Rudaali is a 1993 Hindi film directed by the feminist Indian director Kalpana Lajmi, based on the short story written by famous Bengali litterateur Mahasweta Devi.

Cultural background[link]

The title is a reference to a custom in certain areas of Rajasthan where women of a lower caste are hired as professional mourners upon the death of upper-caste males. These women are referred to as a "rudaali" (roo-dah-lee), literally translated as "female weeper" or "weeping woman".^[1] Their job is to publicly express grief of family members who are not permitted to display emotion due to social status.

Plot[link]

The film is set in a small village in Rajasthan, India. It tells the story of a woman named Shanichari, who was abandoned by her mother shortly after her father's death. Bad fortune follows as she marries an alcoholic, who leaves her with little hope of a brighter future for herself and her mentally challenged son.

Throughout Shanichari's lifetime of misfortune she has never cried. This creates great difficulty once she is called to become a rudaali until Bhinkni, an experienced mourner, enters her life.^[2] Shanichari and the local landlord's son fall in love with each other, but Shanichari is reluctant to ask the rich lover for money as she does not want to lower her love even for the sake of getting out of poverty and misery.

Awards and honors[link]

Dimple Kapadia won a National Film Award for her role of Shanichari in the film. The film also features Raakhee, Raj Babbar and Amjad Khan in one of his last films. Khan died before the film's release, and the film is dedicated to him in the beginning credits. Samir Chanda won National Film Award for Best Art Direction. Simple Kapadia won the National Film Award for Best Costume Design.

Soundtrack[link]

The film has music by Bhupen Hazarika, a legendary folk musician and a mass singer. Songs like 'Dil Hoom Hoom kare' and 'Jhuti muti Mitwa' are considered one of the finest examples of Hindi film incorporating Hindustani musical tradition in Bollywood.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Rudaali at the Internet Movie Database
• Plot synopsis,

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Bhupen Hazarika
Dr. Bhupen Hazarika
Born	(1926-09-08)8 September 1926 Sadiya, Assam, Indian Empire
Died	5 November 2011(2011-11-05) (aged 85) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India[1]
Nationality	Indian
Occupation	Musician, singer, poet, filmmaker, lyricist
Years active	1939-2011
Notable work(s)	Rudaali Darmiyaan: In Between Gaja Gamini Daman: A Victim of Marital Violence Indramalati
Influenced by	Bishnu Rabha[citation needed]
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party
Political movement	Indian Peoples Theater Association
Spouse	Priyamvada Patel (1950-1963)
Partner	Kalpana Lajmi (1972–2011)
Children	Tej Bhupen Hazarika (b. 1952)
Awards	Padma Shri (1977) Dadasaheb Phalke Award (1992) Padma Bhushan (2001) Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (2008) Asom Ratna (2009) Muktijoddha Padak (posthumously, 2011)
Signature	150px
Website
Official website

Dr. Bhupen Hazarika (Assamese:ড: ভূপেন হাজৰিকা) (1926–2011) was an Indian lyricist, musician, singer, poet and film-maker from Assam. He belonged to Dom, the untouchable caste. His songs, written and sung mainly in the Assamese language by himself, are marked by humanity and universal brotherhood; and have been translated and sung in many languages, most notable in Bengali, and Hindi. Known for writing bold lyrics with themes of communal amity, universal justice and empathy, his songs have become popular among all sections of ethnic and religious communities in Assam, besides West Bengal and Bangladesh. He is acknowledged widely in the Hindi film industry for introducing Hindi film to the sounds and folk music of Assam and Northeast India. He received the National Film Award for Best Music Direction in the year 1975. Winner of Padmashri (1997), Padmabhushan (2001), Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1987), Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (2008) and the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke Award in the year 1992, Dr. Hazarika was posthumously awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award in the year 2012. The Government of Assam honoured him with the title Asom Ratna, the highest Civilian Award in the state of Assam. Dr. Hazarika also held the position of the Chairman of the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi from December 1998 to December 2003.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Hazarika was born on 8 September 1926 to Nilakanta and Shantipriya Hazarika in Sadiya, Assam. His father was originally from Nazira, a town located in Sivasagar district. The eldest of ten children, Bhupen Hazarika (as also his siblings) was exposed to the musical influence of his mother, who exposed him to lullabies and traditional Music of Assam. His father moved to the Bharalumukh region of Guwahati in 1929,^[2] in search of better prospects, where Bhupen Hazarika spent his early childhood. In 1932 his father further moved to Dhubri,^[3] and in 1935 to Tezpur.^[2] It was in Tezpur that Bhupen Hazarika, then 10 years of age, was discovered by Jyotiprasad Agarwala and Bishnu Prasad Rabha where he sang a Borgeet taught by his mother at a public function. In 1936, Bhupen Hazarika accompanied them to Kolkata where he recorded his first song at the Aurora Studio for the Selona Company.^[2] His association with the icons of Assamese Culture at Tezpur was the beginning of his artistic growth and credentials.

Education[link]

He studied at Sonaram High School at Guwahati, Dhubri Government High School^[3] and matriculated from Tezpur High School in 1940. He completed his Intermediate Arts from Cotton College in 1942, and his BA (1944) and MA (1946) in Political Science from Banaras Hindu University. For a brief period he worked at All India Radio, Guwahati when he won a scholarship from Columbia University and set sail for New York in 1949. There he earned a Ph.D. (1952) on his thesis "Proposals for Preparing India's Basic Education to use Audio-Visual Techniques in Adult Education".

In New York he befriended Paul Robeson, who influenced him.^[4] His song Bistirno parore is based on the imagery and theme of Robeson's Ol' Man River. He was exposed to the Spiritual, and the multi-lingual version of We are in the Same Boat Brother became a regular feature in his stage performance. At Columbia University, he met Priyamvada Patel, whom he married in 1950. Tez Hazarika, their only child, was born in 1952,^[5] and he returned to India in 1953.

Professional life[link]

After completing his MA he briefly worked at the All India Radio station at Guwahati^[5] before embarking for his doctoral studies at Columbia University.

Soon after completing his education, he became a teacher at the Gauhati University.^[4]

He was elected the President of the Asam Sahitya Sabha in 1993.^[6]

Later life[link]

He met Kalpana Lajmi in the 1980s^[7] and they made the film Ek Pal (' at the Internet Movie Database) (1986). Subsequently, Lajmi began assisting him professionally and personally till the end of his life.^[8][9][10]

He was persuaded by the Bharatiya Janata Party via Kalpana Lajmi to enter the electoral fray as its candidate in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections from the Guwahati constituency,^[11] which he lost to the INC candidate Kirip Chaliha.

Death[link]

Hazarika was hospitalized in the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital and Medical Research Institute in Mumbai in 2011.^[12][13] He was admitted to the intensive care unit on 30 June 2011. He died of multi-organ failure on 5 November 2011.^[14][15][16] His body lay in state at Judges Field in Guwahati and cremated on 9 November 2011 near the Brahmaputra river in a plot of land donated by Gauhati University. His funeral was attended by an estimated half a million people.^[17][18]

Artist's biography[link]

Beginnings[link]

A young Bhupen Hazarika was noticed by the doyens of Assamese culture, Jyotiprasad Agarwala and Bishnuprasad Rabha, when he had performed a Borgeet at the age of 10 in Tezpur. Subsequently, Hazarika sang two songs in Agarwala's film Indramalati (1939):^[19][20] Kaxote Kolosi Loi and Biswo Bijoyi Naujawan at the age of 12. He wrote his first song, Agnijugor Firingoti Moi at the age of 13^[4] and he was well on his way to becoming a lyricist, composer and singer.

IPTA years[link]

Hazarika began close association with the leftist Indian People's Theatre Association soon after returning from the USA in 1953.^[4] and became the Secretary of the Reception Committee of the Third All Assam Conference of IPTA, held in Guwahati in 1955.

Later years[link]

In the period after the release of Ek Pal (1986) until his death, Bhupen Hazarika mainly concentrated on Hindi films, most of which were directed by Kalpana Lajmi. Ek Pal (1986), Rudaali (1993) and Daman (2001) are major films this period. Many of his earlier songs were re-written in Hindi and used as played-back songs in these films. These songs tried to cater to the Hindi film milieu and their social activist lyrics were browbeaten into the lowest common denominator.^[21]

Legacy and influences[link]

Hazarika (right) with Hartmut König (left) at the Berlin Festival of Political Songs in 1972

As a singer, Hazarika was known for his baritone voice and diction;^[22] as a lyricist, he was known for poetic compositions and parables which touched on themes ranging from romance to social and political commentary; and as a composer, for his use of folk music.^{[citation needed]} Some of his most famous compositions were adaptations of American Black Spiritual that he had learned from Paul Robeson, whom he had befriended during his years in New York City in the early 1950s.^[23]

Awards and honors[link]

• Award for the Best Regional Film (Chameli Memsaab; music by Bhupen Hazarika) in the 23rd National Film Awards (1975)^[24]
• Padma Shri - the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India (1977)
• Gold medal from the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh for "outstanding contribution towards tribal welfare, and uplift of tribal culture through cinema and music." (1979)^[25]
• All India Critic Association Award for best performing folk artist (1979)
• In 1979 and 1980 he won the Ritwik Ghatak Award as best music director for two theatre plays, Mohua Sundari, and Nagini Kanyar Kahini
• Bengal Journalist's Association Indira Gandhi Smriti Puraskar in (1987)
• Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1987)
• Dadasaheb Phalke Award (1992)
• First Indian to win Best Music for the film Rudaali at the Asia Pacific International Film Festival in Japan (1993)
• Padma Bhushan - the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India (2001)
• Honorary Degree from Tezpur University (2001)
• 10th Kalakar Award for Lifetime Achievement in the year 2002, Kolkata.
• Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (2008)
• Asom Ratna - the highest civilian award in the State of Assam, India (2009)
• In February 2009, the All Assam Students Union erected a life size statue of Hazarika on the banks of Digholi Pukhuri in Guwahati.^[26]
• Muktijoddha Padak - the highest civilian award by Bangladesh Government (posthumously, 2011)
• Asom Sahitya Sabha has honoured him with the title "Biswa Ratna".
• Padma Vibhushan - second highest civilian award in the Republic of India (2012)^[27]

Filmography[link]

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Official website

Gallery[link]

Some relevant photographs

People outside Hazarika's home on 7 November 2011   Hazarika lying in repose in Judge field, Guwahati. 8 November 2011   Paltan Bazar, Guwahati, December 2011, one of many centres commemorating Lt. Dr. Bhupen Hazarika   Hazarika lying in repose in Judge field, Guwahati. 8 November 2011

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)