori (1956). Before 1957, composer Sachin Dev (S. D.) Burman chose Mangeshkar as the leading female singer for his musical scores in Sazaa (1951), House No. 44 (1955), and Devdas (1955). However a rift developed between Lata and Burman in 1957, and Lata did not sing Burman's compositions again until 1962.^[8]

Mangeshkar won a Filmfare Best Female Playback Award for Salil Chowdhury's composition “Aaja Re Pardesi,” from Madhumati (1958). In the early fifties, Lata Mangeshkar's association with C. Ramchandra produced songs in movies such as Anarkali, Albela, Asha, Pehli Jhhalak, Shin Shinkai Bublaa Boo, Azad and Amardeep. For Madan Mohan, she performed for films like Adalat, Railway Platform, Dekh Kabira Roya and Chacha Zindabad.

1960s[link]

Mangeshkar's song "Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya" from Mughal-E-Azam (1960), composed by Naushad and picturized on Madhubala, still remains famous . The Hawaiian-themed number "Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh" from Dil Apna Aur Preet Parai (1960) was composed by Shankar-Jaikishan and picturized on Meena Kumari.

In 1961, Mangeshkar recorded two popular bhajans, "Allah Tero Naam" and "Prabhu Tero Naam", for Burman's assistant, Jaidev. In 1962, she was awarded her second Filmfare Award for the song "Kahin Deep Jale Kahin Dil" from Bees Saal Baad, composed by Hemant Kumar.

On June 27, 1963, against the backdrop of the Sino-Indian War, Mangeshkar sang the patriotic song "Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo" (literally, "Oh, People of My Country") in the presence of Jawaharlal Nehru, the then Prime Minister of India. The song, composed by C. Ramchandra and written by Pradeep, is said to have brought the Prime Minister to tears.^[8][10]

In 1963, Mangeshkar returned to collaboration with S. D. Burman. She also sang for R. D. Burman's very first film Chhote Nawaab and later for his films such as Bhoot Bangla (1965), Pati Patni (1966), Baharon ke Sapne (1967) and Abhilasha (1969). She also recorded several popular songs for S. D. Burman, including "Aaj Phir Jeene Ki Tamanna Hai", "Gata Rahe Mera Dil" (duet with Kishore Kumar) and "Piya Tose" from Guide (1965), and "Hothon Pe Aisi Baat" from Jewel Thief (1967).

During the 1960s, Lata Mangeshkar continued her association with Madan Mohan which included the songs "Aap Ki Nazron Ne Samjha" from Anpadh (1962), "Lag Ja Gale" and "Naina Barse Rim Jhim" from Woh Kaun Thi? (1964), "Woh Chup Rahen To" from Jahan Ara (1964), and "Tu Jahan Jahan Chalega" from Mera Saaya (1966).

The 1960s also witnessed the beginning of Mangeshkar's association with Laxmikant-Pyarelal, the music directors for whom she sang the most popular songs in her career. She sang for Parasmani (1963) which was their first film together.

She also sang several playback songs for Marathi films, composed by Marathi music directors including Hridaynath Mangeshkar, Vasant Prabhu, Srinivas Khale, Sudhir Phadke and herself (under the name Anandghan). During the 1960s and 1970s, she also sang several Bengali songs, composed by music directors like Salil Chowdhury and Hemant Kumar.

In this period Lata Mangeshkar has recorded duets with Mukesh, Manna Dey, Mohammed Rafi, and Kishore Kumar.

1970s[link]

In 1972, Meena Kumari's last film, Pakeezah released. It featured popular songs including "Chalte Chalte" and "Inhi Logon Ne" sung by Lata Mangeshkar, and composed by Ghulam Mohammed. She recorded many popular songs for S. D. Burman's last films, including "Rangeela Re" from Prem Pujari (1970), "Khilte Hain Gul Yahaan" from Sharmeelee (1971), and "Piya Bina" from Abhimaan (1973).

Lata Mangeshkar's most notable songs in 1970s were composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal (Laxmi-Pyare) and Rahul Dev Burman^{[citation needed]}. She recorded several songs composed by Laxmi-Pyare in 1960s and 1970s, many of them written by the lyricist Anand Bakshi. She also recorded many hit songs with Rahul Dev Burman in the films Amar Prem (1972), Caravan (1971), Kati Patang(1971), and Aandhi (1975). The two are noted for their songs with the lyricists Majrooh Sultanpuri, Anand Bakshi and Gulzar.

In 1973, she won the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer for the song "Beeti Na Bitai" from the film Parichay, composed by R. D. Burman, and written by Gulzar. In 1974, she sang her only Malayalam song "Kadali Chenkadali" for the film Nellu, composed by Salil Chowdhury, and written by Vayalar Ramavarma. In 1975, she again won the national award, this time for the song "Roothe Roothe Piya" from the film Kora Kagaz, composed by Kalyanji-Anandji.

From 1970s onwards, Lata Mangeshkar has also staged many concerts in India and abroad, including several charity concerts. Her first concert overseas was at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in 1974. She also released an album of Mirabai's bhajans, Chala Vaahi Des, composed by her brother Hridayanath Mangeshkar. Some of the bhajans in the album include "Saanware Rang Raachi" and "Ud Jaa Re Kaaga". In the early 70s, she released other non-film albums, such as her collection of Ghalib ghazals, an album of Marathi folk songs (koli-geete), an album of Ganesh aartis (all composed by her brother Hridaynath) and an album of abhangs of Sant Tukaram composed by Shrinivas Khale.

In late 1970s and early 1980s, she worked with the children of composers she had earlier worked with. Some of these composers included Rahul Dev Burman (son of Sachin Dev Burman), Rajesh Roshan (son of Roshan), Anu Malik (son of Sardar Malik), and Anand-Milind (sons of Chitragupt).

1980s onwards[link]

From 1980s onwards, Lata Mangeshkar worked with music directors including Shiv-Hari, Ram Laxman, and A. R. Rahman. She recorded some non-film songs, including ghazals with Jagjit Singh.

In 1990, Mangeshkar launched her own production house for Hindi movies which produced the Gulzar-directed movie Lekin.... She won her third National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer for her rendition of the song "Yaara Sili Sili" from the film, which was composed by her brother Hridayanath. During the 1990s, she recorded with music directors including Jatin-Lalit and Nadeem-Shravan. She has sung for Rajshri Productions, including Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) and Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994).

Mangeshkar has sung for almost all the Yash Chopra films and films from his production house Yash Raj Films at that time, including Chandni (1989), Lamhe (1991), Darr (1993), Yeh Dillagi (1994), Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995), Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) and later on Mohabbatein (2000), Mujhse Dosti Karoge (2002) and Veer Zaara (2004).

A. R. Rahman recorded a few songs with Mangeshkar during this period, including "Jiya Jale" (Dil Se..), "Khamoshiyan Gungunane Lagin" (One Two Ka Four), "Ek Tu Hi Bharosa" (Pukar), "Pyaara Sa Gaon" (Zubeidaa), "Lukka chuppi" (Rang de Basanti) and "O Paalanhaare" (Lagaan). She made an appearance in the film Pukar singing this song.

In 1999, Lata Eau de Parfum, a perfume brand named after her, was launched.^[11]

In 1999, Mangeshkar was nominated as a member of Rajya Sabha.^[12] However, she did not attend the Rajya Sabha sessions regularly, inviting criticism from several members of the House, including the Deputy Chairperson Najma Heptullah, Pranab Mukherjee and Shabana Azmi.^[13][14] She stated the reason for her absence as ill-health; it was also reported that she had not taken a salary, allowance or a house in Delhi for being a Member of Parliament.^[13][15]

In 2001, Lata Mangeshkar was awarded Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor. In the same year, she established the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital in Pune, managed by the Lata Mangeshkar Medical Foundation (founded by the Mangeshkar family in October 1989). In 2005, she designed a jewellery collection called Swaranjali, which was crafted by Adora, an Indian diamond export company. Five pieces from the collection raised £105,000 at a Christie's auction, and a part of the money was donated for the 2005 Pakistan earthquake relief.^[16] Also in 2001, she recorded her first Hindi song with the composer Ilaiyaraaja, for the film Lajja; she had earlier recorded Tamil and Telugu songs composed by Ilaiyaraaja.

Lata Mangeshkar's song "Wada Na Tod" is in the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) and on the film's soundtrack.

On June 21, 2007, she released an album Saadgi, featuring eight ghazal-like songs written by Javed Akhtar and composed by Mayuresh Pai.^[17]

Lata Mangeshkar records songs for Madhur Bhandarkar Kitne Ajeeb Rishte Hain Yahan Par for Page 3 (2005), Daata Sun Le for Jail (2009) and, Kyun Yahan Hota Hai was recorded years ago for Corporate (2006), but is only being used in Heroine (2012).^{[18] [19]}

Non-singing career[link]

Music direction[link]

Lata Mangeshkar composed music for the first time in 1955 for Marathi movie Ram Ram Pavhane. Later in 1960s, she composed music for following Marathi movies under the pseudonym of Anand Ghan.^[20]

• 1960 - Ram Ram Pavhana
• 1963 - Maratha Tituka Melvava
• 1963 - Mohityanchi Manjula
• 1965 - Sadhi Manase
• 1969 - Tambadi Mati

She won Maharashtra State Government's Best Music Director Award for the film Sadhi Manase. The song "Airanichya Deva Tula" from the same film received best song award.^{[citation needed]}

Production[link]

Lata Mangeshkar has produced four films:

• 1953 - Vaadal (Marathi)
• 1953 - Jhaanjhar (Hindi), co-produced with C. Ramchandra
• 1955 - Kanchan (Hindi)
• 1990 - Lekin... (Hindi)

Awards and recognitions[link]

Lata Mangeshkar has won several awards and honors, including Bharat Ratna (India's Highest Civilian Award), Padma Bhushan (1969), Padma Vibhushan (1999), Dada Saheb Phalke Award (1989), Maharashtra Bhushan Award (1997),^[21] NTR National Award (1999), Bharat Ratna (2001), ANR National Award (2009), three National Film Awards, and 12 Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards. She has also won four Filmfare Best Female Playback Awards. In 1969, she made the unusual gesture of giving up the Filmfare Best Female Playback Award, in order to promote fresh talent. She was later awarded Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993.

In 1984, the State Government of Madhya Pradesh instituted the Lata Mangeshkar Award in honour of Lata Mangeshkar. The State Government of Maharashtra also instituted a Lata Mangeshkar Award in 1992.

In 1974, The Guinness Book of Records listed Lata Mangeshkar as the most recorded artist in the history, stating that she had reportedly recorded "not less than 25,000 solo, duet and chorus backed songs in 20 Indian languages" between 1948 and 1974. Her record was contested by Mohammed Rafi, who was claimed to have sung around 28,000 songs.^[4][22] After Rafi's death, in its 1984 edition, the Guinness Book of World Records stated Lata Mangeshkar's name for the "Most Recordings", but also stated Rafi's claim. The later editions of Guinness Book stated that Lata Mangeshkar had sung no fewer than 30,000 songs between 1948 and 1987.^[23]

Although the entry has not been printed in Guinness editions since 1991, several sources claim that she has recorded thousands of songs, with estimates ranging up to figures as large as 50,000.^[24][25] However, even the earliest Guinness claim of 25,000 songs (between 1948–1974) was claimed to be exaggerated by several other sources, with one of them stating that the number of songs sung by Lata Mangeshkar in Hindi films till 1991 was found to be 5250.^[26][27][28] Mangeshkar herself stated that she does not keep a record of the number of songs recorded by her, and that she did not know from where Guinness Book editors got their information.^[29] In 2011 Asha Bhosle was officially acknowledged by Guinness as the most recorded artist in music history, surpassing Mangeshkar.^[6]

See also[link]

• Playback singer
• Asha Bhosle
• List of Indian playback singers
• Bollywood songs

References[link]