Legendary Singer Lata Mangeshkar today passes away at Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai. She was suffering from COVID-19 and pneumonia. The cause of her death was multiple organ failure. The Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has informed the media about her death. She passed away at age of 92. She has given her voice in more than 30,000 songs. She was awarded Highest civilian award Bharat Ratna in the year 2001.
स्वर कोकिला भारत रत्न लता मंगेशकर जी को मेरी भावभीनी श्रद्धांजलि। pic.twitter.com/8nclwLTn6r
— Nitin Gadkari (@nitin_gadkari) February 6, 2022
Her singing talent was discovered by her Father
Lata Mangeshkar was born in a family of artists. Her father Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar was a classical singer and theatre actor. He had discovered her singing talent at a very tender age. Her father owns a theatre company that used to produced musical plays. Lata started acting at the age of Five. At a very tender age, Lataji was able to sing Raag Puriya Dhanashree helped her father to discover her singing talent.
Lataji was once spotted recalling her memory where she said that once her father asked his disciple to practice a raag while he finished some work. Lata was playing nearby and she noted that note of raag being practiced by that shagird was rendered and jarred. She was quick to correct him. When her father returned and got to know about that correction made by her, then he said that “We have a singer at home and we never knew it.
She made her singing at the age of 13
Her father Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar in 1942. After her father, she started singing to support her family. She had learned music from Aman Ali Khan Sahiba and Amanat Khan. She recorded her first song in 1942 for the Marathi film, Kiti Hasaal; but it never saw the light of day, as it was edited from the film. The song was called Naachu Yaa Gade, Khelu Saari Mani. Although Natali Chaitraachi Navalaai is known for her Marathi song debut.
She tried her hand at professional acting too
After he father’s death in 1942, she tried her hand at acting until 1948 and acted in eight films. The oldest of five siblings–Meena, Asha, Usha, and Hridaynath, Lata then shouldered the financial responsibility of the family. Even though her acting career did not take off, she debuted with playback singing for Kiti Hasaal (1942).
She was told her voice was ‘too thin’
When she first entered the film industry as a playback singer, she was rejected. At the time, singers like Noor Jehan and Shamshad Begum ruled the roost. She was told her voice was ‘too thin’ for the time, in comparison to the heavy-nasal voices that belted hits. Her major break came in 1949, with the song Aayega Aanewala from the film Mahal. She turned a sensation overnight with the song that not many can muster the courage to croon.
She was poisoned in 1962
In 1962, when Didi fell extremely ill, her medical investigation revealed that she was given slow poison. She battled death for three days. Even though her life was saved, recovery was a long journey where she remained bedridden for three months. It was later found that her cook had vanished from her home without taking his wages. For precautionary measures, late Bollywood lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri would regularly visit her, taste her food first and only then allow her to eat.
(This article was originally published on The better India )