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Painting depicting Anarkali.

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Anarkali (Urdu: انارکلی (Shahmukhi); Anārkalī ) (pomegranate blossom) was a legendary slave girl from Lahore, Punjab (in present day Pakistan). It is depicted in the Bollywood movie Mughal-e-Azam that during the Mughal period, she was supposedly ordered to be buried alive between two walls by Mughal emperor Akbar for having an illicit relationship with the Prince Nuruddin Saleem (or Salim), later to become Emperor Jahangir. Due to the lack of evidence and sources, the story of Anarkali is widely accepted to be either false or heavily embellished. Nevertheless, her story is cherished by many and has been adapted into literature, art and cinema.

The Story of Anarkali[link]

Prince Salim (the future Jahangir) and his legendary illicit love, the dancing girl Anarkali

The Great Mughal emperor Akbar and his wife, Mariam-uz-Zamani, had a son named Prince Saleem (later Emperor Jahangir). He was a spoiled and rude boy^{[citation needed]} and because of this, Akbar the Great sent his son away to the army for fourteen years to learn the discipline required to rule the empire. Finally, Akbar allowed this son to return to the main palace in Lahore. Since this day was one of great celebration, the harem of Akbar decided to hold a great Mujra (dance performance) by a beautiful girl named Nadeera, daughter of Noor Khan Argun. Since she was an exceptional beauty, "like a blossoming flower", Akbar called her Anarkali (blossoming pomegranate).

During her first and famous Mujra in Lahore Prince Saleem fell in love with her and it later became apparent that she was also in love with him. Later, they both began to see each other although the matter was kept quiet. Later, however, Prince Saleem informed his father, Akbar, of his intention to marry Anarkali and make her the Empress. The problem was that Anarkali, despite her fame in Lahore, was a dancer and a maid and not of noble blood. So Akbar (who was sensitive about his own mother, Hamida Banu Begum, being a commoner) forbade Saleem from seeing Anarkali again. Prince Saleem and Akbar had an argument that later became very serious after Akbar ordered the arrest of Anarkali and placed her in one of the jail dungeons in Lahore.

After many attempts, Saleem and one of his friends helped Anarkali escape and hid her near the outskirts of Lahore. Then, the furious Prince Saleem organized an army (from those loyal to him during his fourteen years there) and began an attack on the city; Akbar, being the emperor, had a much larger army and quickly defeated Prince Saleem's force. Akbar gave his son two choices: either to surrender Anarkali to them or to face the death penalty. Prince Saleem, out of his true love for Anarkali, chose the death penalty. Anarkali, however, unable to allow Prince Saleem to die, came out of hiding and approached the Mughal emperor, Akbar. She asked him if she could be the one to give up her life in order to save Prince Saleem, and after Akbar agreed, she asked for just one wish, which was to spend just one pleasant night with Prince Saleem.

After her night with Saleem, Anarkali drugged Saleem with a pomegranate blossom. After a very tearful goodbye to the unconscious Saleem, she left the royal palace with guards. She was taken to the area near present-day Anarkali Bazaar in Lahore, where a large ditch was made for her. She was strapped to a board of wood and lowered in it by soldiers belonging to Akbar. They closed the top of the large ditch with a brick wall and buried her alive.

A second version of the story says that the Emperor Akbar helped Anarkali escape from the ditch through a series of underground tunnels with her mother only with the promise of Anarkali to leave the Mughal empire and never return. Thus it is not known whether Anarkali survived or not.

Another quite popular version states that she was immured alive in a wall.

Anarkali's tomb[link]

The white mausoleum in Lahore held the body of Anarkali

A tomb, thought^[who?] to be that of Anarkali, is situated on the premises of the Punjab Civil Secretariat in Lahore, Pakistan and now houses the Punjab Records Office. Previously, it had been transformed into a Christian church by the British. A bazaar located nearby on The Mall Road is named Anarkali bazaar after Anarkali. It is one of the oldest surviving markets in Pakistan, dating back at least 200 years.^{[citation needed]}

The mausoleum is an octagonal building covered with a dome. At each corner of the building is an octagonal turret surmounted with a kiosk. In olden times,^{[clarification needed]} this building was surrounded by a garden that had at its entrance a double-storeyed gateway but no trace of the garden survives. The building houses a monolithic^[vague] sarcophagus. On the sarcophagus are inscribed 99 names of Allah and the Persian couplet:

تا قیامت شکر گویم کردگار خویش را
آہ گر من باز بینم روئ یار خویش را

tā qiyāmat shukr gūyam kardigāre khīsh rā
āh! gar man bāz bīnam rūī yār-e khīsh rā

I would give thanks unto my God unto the day of resurrection
Ah! could I behold the face of my beloved once more

On the northern side of the sarcophagus are inscribed the words "مجنون سلیم اکبر" (majnūn Saleem Akbar, the one profoundly enamored by Saleem, son of Akbar).

The sarcophagus also bears two dates, given in both letters and in numerals: 1008 Hijri (AD 1599-1600) on the eastern side of the sarcophagus and 1024 Hijri (AD 1615-16) on the western side.

Scholar Ahsan Quraishi mentions one more inscription in the tomb, that is said^[who?] to have been destroyed by General Ventura, the French mercenary fighting for the Sikhs, who used the monument as his residence. The contents of this extinct Persian inscription can be translated as follows: "The innocent who is murdered mercilessly and who dies after enduring much pain, is a martyr. God considers him/her a martyr".

Although the name of Anarkali is not mentioned in any of these inscriptions but on the basis of the contents of these inscriptions, a group of scholars construe that the person buried in the memorial is no other than Anarkali. Of the two dates, the first is believed to be that of the execution of Anarkali and the second one as the date of the erection of the tomb. But this supposition cannot be correct because Akbar was not at Lahore in 1008 hijri. He had already left it for Agra in 1007 (hijri ) (in November 1598). So the story about Anarkali being buried alive by the orders of Akbar cannot be correct.

Scepticism[link]

Painting of Anarkali by Abdur Rahman Chughtai.

There are conflicts among the scholars on the authenticity of Anarkali's incident. There are many opposing and confusing views such as mentioned below :-

The earliest writers to report the love affair of Salim were two British travellers — William Finch and Edward Terry. William Finch reached Lahore in February 1611 (only eleven years after the supposed death of Anarkali), to sell the indigo he had purchased at Bayana on behalf of the East India Company. His account, written in early seventeenth century English, gives the following information: In the suburbs of the town, a fair monument for Prince Daniyal and his mother, one of the Akbar’s wives, with whom it is said Prince Salim had a liaison. Upon the notice of the affair, King Akbar caused the lady to be enclosed within a wall of his palace, where she died. The King Jahangir, in token of his love, ordered a magnificent tomb of stone to be built in the midst of a walled four-square garden provided with a gate. The body of the tomb, the emperor willed to be wrought in work of gold....

Edward Terry who visited a few years after William Finch writes that Akbar had threatened to disinherit Jahangir, for his liaison with Anarkali, the emperor’s most beloved wife. But on his death-bed, Akbar repealed it.

Basing his analysis on the above two Britishers’ accounts, Abraham Eraly, the author of The Last Spring: The Lives and Times of the Great Mughals, suspects that there "seems to have been an oedipal conflict between Akbar and Salim." He also considers it probable that the legendary Anarkali was nobody other than the mother of Prince Daniyal.

Eraly supports his hypothesis by quoting an incident recorded by Abul Fazl, the court-historian of Akbar. According to the historian, Salim was beaten up one evening by guards of the royal harem of Akbar. The story is that a mad man had wandered into Akbar’s harem because of the carelessness of the guards. Abul Fazl writes that Salim caught the man but was himself mistaken for the intruder. The emperor arrived upon the scene and was about to strike with his sword when he recognised Salim. Most probably, the intruder was no other than Prince Salim and the story of the mad man was concocted to put a veil on the indecency of the Prince.

But the accounts of the British travellers and consequently the presumption of Eraly is falsified when one comes to know that the mother of prince Daniyal had died in 1596 which does not match the dates inscribed on the sarcophagus.

Another scholar, Muhammad Baqir, the author of Lahore Past and Present opines that Anarkali was originally the name of the garden in which the tomb was situated, but with the passage of time, the tomb itself came to be named as that of Anarkali’s. This garden is mentioned by Dara Shikoh, the grandson of Jahangir, in his work Sakinat al-Auliya, as one of the places where the Saint Hazrat Mian Mir used to sit. Dara also mentions the existence of a tomb in the garden but he does not give it any name.

Muhammad Baqir believes that the so-called tomb of Anarkali actually belongs to the lady named or entitled Sahib-i Jamal, another wife of Salim and the mother of the Prince’s second son Sultan Parvez, and a daughter of the noble Zain Khan Koka. This conclusion is also partially faulty. The mother of Sultan Parviz was not a daughter of Zain Khan Koka but the daughter of Khawaja Hasan, the paternal uncle of Zain Khan. Of course, subsequently, the daughter of Zain Khan was also married to Salim, on June 18, 1596.

It is recorded in Akbar Nama that Jahangir "became violently enamoured of the daughter of Zain Khan Koka. H.M. (Akbar) was displeased at the impropriety, but he saw that his heart was immoderately affected, he, of necessity, gave his consent." The translator of Akbar Nama, H. Beveridge, opines that Akbar objected to the marriage, because the Prince was already married "to Zain Khan’s niece" (actually the daughter of paternal uncle of Zain Khan, and hence his sister). Akbar objected to marriages between near relations. But we do not know the date of death of the either of these two wives of Jahangir.

Noted art-historian R. Nath argues that there is no wife of Jahangir on record bearing the name or title of Anarkali to whom the emperor could have built a tomb and dedicated a couplet with a suffix Majnun. He considers it "absolutely improbable that the grand Mughal emperor would address his married wife as yar designate himself as majnun and aspire to see her face once again. Had he not seen her enough? Obviously she was not his married wife but only his beloved, to whom he would take the liberty to be romantic and a little poetic too, and it appears to be a case of an unsuccessful romance of a disappointed lover.... The prince could not save her, though it is on record that he was so unhappy with his father in this year 1599 that he defied his orders and revolted. It may be recalled that Mehrunissa (later Nurjahan Begum) was also married to Sher Afgan the same year and the young Prince was so dejected and disturbed on the failure of his two romances and annihilation of his tender feelings of love that he went as far as to defy Akbar."

To be simple there are many views over the death of Anarkali, but the most prominent are:

1. Anarkali or "Sharrafunnisa" though cremeted behind the wall by the order of Akbar, was released by Akbar on request of Anarkali's mother 'Jillo Bai' as Emperor Akbar promised Anarkali's mother one wish in her life. Thereby Anarkali escaped through a secret root through the outskirts of Delhi and then went to Lahore and lived there till death. There exists a tomb of Anarkali in Lahore. It was in Lahore that Prince Salim set eyes upon Anarkali ('Pomegranate Blossom', she was Akbar's favourite dancing girl). Akbar, legend has it, was furious and had the lady entombed outside the fort. Whether this story is fact or fiction, a modest tomb stands in Lahore believed to have been built by the lovesick prince (in 1615). The gravestone in the Tomb for Anarkali bears the tragic inscription,

Could I behold the face of my beloved once more, I would thank God until the day of resurrection.

The tomb was converted into a church during British occupation and now the building serves as an archive (with a collection of old prints) within the compound of the Government Record Office. On the lower Mall Road, inside the grounds of Punjab Secretrariat lies the tomb of Anarkali. The tomb is accessible to the public. Anarkali(Pomegranate Blossom) was a legendary favourite in the harem of Emperor Akbar. Apparently she had an affair eith Akbar's son, Prince Salim. One day Akbar saw her return Salim's smile, and as punishment she was buried alive in 1599. When Salim became Emperor Jahangir, he built her a magnificiant tomb. The tomb,built in 1615 is a forerunner of the famous Taj Mahal : it is octangle, with a huge dome in the centre surrounded by eight octangle cupolas supported by columns.

2.The second view is that Anarkali after the death of Akbar was recalled by Salim(Jehangir) and they married and was given a new Identity of Nur Jehan.

Nur Jehan was the daughter of a Persian immigrant, Mirza Ghiyas Baig of Tehran. Before becoming the beloved wife of the Mughal emperor Jehangir, she was the widow of a Mughal officer, Sher Afghan Quli Khan. Mehr-un-Nisa, entitled Nur Jehan, was born when her parents were migrating to the Sub-continent in the 16th century. She received her early education in Quran and the Persian language and had a special flare for poetry.

Her father came to the Sub-continent during the time of the Mughal emperor, Akbar, and entered into his service. He rose rapidly by sheer merit. In 1607, Nur Jehan was brought to the court as royal ward. She was beautiful and highly intelligent and attracted Jehangir's attention.

A good deal of fiction has gathered round this remarkable woman, obscuring her personality and role in the social and political life of this period. It is wrongly and widely believed that Jehangir murdered Sher Afghan, Nur Jehan's first husband, because he wanted to marry Nur Jehan. In actuality, he died in a skirmish in 1607. The conqueror of the world, Jehangir fell in love with Nur Jehan and married her in 1611. He gave her the title of Nur Mehal, "Light of the Palace" and later Nur Jehan, "Light of the World".

After marriage, Nur Jehan won Jehangir's complete confidence. She carefully attended to the affairs of the state. Her father and brother became ministers and together they dominated the courts. A number of historians believe that Nur Jehan became the real power behind the throne and practically the sovereign of the Mughal Empire. For many years she wielded the imperial powers. She even gave audiences at her palace and her name was placed on the coinage.

Nur Jehan influenced a large number of brilliant soldiers, scholars and poets from Iran, who subsequently played an important role in the administration and in the development of the cultural life of Mughal Empire.

The decision to marry her daughter from her first husband, to Shah Jehan's younger brother Shahryar, and her consequent support to his candidature to the throne caused Shah Jehan's rebellion. Emperor Jehangir was captured by rebels in 1626 while he was on his way to Kashmir. Nur Jehan intervened to get her husband released. Jehangir was rescued but died on October 28, 1627.

Nur Jehan had a magnificent tomb erected over the grave of her husband. She retired from the world and lived a quiet and lonely life for 16 years after the death of Jehangir. She died in 1643, and is buried besides Jehangir at Shahdra, Lahore.

There is no authentic proof that the story of Anarkali is true.

Legacy[link]

Anarkali (1928)

Anarkali has been the subject of a number of Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani films. The earliest is Loves of a Moghul Prince released in 1928.^[1] Bina Rai portrayed Anarkali in Anarkali, a 1953 Indian film. In Pakistan, another Anarkali film was released in 1958 with Noor Jehan in the lead role.^[2] Later on in 1960, K. Asif's Mughal-e-Azam was released in India with actress Madhubala in the role of Anarkali. Originally, only parts of the film were in colour. Mughal-e-Azam was re-released in 2004 as a completely colour film. Iman Ali also portrayed Anarkali in Shoaib Mansoor's short music video series on the theme Ishq (love) in 2003.

Notes[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Anarkali

Malaika Arora Khan
Khan as a guest on the sets of Ndtv Greenathon 4, 2012
Born	Malaika Arora (1973-08-23) 23 August 1973 (age 38)[1] Chembur Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Other names	Malaika Khan
Occupation	Actress, Dancer, model, VJ, Television Presenter
Years active	1997–present
Spouse	Arbaaz Khan (1998–present)

Malaika Arora Khan (born on 23 August 1973),^[1] also known as Malaika Arora, is an Indian model, actress, television personality and former MTV VJ.^[2] She is one of India's top item girls. She is most famous for her dance on the song "Chaiyya Chaiyya" (1998), more recently, "Munni Badnaam Hui" (2010).

Early life and background[link]

Arora Khan was born as Malaika Arora in Chembur, Mumbai to a Punjabi father, Anil Arora, a native of Indian border town Fazilka and a Malayali Catholic mother, Joyce Polycarp. Her father worked in the Merchant Navy.^[3]

She completed her secondary education at Swami Vivekanand School in Chembur, Mumbai. Her aunt Grace Polycarp was the principal of the school. She is also an alumnus of the Holy Cross High School Thane where she had studied until ninth grade. She completed her college education from Jai Hind college, Churchgate. She lived in Borla Society, Chembur opposite Basant Talkies before starting her modeling career.^[4]

Career[link]

Malaika Arora From The SRK, Urmila, Juhi & Chitrangda at 'I Am' National Award winning bash (20)

Khan was selected as one of the MTV VJs when MTV India started its operations. She rose to an interviewer for MTV India, becoming the most prominent non-movie, non-model female in urban India. MTV India, recognizing her potential, gave her plum roles co-anchoring with Cyrus Broacha the popular program Love Line and Style Check, at award ceremonies and concerts on the television channel.^[5] Khan then entered the modeling world. Her modeling career was equally successful. She appeared in many advertisements as well as cameos for song and item numbers in Bollywood films such as "Chaiyya Chaiyya" in the film Dil Se...^[5]

In 2005, she did another item number, "Kaal Dhamaal" in the film, Kaal. She also did an item number in Mahesh Babu's Telugu film Athidhi. In 2007, she did a title song in Heyy Babyy directed by Sajid Khan and another popular song for Om Shanti Om whose director is the sister of Sajid, Farah Khan. She also did an item number in the film, Welcome with Nana Patekar and Anil Kapoor. In 2009 she was a Rishton Ke Parkhi in the Star Plus reality show called Lux Perfect Bride with Shekhar Suman and Amrita Rao.

In 2010, she featured in the superhit item song "Munni Badnaam" in the film Dabangg, which was produced by her husband Arbaaz Khan.^[6] On March 12th, 2011, she led a successful world record attempt in Melbourne, Australia, as part of the Indian Film Festival - Bollywood & Beyond. 1235 participants performed a choreographed dance to "Munni Badnaam" with Malaika leading them from the stage.^[7]

Television[link]

Arora Khan appeared in the television show Nach Baliye as one of the three judges.^[2] The show was aired on STAR One in mid-2005. She continued as a judge in Nach Baliye 2 that started airing in the last quarter of 2006. In this show, she performed many item numbers as an example for all contestants. She highly criticized Bakhtiyaar Irani for being arrogant in the show. She strongly mentioned that he should do a crash course on humility to improve his behaviour.

Khan appeared in the show Zara Nachke Dikha as a judge with the Indian actor Chunky Pandey on Star One.^[3]

Khan was seen as judge in the show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa in 2010 with actress Madhuri Dixit and choreographer Remo D'Souza.^[8]

Personal life[link]

Malaika Arora Khan with husband Arbaaz Khan at the wedding of her sister Amrita Arora.

Khan is married to Bollywood actor-director-producer Arbaaz Khan whom she met during a coffee ad shoot. Together they have a son, Arhaan. Her sister is actress Amrita Arora, and her brothers-in-law are Bollywood actor Salman Khan and Bollywood actor-director-producer Sohail Khan. Her father-in-law is the famous scriptwriter Salim Khan.^[2]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Malaika Arora at the Internet Movie Database

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Malaika Arora Khan

Duminda Silva, also known as Arumadura Lawrence Romelo Duminda Silva and R. Dumindha Silva, is a Sri Lankan politician and Member of Parliament.^[1][2] He is the brother of Raynor Silva, managing director of Asia Broadcasting Corporation, which operates a number of radio stations in Sri Lanka.^[3]

Political career[link]

In the July 2004 provincial council election, Silva was elected to represent Colombo District in the Western Provincial Council.^[4] He defected from the United National Party to the United People's Freedom Alliance in November 2007.^[3] The UNP accused Silva of defecting to the UPFA in the hope that the criminal cases against him would not be pursed and the Asia Broadcasting Corporation's broadcasting licence would be restored.^[5]

Silva was re-elected in the April 2009 provincial council election.^[2]

In the April 2010 parliamentary election Silva was elected to represent the Colombo District in Parliament.^[6]

Shooting[link]

During the 2011 local elections, Silva sustained injuries from a shooting and was hospitalized. As a result of the gunfire, former MP Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra in Mulleriyawa and three others were killed. On November 15, 2011, a magistrate ordered Silva's arrest for the killing of Premachandra.^{[7][8][9][10]}

References[link]

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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]

Further reading[link]

• Bichu, Dr. Mandar (2011). Lata - Voice of the Golden Era. Popular Prakashan. ISBN 978-81-7991-625-4. 
• Bhimani, Harish (1995). In search of Lata Mangeshkar. Indus. ISBN 978-81-7223-170-5. 
• Bharatan, Raju (1995). Lata Mangeshkar: A Biography. UBS Publishers Distributors. ISBN 978-81-7476-023-4. 
• Kabir, Nasreen Munni (2009). Lata Mangeshkar: In Her Own Voice. Niyogi Books. ISBN 978-81-89738-41-9. 
• Lata, Mangeshkar (1995). Madhuvanti Sapre and Dinkar Gangal. ed (in Marathi). In search of Lata Mangeshkar. Harper Collins/Indus. ISBN 978-81-7223-170-5. . A collection of articles written by Lata Mangeshkar since 1952.
• Nerurkar, Vishwas (in Hindi). Lata Mangeshkar Gandhar Swaryatra (1945-1989). Mumbai: Vasanti P. Nerukar. .
• Bichhu, Mandar V. (1996) (in Hindi). Gaaye Lata, Gaaye Lata. Sharjah: Pallavi Prakashan. ISBN 978-81-7223-170-5. . A collection of articles written by Lata Mangeshkar since 1952.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lata Mangeshkar

• Lata Mangeshkar at the Internet Movie Database

Awards for Lata Mangeshkar v t e Bharat Ratna laureates Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1954) C. Rajagopalachari (1954) C. V. Raman (1954) Bhagwan Das (1955) Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya (1955) Jawaharlal Nehru (1955) Govind Ballabh Pant (1957) Dhondo Keshav Karve (1958) Bidhan Chandra Roy (1961) Purushottam Das Tandon (1961) Dr. Rajendra Prasad (1962) Dr. Zakir Hussain (1963) Pandurang Vaman Kane (1963) Lal Bahadur Shastri (1966) Indira Gandhi (1971) V. V. Giri (1975) K. Kamaraj (1976) Mother Teresa (1980) Acharya Vinoba Bhave (1983) Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (1987) M. G. Ramachandran (1988) B. R. Ambedkar (1990) Nelson Mandela (1990) Rajiv Gandhi (1991) Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (1991) Morarji Desai (1991) Abul Kalam Azad (1992) J. R. D. Tata (1992) Satyajit Ray (1992) A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (1997) Gulzarilal Nanda (1997) Aruna Asaf Ali (1997) M. S. Subbulakshmi (1998) Chidambaram Subramaniam (1998) Jayaprakash Narayan (1998) Ravi Shankar (1999) Amartya Sen (1999) Gopinath Bordoloi (1999) Lata Mangeshkar (2001) Bismillah Khan (2001) Bhimsen Joshi (2008) v t e Dadasaheb Phalke Award 1969–1980 Devika Rani Chaudhuri Roerich (1969) B. N. Sircar (1970) Prithviraj Kapoor (1971) Pankaj Mullick (1972) Ruby Myers (1973) Bommireddy Narasimha Reddy (1974) Dhirendranath Ganguly (1975) Kanan Devi (1976) Nitin Bose (1977) Rai Chand Boral (1978) Sohrab Modi (1979) Paidi Jairaj (1980) 1981–2000 Naushad Ali (1981) L. V. Prasad (1982) Durga Khote (1983) Satyajit Ray (1984) V. Shantaram (1985) Bommireddy Nagi Reddy (1986) Raj Kapoor (1987) Ashok Kumar (1988) Lata Mangeshkar (1989) Akkineni Nageswara Rao (1990) Bhalji Pendharkar (1991) Bhupen Hazarika (1992) Majrooh Sultanpuri (1993) Dilip Kumar (1994) Rajkumar (1995) Sivaji Ganesan (1996) Pradeep (1997) B. R. Chopra (1998) Hrishikesh Mukherjee (1999) Asha Bhosle (2000) 2001–present Yash Chopra (2001) Dev Anand (2002) Mrinal Sen (2003) Adoor Gopalakrishnan (2004) Shyam Benegal (2005) Tapan Sinha (2006) Manna Dey (2007) V. K. Murthy (2008) D. Ramanaidu (2009) K. Balachander (2010) Soumitra Chatterjee (2011) v t e National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer 1968–1980 No Award (1968) P. Susheela (1969) K. B. Sundarambal (1970) Sandhya Mukherjee (1971) P. Susheela (1972) Lata Mangeshkar (1973) No Award (1974) Lata Mangeshkar (1975) Vani Jairam (1976) P. Susheela (1977) S. Janaki (1978) Chhaya Ganguly (1979) Vani Jairam (1980) 1981–2000 S. Janaki (1981) Asha Bhosle (1982) P. Susheela (1983) P. Susheela (1984) S. Janaki (1985) K. S. Chithra (1986) K. S. Chithra (1987) Asha Bhosle (1988) K. S. Chithra (1989) Anuradha Paudwal (1990) Lata Mangeshkar (1991) Vani Jairam (1992) S. Janaki (1993) Alka Yagnik (1994) Swarnalatha (1995) Anjali Marathe (1996) K. S. Chithra (1997) K. S. Chithra (1998) Alka Yagnik (1999) Jayshree Dasgupta (2000) 2001–present Bhavatharini Ilaiyaraaja (2001) Sadhana Sargam (2002) Shreya Ghoshal (2003) Tarali Sarma (2004) K. S. Chithra (2005) Shreya Ghoshal (2006) Arati Ankalikar-Tikekar (2007) Shreya Ghoshal (2008) Shreya Ghoshal (2009) Nilanjana Sarkar (2010) Rekha Bhardwaj (2011) Rupa Ganguly (2012) v t e Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer 1959–1960 Lata Mangeshkar (1959) No Award (1960) 1961–1980 No Award (1961) No Award (1962) Lata Mangeshkar (1963) No Award (1964) No Award (1965) Lata Mangeshkar (1966) No Award (1967) Asha Bhosle (1968) Asha Bhosle (1969) Lata Mangeshkar (1970) Sharda (1971) Asha Bhosle (1972) Asha Bhosle (1973) Asha Bhosle (1974) Asha Bhosle (1975) Sulakshana Pandit (1976) Hemlata (1977) Preeti Sagar (1978) Asha Bhosle (1979) Vani Jairam (1980) 1981–2000 Nazia Hassan (1981) Parveen Sultana (1982) Salma Agha (1983) Aarti Mukherji (1984) Anupama Deshpande (1985) Anuradha Paudwal (1986) No Award (1987) No Award (1988) Alka Yagnik (1989) Sapna Mukherjee (1990) Anuradha Paudwal (1991) Anuradha Paudwal (1992) Anuradha Paudwal (1993) Alka Yagnik and Ila Arun (1994) Kavita Krishnamurthy (1995) Kavita Krishnamurthy (1996) Kavita Krishnamurthy (1997) Alka Yagnik (1998) Jaspinder Narula (1999) Alka Yagnik (2000) 2001–present Alka Yagnik (2001) Alka Yagnik (2002) Kavita Krishnamurthy and Shreya Ghoshal (2003) Shreya Ghoshal (2004) Alka Yagnik (2005) Alisha Chinai (2006) Sunidhi Chauhan (2007) Shreya Ghoshal (2008) Shreya Ghoshal (2009) Kavita Seth and Rekha Bhardwaj (2010) Mamta Sharma and Sunidhi Chauhan (2011) Rekha Bhardwaj and Usha Uthup (2012) v t e Filmfare Award for Lifetime Achievement 1991 – 2000 Amitabh Bachchan (1991) Dev Anand (1992) Dilip Kumar (1993) Lata Mangeshkar (1994) Shammi Kapoor & Waheeda Rehman (1995) Ashok Kumar, Sunil Dutt & Vyjayanthimala (1996) Dharmendra, Mumtaz & Pran(1997) Sharmila Tagore (1998) Manoj Kumar & Helen (1999) Vinod Khanna & Hema Malini (2000) 2001 – 2010 Feroz Khan & Asha Bhosle (2001) Gulzar & Asha Parekh (2002) Jeetendra (2003) Sulochana Latkar, Nirupa Roy & B.R. Chopra (2004) Rajesh Khanna (2005) Shabana Azmi (2006) Javed Akhtar & Jaya Bachchan (2007) Rishi Kapoor (2008) Bhanu Athaiya & Om Puri (2009) Shashi Kapoor & Khayyam (2010) 2011 - present Manna Dey (2011) Pyarelal & Aruna Irani (2012)

Mamta Sharma
Mamta Sharma at Shabir Ahmed's(lyricist) wedding reception, 2012
Background information
Birth name	Mamta Sharma
Origin	Gwalior,[1] Madhya Pradesh, India
Genres	Filmi
Occupations	Singer
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	2000 – present

Mamta Sharma is an Indian playback singer, particularly known for song "Munni Badnaam" from Dabangg.^[2] The song was super hit and fetched her several awards and nominations, including a Filmfare award for Best Playback Singer (Female).^[3]

Early career[link]

Mamta Sharma is from Birla Nagar, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. Before singing for Bollywood,bengali, she lent her voice to many Bhojpuri albums ^[4]

Discography[link]

Awards, nominations and recognitions[link]

Wins

• 18th Journalist National Award, 2010 – Best Debut Singer^[5]
• 17th Annual Star Screen Awards, 2011 – Karbonn Mobiles Best New Talent in Music^[6] Best Playback Singer (Female)^[7]
• 6th Apsara Awards, 2011 – Best Playback Singer (Female)^[8]
• 56th Filmfare Awards, 2011 – Best Playback Singer (Female)^[3]
• 12th IIFA Awards, Toronto, 2011 – Best Playback singer (Female)^[9]
• Mirchi Music Awards, 2010 – Upcoming singer (Female)
• Mirchi Music Awards, 2010 – Best Playback singer (Female)
• The Global Indian Film & TV Honours, 2011 – Best playback singer (Female)
• 19th Prayag Kalakaar Awards, 2011 – Debut Singer (Female)

Nominations

• 1st BIG STAR Entertainment Awards, 2010 – Best Playback Singer (Female)^[10]
• Zee Cine Awards, 2011 – Best Playback Singer (Female)^[11]
• Stardust Awards, 2011 – New Music Sensation (Female)

See also[link]

• List of Indian playback singers

References[link]