Nightingales would like to be called Lata

Obituary

There are very few personalities in any country whose demise touches almost every person in the nation and across borders. Lata Mangeshkar is one of them.

As people mourn her death, many are listening to her immortal voice. Millions in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and several other countries will mourn her death. People in different countries, who do not understand Hindi, have sung Lata Mangeshkar’s songs, which speaks volumes for her popularity as a singer.

For more years, than India has enjoyed freedom, Lata Mangeshkar has dominated the musical world, having recorded her first song at the tender age of 13 for a Marathi film, she recorded her last song for a Hindi film in 2014. Not many would believe, that the song in the film Dunno Y2 Life is a Moment, Jeena Kya hai Jaanaa Maine, was sung by an 85-year-old lady. The voice was that of a teenager.

Her rise to fame was not easy. She lost her father, Master Dinanath Mangeshkar, when she was 13-years-old and with that she lost her childhood. She recalled in an interview to a journalist that she could not enjoy the childhood an average child would live, as she had to take on the responsibility of looking after her family, as the eldest child, after her father’s demise.

The Mangeshkar family has its root in Mangeshi of Goa, hence the surname. Her father moved to Indore and her mother hailed from Gujarat. Their deity is Mangesh.

After her father’s death, Master Vinayak, another great singer and a close friend of Master Dinanath, stood by the family, but he also died in 1948.

Lata Mangeshkar and her family moved to Mumbai in 1945, along with Master Vinayak, who moved to the city along with his film company. As a child, she acted in a Marathi film, Pahili Manglagaur in 1942, the year she recorded her first song, but soon decided that music should be her priority. Yet, she and her sister Asha Bhosale, acted in a film produced by Master Vinayak.

She attributed her entry in the Hindi film industry as a playback singer to music director Haider, who expressed faith in her singing and had gone on record that one day the industry will film producers and directors will fall at her feet and plead with her to sing for their productions. Haider was proved right in the coming years, with over 50,000 songs to her credit.

Her father had left his tanpura for her and she used that during her riyaaz, as she learnt Hindustani classical music from Ustad Aman Ali Khan in Mumbai.

Over the years, she lent her voice as a singer for almost all actress over 85 years of her musical career. She sang songs with different notes with comfort.

Lata Mangeshkar also tried her hand at music direction, taking the name of Anand Ghan. She composed very good songs in Marathi, but just as she moved away from acting, she gave up music direction to concentrate on singing. The songs composed by her are still very popular in Maharashtra.

Her journey was not easy in the musical world. Initially, the money would not come and she would travel by bus and train to the studios in Mumbai.

She was known for her humility and make new music directors comfortable, even though they were in awe of her.

 

She was a great fan of cricket and was often present at test matches, especially those played in Mumbai.

Those close to Latadidi, as she was fondly addressed, recall her culinary skills, she herself being a foodie. He associates recall how she would love to cook for them.

 

abhay mokashi