Meri awaaz hi pehchaan hai, gar yaad rahe...
And today that is all remains... her voice. Lata Mangeshkar, the nightingale of Indian music, our dear Lata didi is no more. She leaves behind 7 decades of musical treasures in her ever-sweet voice for the generations to come.
It would indeed to pick the songs that made her memorable because it was not the songs, but it was her voice that has made the songs unforgettable. While she ruled the Hindi film music scene, there are some amazing gems from other languages that she lent her voice to and today I want to take you down the memory lane of some of them.
Valaiyosai from Sathya (Tamil)
Composed by Illaiyaraaja, Lata and SPB made this romantic number a sensuous listening experience. Of course, the onscreen chemistry of Kamal Haasan and Amala takes this song to greater heights.
Mehndi te vavi from Mehndi Rang Lagyo (Gujarati)
One of the most popular and traditional Garba songs, Didi sang it for this 1960 film under the musical direction of Avinash Vyas. This film also has duets that Lata Mangeshkar has sung with Mohd Rafi, Manna Dey and Mahendra Kapoor.
Kadali kankadali from Nellu (Malayalam)
Probably the only song in this language by her, music is composed by Salai Chowdhury. The film is about the tribal people of the Wayanad hills and stars Prem Nazir and Jayabharathi in the lead roles.
Niddurapora thammuda from Santhanam (Telugu)
This lullaby is from the 1955 movie starring Akkineni Nageshwara Rao and Savithri in lead roles. Composed by Susarla Dakshina Murthy, this soulful number is the first Telugu song that she sang.
Chanchal Mon Anmona Hoy from Adwitiya (Bengali)
Composed by Hemanta Mukherjee, this beautiful song is a duet in the voices of Lata did and Hemant da. Starring Madhabi Mukherjee and Bikash Roy, this 1968 movie has quite a few musical gems.
These are just five songs from the thousands that Lata Mangeshkar has lent her voice to. She has sung in almost every Indian language and she is truly the nightingale of India. She may no longer be amongst us, but her voice and her songs will always remain forever.
Miss you Lata Didi!