One of India's biggest cultural icons, Lata Mangeshkar, whose career spanned more than seven decades, died Sunday in Mumbai. The singer, 92, had been hospitalised since early January with Covid-19.
The versatile singer, christened the "Nightingale of India", had lent her voice to more than 25,000 songs in 36 languages. She leaves behind a treasure trove of compelling songs in varying genres.
Most actresses who ruled India’s film industry from the 1940s to the early 2000s have famously lip-synced to her timeless songs.
As a mark of respect, a two-day national mourning was announced. The national flag will fly at half-mast and there will be no official entertainment. Both houses of parliament stayed adjourned for an hour on Monday.
Millions of people across India and beyond are mourning the death of the revered singer whose mellifluous voice in a long and prolific career continues to haunt.
The relevance of the #LataMangeshkar to the history and self actualisation of India as a nation !! 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/VsRltFnsx6
— Randeep Hooda (@RandeepHooda) February 6, 2022
"She leaves a void in our nation that cannot be filled. The coming generations will remember her as a stalwart of Indian culture, whose melodious voice had an unparalleled ability to mesmerise people," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who flew into Mumbai to pay his respects.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted: “With the death of Lata Mangeshkar the subcontinent has lost one of the truly great singers the world has known. Listening to her songs has given so much pleasure to so many people all over the world.”
Amitabh Bachchan, the legendary Bollywood actor whose films regularly featured Mangeshkar’s voice, took to his blog to acknowledge the value of her sacrifices: “The voice of a million centuries has left us … her voice resounds now in the heavens.”
Many who knew her felt it was a testament to her talent that her songs are played in every nook and corner of the country after all these decades.
Magic voice
Classically trained in Hindustani music and fluent in Urdu, Mangeshkar had her big moment in 1949 in her first major hit, “Aayega Aanewala,” from the movie Mahal, which launched her to national fame and transformed her into a household name overnight.
There has been no looking back since then.
One song by Mangeshkar that has stood the test of time and continues to evoke the same sense of love and pride for the country as it did years ago, it is "Ae Mere Watan Ke Logon".
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It was written as a tribute to the Indian soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the Indo-China war of 1962.
A recipient of India’s highest honour, the Bharat Ratna, as well as France’s highest civilian award, Officer of the Legion of Honour in 2009, Mangeshkar was primarily known as a playback singer. She also was the first Indian to perform at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
The Guinness Book of Records listed Mangeshkar as the most recorded artist in history stating that she had reportedly recorded “no less than 25,000 solo, duet and chorus backed songs in 20 Indian languages” between 1948 and 1974.
The last rites of the legendary singer were performed with full state honours on Sunday at Shivaji Park in Mumbai.
