Bollywood
Lata Mangeshkar, the ageless voice of India, passes away at 92
Lata Mangeshkar, India’s most loved singer who had once moved Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to tears, leaves behind a teary-eyed nation of admirers who grew up listening to her immutable voice give wings to the words of poets and the screen careers of legions of heroines.
India’s Melody Queen, who also composed music for Marathi films and was a producer as well, and had the distinction of being conferred with the highest civilian honours of India and France, passed away on Sunday morning at the Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai, where she had been admitted because of Covid-related complications on January 11.
Lata Didi, as she was known among her family and followers, was 92 and is survived by her siblings — playback singer and composer Meena Khadilkar, popular singer and restaurateur Asha Bhosale, singer Usha Mangeshkar, and music director Hridayanath Mangeshkar.
She never married, but was close to the late Raj Singh Dungarpur, the aristocratic former cricketer and President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) from 1996 to 1999.
One of India’s most loved voices, Lata Mangeshkar was the recipient of three National Film Awards, seven Filmfare awards, and of course, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1989. She was conferred the Bharat Ratna in 2001, becoming the second singer after M.S. Subbulakshmi to be so honoured, and the French awarded her the Officer of the Legion of Honour.
In 1974, Lata Mangeshkar became the first Indian to perform at the Royal Albert Hall, London. She had indeed come a long, long way since the time when the first song that she recorded for a film — ‘Kiti Hasaal’ in 1942 — was dropped in the final cut.
Born in what was then the princely state of Indore on September 28, 1929, to the classical singer, Marathi theatre actor and writer of musical plays Deenanath Mangeshkar and his wife Shevanti (Shudhamati), Lata Mangeshkar was originally named Hema by her parents, but they later changed it to Lata after the character Latika from one of her father’s musical plays.
Lata Mangeshkar’s association with the performing arts began when she was five and started appearing in her father’s musical plays, and it continued even after her father’s premature death in 1942, thanks to his good friend, the actor and director Master Vinayak (Vinayak Damodar Karnataki), who took the family under his wings.
It was Master Vinayak who took Lata Mangeshkar to Mumbai, paved her way into the world of Marathi cinema, got her to take Hindustani classical music lessons from Ustad Aman Ali Khan of the Bhendi Bazaar Gharana, and introduced her to Vasant Desai, V. Shantaram’s favourite music composer.
But it was not until Master Vinayak’s death in 1948 that the struggling singer-actor found the person whom she considered to be her “godfather” — the music composer Ghulam Haider, who gave Lata Mangeshkar her first big break with the song ‘Dil Mera Toda, Mujhe Kahin Ka Na Chhora’ in the movie ‘Majboor’ (1948). It was her first big break.
Haider took his protege to Shashadhar Mukherjee, the Filmistan boss now better known as Kajol and Rani Mukherjee’s grandfather, for his film, ‘Shaheed’ (1948), but he turned her down because he found her voice to be “too thin”.
Lata Mangeshkar proved him oh-so wrong just a year later when her song ‘Aayega Aanewaala’, filmed on the gorgeous Madhubala in Kamal Amrohi’s debut directorial, ‘Mahal’ (1949), became an ageless hit.
And in one of life’s delicious ironies, Mukherjee’s grand-daughter lip-synced the ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ song, ‘Mere Khwabon Mein’, which was sung by none other than Lata Mangeshkar, as well as the other numbers picturised on her and Shah Rukh Khan.
Since ‘Mahal’, Lata Mangeshkar was courted by just about every music director of note — from Anil Biswas to S.D. Burman (and his son Rahul Dev, whose first and last song she sang), Naushad (who had asked her to sing like the then reigning nightingale, Noorjehan), Madan Mohan, Shankar-Jaikishan, Laxmikant-Pyarelal (for whom she’s said to have sung 700 songs in 35 years), and Kalyanji-Anandji.
And she worked with every contemporary composer of note — from Anand-Milind, sons of Chitragupt, with whom she had also worked, and Anu Malik, Sardar Malik’s son, to Ilaiyaraaja and A.R. Rahman. It is said she worked with music directors from 13 states in her star-studded career.
After Noorjehan moved to Pakistan, Lata Mangeshkar became the go-to playback singer for every film producer and music composer. She did not disappoint them.
Lata Mangeshkar lent her voice to an endless succession of chart-topping numbers in Hindi cinema, from ‘Allah Tero Naam’ and ‘Rangeela Re’ to the ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’ title track, to ‘Lukka Chuppi’ in ‘Rang De Basanti’, apart from songs in Marathi (she also composed the music for several Marathi films in her ‘Anandghan’ avatar), Bengali, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, and Sinhala.
In 1974, the Guinness Book of Records listed Lata Mangeshkar as the most recorded artiste in human history, stating that she had recorded “not less than 25,000 solo, duet and chorus-backed songs in 20 Indian languages” between 1948 and 1974. The claim was contested by her long-time rival, Mohammad Rafi, who claimed to have sung around 28,000 songs.
After Rafi’s death, the Guinness Book in its 1984 edition listed Lata Mangeshkar in its entry for ‘Most Recordings’, but it also recorded Rafi’s claim. Later editions of the Guinness Book said Lata Mangeshkar had sung no less than 30,000 songs from 1948 to 1987.
For 73 years, from 1943 to 2015, when she recorded her last song for a film (the Indo-Norwegian production, ‘Dunno Y2…Life Is A Moment’, which was all about gay love), Lata Mangeshkar commanded a fan following and an inimitable reputation with not many parallels in the Indian performing arts.
The late Yash Chopra, who was one of Lata Mangeshkar’s favourite directors, said in an article he had penned for BBC.com on the occasion of the singer’s 75th birthday (not longer after she had sung the famous ‘Veer Zaara’ song, ‘Tere Liye Hum Hain Jiye’, with Roop Kumar Rathod): “I see God’s blessing in her voice.” We are blessed to have that voice live with us forever.
Bollywood
Mahhi Vij recalls Kareena Kapoor replacing her in Mani Ratnam’s ‘Yuva’: Equations had gone sour
Mumbai, Sep 16: Television actress Mahhi Vij revealed that she was originally selected by filmmaker Mani Ratnam for the role that Kareena Kapoor eventually played in the 2004 film Yuva, opposite Vivek Oberoi.
During a conversation with fellow Bigg Boss 20 contestant Kanika Mann, Mahhi opened up about her early days in the entertainment industry and recalled how she moved from music videos and South Indian films to what could have been her Bollywood debut.
Mahhi said that after arriving in Mumbai, she got her first music-video opportunity with the popular remix of “Tu Tu Hai Wahi”, in which she featured in a pink outfit.
“I went to Bombay and got a music video as soon as I arrived. It was the one where I wore the pink dress, ‘Tu Tu Hai Wahi’. That was my first music video,” she recalled.
“After that, I did a lot of music videos in my career, and all of them were hits,” Mahhi said.
Mahhi then also spoke about her transition towards films, saying she worked in South Indian cinema, including projects with Prabhu Deva and Malayalam superstar Mammootty.
“Then I did music videos, followed by South Indian films with Prabhu Deva. Then I did a film with Mammootty. From there, I was finalised for Yuva. Mani Ratnam selected me for Yuva,” she said.
According to Mahhi, she had been selected for the role of Meera, the character that Kareena Kapoor eventually portrayed in Yuva. In the film, Meera is the love interest of Vivek Oberoi’s character Arjun Balachandran.
The 2004 film was directed by Mani Ratnam and starred Ajay Devgn, Abhishek Bachchan, Vivek Oberoi, Rani Mukerji, Kareena Kapoor and Esha Deol.
Mahhi said that the opportunity eventually slipped away after her equation with someone involved in the project turned sour.
“For the role that Kareena played, opposite Vivek Oberoi. But some equations with someone had gone a little sour there so it did not materialise,” she added.
Mahhi further recalled that after returning to Delhi, she had discussions for two or three other films, but those projects too were cancelled at the last minute.
“After that, I returned to Delhi. Two or three films were discussed, but they were cancelled at the last minute. So I said, ‘I will do television,’” she recalled.
Her decision eventually led her towards a successful television career. Mahhi became widely recognised for her role as Nakusha in Laagi Tujhse Lagan and later played Nandini in Balika Vadhu.
She also participated in reality shows including Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, Khatron Ke Khiladi and Nach Baliye 5, which she won with Jay Bhanushali.
Meanwhile, Yuva, which released in 2004, also starred Ajay Devgn, Rani Mukerji, Abhishek Bachchan and Esha Deol, with music by A.R. Rahman.
Mumbai, Sep 15: Bollywood superstar Salman Khan has once again left fans intrigued with a cryptic social media post on happiness, expectations and contentment, shortly after making an appearance at Rahul Karnail’s Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations.
Salman shared a reel on his social media account, featuring a scenic mountain backdrop and a thought-provoking message about how a person’s perception of happiness can change once they get what they once desired.
The message read, “Jab thoda mila, toh khush tha, ab zyada mila, toh dukhi kyun? Jo chahiye tha kal mujhe, aaj mila toh zaroori kyun?”
(When I had a little, I was happy, so why am I sad now that I have more? What I wanted yesterday, why does it seem unnecessary now that I have it today?)
Somehow Salman did not reveal what prompted him to share the message.
The cryptic note came soon after Salman attended Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations. Salman was spotted arriving for the festivities and posing for the paparazzi before joining his family for the celebrations.
For the occasion, Salman opted for a casual festive look. He wore a light blue checked/striped shirt with light blue-white denim, while a bandana covered his head.
Videos and pictures from the celebrations showed the Khan family coming together for Ganpati darshan. Salman was also seen spending time with little children at the gathering.
For the uninitiated, Salman has regularly participated in Ganpati celebrations, including aarti and visarjan, over the years.
His family continues the tradition at home where Salman’s entire family celebrates the occasion.
The Khan family’s celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi has its roots in their close family tradition. Salma Khan, Salman’s mother, was born Sushila Charak in a Maharashtrian Hindu family, while his father Salim Khan is Muslim.
The family has over the years been known for celebrating festivals across religious traditions.
Mumbai, Sep 15: Veteran Bollywood star Anil Kapoor has looked back on his fitness journey, saying that four years after he last recorded a run like this, the journey has continued despite changing pace and shape.
Anil took to Instagram, where he shared a video of himself from a racing track. In the clip, the star is seen running as fast as he could.
For the caption the star wrote: “Four years since I last recorded a run like this. The journey never really stopped just changed pace, changed shape, and kept moving forward. Progress isn’t always about how fast you go.”
“Sometimes, it’s simply about continuing.”
Ganesh Acharya on working on qawwali with Anil Kapoor: We created something that complemented his jhakaas style
On the work front, the actor is currently seen the show “India Ke Top 1%” as a host.
Talking about the show, Anil, on August 7, had said that every challenge in the reality show tests observation, logic, presence of mind, and the ability to stay calm under pressure.
Anil said in a statement: “I’m thrilled to announce that India Ke Top 1% premieres on 19th September. Witnessing the grand launch of the show in such a spectacular setting made this announcement even more special.
After running across the globe in countries including the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Greece, Australia, Israel, Turkey, Ukraine, Mexico and the USA, the internationally acclaimed format The 1% Club is now making its much-awaited debut in India.
The show offers a refreshing take on the quiz genre, where it’s not about how much you know, but how you think. Designed for everyone, the format allows people of every age to play along from home, turning every living room into a shared family game night.
The show airs on Star Plus and JioHotstar.
Mumbai Cyber Cell arrests 6 members of organized gang in major operation; Beware of cyber fraudsters; Digital arrest has no legal status; DCP Bajrang Bansode
Bengaluru: Family dispute suspected behind deadly attack on Bengal nurse by estranged husband from TN (Ld)
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