For, I believe that a true artiste is always seeking - to fill a gap, to surpass herself, to find the sublime. And indeed so, for her voice has been a companion, through the flush of young love and romance - Chalo sajna jahan tak ghata chale (Mere Hamdam Mere Dost, 1968), Ehsaan tera hoga mujh par (Junglee, 1961), Lag ja gale (Woh Kaun Thi?, 1964) - to poignant moments - Bekas pe karam (Mughal-E-Azam, 1960), Jo humne dastan apni sunayi (Woh Kaun Thi?), from sheer devotion - Ae malik tere bande (Do Aankhen Barah Haath, 1957), Jyoti kalash chhalke (Bhabhi Ki Chudiyan, 1961), Vaishnav jan to, to empowerment - Aaj phir jeene ki tamanna hai (Guide, 1965), and from loss - Luka chuppi (Rang De Basanti, 2006), Dil hoom hoom kare (Rudaali, 1993) to collective pain - Ae mere watan ke logon… the list is rich.Īlso Read | President, PM join a nation to pay tribute to legend of music Lata MangeshkarĬan a single voice have the mastery, the power to reach out to the soul, skim myriad sentiments and deep dive into an ocean of emotions? What made Lata Mangeshkar so valuable as an artiste? Her formidable talent, her rooted classical music training, her love for the language or the single-minded devotion to her chosen path? Perhaps, all of these and, maybe, none of these. Today, for many who have never met her but have just heard her voice, it seems that they are in mourning for the death of a family member. Independent India’s last seven-and-a-half decades and living memories have one constant - Lata Mangeshkar. Her voice and songs crossed geographical and generational boundaries. The voice of Lata Mangeshkar - the nightingale of India, Bharat Ratna, swar kokila, queen of melody - has journeyed through generations of Indians, in fact, generations of people across the Indian subcontinent.
The lilt in her intonation, the twinkle in her eyes and the agility of her wit belied a young girl at heart.