Name:Lata Mangeshkar

Date of Birth: 28 September 1929

Age: 88 Years

Birth Place: Indore, Madhya Pradesh

Nationality: Indian

Sun Sign: Libra

Height: 1.55 M

Parents Name: Deenanath Mangeshkar (Father) and Shevanti Mangeshkar (Mother)

Siblings: Meena Khadikar, Asha Bhosle, Usha Mangeshkar, Hridaynath Mangeshkar

Occupation: Playback Singer, Music Director, Producer

Religion: Hinduism

Beginning of the Playback Singing Career: 1942

Total number of songs she has sung (approx): 50,000 in 36 languages

Nickname: Nightingale of India

Her Net Worth (approx.): $10 Million As Of Jun 21, 2017

Introduction

Lata Mangeshkar is considered as one of the brightest playback singers of India and she has a playback singing career spanning over seven decades. She has been nicknamed as the nightingale of India for a beautiful voice and because of the way she pours in the magic of her voice into it. She has registered on her name a huge number of awards and prizes and is still continuing to be counted among one of the best singers of India.

Lata Mangeshakar is probably the one voice who has proved to be ruling the Hindi Bollywood singing industry who has been ruling the industry for many decades in a space where it is hard to even survive lees than a decade. Surprisingly she has not only been the one who has ruled the Hindi singing industry but have given her beautiful voice to songs in many other languages that counts to around 36 regional Indian and foreign languages. Singing was in her blood as her father was a classical singer. In addition to classical singing her father also used to work as a theatre artist and all that had already kept her adept with the stage from a very early age. Because her father died at a very early age she has to become the bread winner of her family at a very young age. She was awarded with the Bharat Ratna award for the contribution she has made to the art industry with her great work.

Early age and Childhood

Lata Mangeskar was born to Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar and his second wife Shevanti and she was known with the name Hema in a Marathi family in Madhya Pradesh. After she played a character in one of her father's play she was named as Lata. Her father started teaching her about music at a very early age. She was a very keen learner and had a great love for singing. Art a very age of 5 she had started participating as an actress in the plays of her father.

Her Singing Career

• In the year 1942, when the her father Deenanath Mangeshkar died of some heart diseases, there was a large family left behind that Lata Mageskar being the eldest of all the siblings had to take care of. And, that led her to start working at a very early age of 13 years so as to feed her family.

First Song that she sang:

Naachu Yaa Gade for the Marathi movie, 'Kiti Hasaal' in 1942. (But, it was dropped from the movie.)

• She got her first role in the movie called 'Pahili Mangalaa-gaur' in the year 1942 and in the movie she also sang a song. When she started she started her career as a Marathi singer and actress she never knew that one day she would become a well known singer of the Hindi film industry. The first Hindi song that she sang was also from a Marathi movie, the song was named as "Mata Ek Sapoot Ki Duniya Badal De Tu" which was from the movie 'Gajaabhaau'.
• Thereafter in 1945, she shifted to Mumbai in Vinayak Company where she started learning Hindustani Classical music from Ustad Amanat Ali Khan. After the death of Vinayak in 1948, she was once again devastated and the initial years of her career in the Hindi music industry were again full of struggles.
• In 1949, she gave her first hit with the 'Aayega Aanewala' from the movie, "Mahal' and that gave her a big break in the industry. During 1950s she went though great success, when she got an opportunity to k with famous music directors like Shankar Jaikishan, Anil Biswas, S.D. Burman and others.
• It was in 1958 that she got to experience a great turning point in her career as she got to receive the Film fare award for the best female playback singer for the song 'Aaja re Pardesi' from the film 'Madhumati'.
• Later in the year 1960 she became a superstar overnight with her songs Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya' and Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh' from 'Dil Apna Aur Preet Parai'. The same year is the witness to her collaboration with music directors Laxmikant-Pyarelal, for who she later sang almost 700 songs in a total period of 35 years.
• In 1963, when she sang the song 'Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo', while Jawaharlal Nehru was present. And, she sang so beautifully that it brought tears in the eyes of Mr. Nehru.
• And, this success of hers continued during 1970s and 1980s and also she tried her hands at some regional songs. Also, during that period she went to perform concerts and visited around the world.
• During 1990s, though many female singers entered the reign none of them could take her out from the position of the best female singer. And, she continued to reign into the throne.

Some of her Notable Works

During the period (1974 – 1991): Her name was registered in the Guinness book of the world record for recording the highest number of songs.

Awards & Achievements

She was honored with the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award of India for having had such a glorious singing career and for the contribution she had made to the Hindi music industry in the year 2001. In 1999, she was awarded with the Padma Vibhushan award, which is considered as India's second highest civilian award.

Marriage and Personal Life

Lata Mangeshkar never made her personal life open and although it is known that she never got married. She has always been in close relationship with her siblings. She is a great lover of cooking, cricket, photography and reading.

Lesser known facts

A perfume called as "Lata Eau de Parfum" was launched in the year 1999 for honoring her.