AR Rahman

If there is one music personality that has given new voice and direction to Indian music then it is no other than A R Rahman. A winner of Oscar awards, he has truly made India proud. Mr. Rahman did what no other Indian musicians could achieve. Now, his is a name to reckon with on international music arena. Born on 6 January 1967, A R Rahman completely changed the landscape of Indian music. He not only changed the style but also brought never heard before freshness in film music. He is in the industry for just over one decade and he has managed to sell no less than one hundred million records world-wide and more than two hundred million cassettes. If that is not sign of popularity and charisma then what else could be?

 He was born as A.S.Dileep Kumar in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He later on converted to Islam and got rechristened as Allah Rakha Rahman, or better known as AR Rahman. His is a kind of music that encompasses every genre and instrument. A truly versatile personality, Mr. Rahman uses styles as eclectic as reggae, folk, soft rock, classical, jazz and several other styles. No wonder, people call him Mozart of Madras.

A R rahman first shot into limelight with music of Roja. We all know how soulful soundtracks of Roja are! Since then, there was no looking back. He kept climbing ladders of success and kept surpassing his own excellence. He has given us wonderful hits like Dil Se, Bombay, Rang De Basanti, Taal, Rangeela, Jodha Akbar, Lagaan and Dilli 6 among others.

 

Talat Mahmood

Indian music industry has produced many great singers. One of the legends of the golden era was Talat Mahmood. Born on Feb 24, 1924 in Lucknow, he belonged to a middle class family. Like several other great artists, he showed inclination for music at an early age. He would enjoy listening to all night music and shero-shayari occasions. Talat Mahmood was also inclined towards listening to great classical singers of the era. He took his first official plunge in the world of music when he joined Music College.

 Talat Mahmood was primarily a ghazal singer. H started by singing ghazals of Jigar, Daag, Mir at a relatively young age of 16. He had a very unique voice and that fetched him his first big offer from HMV. That turned out to be the beginning of the great jouney by one of the greatest ghazal singers of India. His fist big hit was ” tasveer teri dil mera behla na sakegi ” in the year 1941. There was no looking back after the huge success of this album. Talat Mahmood sang numerous songs in Hindi, Urdu and Bengali. Apart from that he also acted in 3 movies.

 Talat Mahmod was also credited to make filmy ghazal popular. He in fact, redefined the way ghazals were perceived by the people. Soon he became the favorite singer of great music composers like Anil Biswas. He was a master of intonation and diction. His vice had an unparalleled sweetness, emotional nuances and pathos. A proud owner of a different voice, Talat Mahmood was known as King of Ghazals. He gave numerous hits apart from acting in few hit movies.

 

Hemant Kumar – Making of A Legend

As they say, true talent can not be suppressed for long. Sooner or later success is bound to come your way. Famous music composer Salil Chowdhury recognized talent of Hemant Kumar and teamed up with him and churned out one hit after another in Bengali film industry. They gave rise to a new form of music that was known as Kvya-geeti. This form had ballad at its core but they refrained from limiting this form to romantic songs. Soon Hemant Kumar started getting multiple offers from bollywood and that was the beginning of his fruitful association with Hindi film industry.

 

He sang numerous wonderful songs in movies like Anarkali, Baat Ek Raat Ki, Jaal, Anupama, Nagin, Khamoshi and Bees Saal Baad etc. All his songs proved to be major hits. He also formed a glorious association with famous actor Dev Anand and together they gave several melodious hits. He showed another side of his huge talent when he started composing music as well. Equally adept at composing and singing, he received his first Filmfare award for Best Music Director in 1955 for movie Nagin.

 

He gave several hits in Bengali music as well. He is said to be one of the best exponents of rabindrasangeet. He gave innumerable hits in both Hindi as well as Bengali film industry. He composed music for more than 50 Hindi movies and 150 Bengali movies. A truly talented singer, he sang more than 2000 songs. Hemant Kumar also experimented with film direction. His contribution to the film music will always be remembered and cherished.

 

Hemant Kumar – Introduction

Tune into ‘Naino se keh do tum, nishaana chuk na jaye’, ‘Yeh raat ye chaandni phir kahan, Sun ja dil ki daastaan’ and did you realize your heart skip a beat? So who sang these wonderfully melodious songs and many others of similar ilk? Well, it’s none other than legendary singer Hemant Kumar. No doubt, he was a singer par excellence. Hemant Kumar was a proud owner of a deep voice and mellifluous voice. His arrival in the Hindi music industry added quality and class to the rich tradition of Hindi film music. He was adept at enthralling the music lovers with his lilting voice and mesmerizing style of singing.

 

His actual name was Hemanta Mukherjee. Born on the 16th of June 1920 in Varanasi, right from his childhood Hemant Kumar was deeply interested in the magical world of music. His first public appearance took place at an early age of 13 when he sang his first song on the All India Radio (AIR). Soon, a company as prestigious as HMV recognized his talent and released his first gramophone disc. But it took him some time to make a firm entry into the elite music circle of Hindi film music. Despite the release of his disc he had to wait for few years he was finally able to establish his name. He sang his first Hindi song ‘Kitna dukh bhulaya tumne’ in 1940. But his struggle to get a foothold in the bollywood continued.

 

Kumar Sanu

Most of the music lovers in their 20s and 30s have grown on the staple diet of melodious songs sung by Kumar Sanu. Throughout the 90s, he kept giving us one hit after another. His popularity knew no bounds. Kumar Sanu was born on 23^rdSeptember 1957 and his actual name was Kedarnath Bhattacharjee. He was from a family of musicians. His father Pashupati Bhattacharjee earned several accolades as a classical singer and composer. Kumar Sanu was the taught the basics of music by his father who had recognized his talent at an early age. After completing his graduation from Calcutta University he started to give public performance.

 

Kumar Sanu was a die hard fan of legendary singer Kishore Kumar and that’s why his style of singing was very much on the line of Kishore Kumar. It was never a smooth journey for him in the initial stage. He struggled a lot and finally got a chance to sing in the movie ‘Aandhiyan’. Thereafter he kept getting small opportunities in few movies but his real break came with blockbuster ‘Aashiqui’. The songs of Aashiqui proved to be mega hits and Kumar Sanu had finally managed to establish himself. This movie also earned him his first Filmfare award for Best Playback Singing. He followed success with films like Saajan, Deewana, Baajigar, Sadak, Dil Hai Ki Maanta Nahi, 1942: A Love Story and many more. He won Filmfare award for consecutive five years. He also holds the world record for recording the maximum number of songs in a day and that number is an astonishing 28. Unfortunately he was diagnosed with throat cancer and that forced him to cut down on his singing. However he is still active in other fields of entertainment.

 

Sonu Nigam

Sonu Nigam commands popularity and huge fan following amongst the music aficionados. One of the most talented singers around, he can be definitely termed as a teen idol. He is credited to inspire many youths across India to pursue singing as a viable career. Known for belting out one romantic song after another, he has done wonderfully well in songs of other genre as well. A talented singer is known for his variety and Sonu Nigam exemplifies that notion.

 

Born on July 30^th 1973, Sonu Nigam took his first breath in Faridabad district of Haryana. He belongs to a family of singers as his father Agam Kumar has perfomed in various stage shows and also launched an album. He moved to Mumbai at a very early age to pursue his encounter with destiny. He used to accompany his father in his childhhod and also gave few moving performances as a kid. His first break came in movie ‘Janum’ in the year 1990. Seeing his talent he was approached by music magnate late Gulshan Kumar. His songs in the movie ‘Bewafa Sanam’ were appreciated by all and thereafter offers poured in. In between he also started to host singing talent show ‘Sa Re Ga Ma’. His shot to fame came with song ‘Ye Dil deewana’ in the movie Pardesh and it was followed by melancholic ‘Sandese Aate Hain’ from the movie Border.

 

Thereafter, he gave one hit after another. He sang songs for film hits like Taal, Pukar, Saathiya, Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega etc. One of the most sought after singers, Sonu Nigam also released popular albums like Jaan, Deewana, Mausam, Yaad, and Chanda Ki Doli. A multitalented personality he also tried his hands at acting in movies like Love in Nepal, Jaani Dushman and Kash Aap Hamare Hote. He has continued to be one of the most sought after singers in India.

 

Alisha Chinai

Indian pop world came into its own in 1990’s. Before that there had been few instances of some pop songs getting popularity but it was never pursued seriously and did not last long. Everything changed with arrival of the album named ‘Made in India’. This one album broke all the previous records and opened floodgates for emerging pop singers. Made in India gave India, Alisha Chinai who is one of the leading pop singers of India. Her unique voice mesmerized one and all. Her songs made people groove on its rhythmic beats. She literally changed the face and facet of Indian music industry.

                                                  

Alisha Chinai aka Sujata was born on 18th of March in 1972. Her talent has also earned her nickname of ‘Indian Madonna’. She also had an eventful journey in popular music category. She has sung for many famous actresses like Sridevi, Juhi Chawla, Madhuri Dixit, Smita Patil and Mandakini etc. she owes a lot to famous music composer Bappi Lahiri with whom she gave several hits. Those songs mostly belonged to disco genres and boast of names like, Dance dance, Love love love, Guru, Jimmy Jimmy etc. 

 

1990s witnessed her evolution as a popular playback singer and she got opportunity to work with several renowned composers of that era. She has won several awards including International Billboard Award, Best Female Playback Filmfare Award and Freddie Mercury Award etc. Her song ‘Kajra Re’ made the whole country go crazy. Alisha Chinai continues to enthrall Indian listeners with her unique and mesmerizing voice.

 

Shubha Mudgal

Shubha Mudgal can be associated with the term ‘versatility’. She is one of the rare singers who have made a mark for herself in not only classical singing but also in popular music. She definitely holds a special position in echelons of music fraternity. Her forte is classical singing but she has successfully managed to adept her voice and talent as per the demands of popular music. She has a very different and unique voice. The best part about her unique voice is it can be used in any type of songs.

                          

Shubha Mudgal first came into limelight when her albums “Ab ke Sawan” and “Pyaar Ke Geet” hit the market and were declared huge hits. Her albums sold like hot cakes and it was followed by another album of hers, “Mann Ki Manjeree”. This album was dedicated to modern women and it also managed to get rave reviews. She began her musical journey by receiving training in Hindustani classical music. The singer got her basics from acclaimed teachers like Kumar Gandharva, Naina Devi, Ram Ashreya, Vinay Chandra etc. It’s really mesmerizing to she her proficiency with other genres like rock, pop, folk, samba and jazz.

 

Shubha Mudgal is an extremely versatile personality. She has also composed songs apart from participating in several concerts. Her compositions can be heard in numerous documentaries, telefilms and other programs. She is known for experimentation that has fetched her wide recognition and appreciation from people across the regions. Shubha Mudgal is also a recipient of Padma Shri.

 

Udit Narayan- The Story of Success

Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak also gave bollywood a successful pair of Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik as playback singers. They sung together in several blockbuster hits including Dil, Raja, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar etc. in between he also became very famous in Nepali movies and even tried his hand at acting in movies like Pirati and Kusume Rumal. These movies did not do very well but however, Udit Narayan had established himself as the most famous Nepali singer.

 

In the Hindi film industry, another playback singer Kumar Sanu was already creating waves and the rivalry between the two resulted in some of the best songs of that era. In the hindsight, Kumar Sanu managed to go away with all the awards till the year 1995 when Udit Narayan made a strong comeback with the movie ‘Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaaenge’. The song ‘Mehendi Laga Ke Rakhna’ became a huge hit and he also bagged the best playback singer award for the same. His next award did not take much time as he won it again next year for the song ‘Pardesi Pardesi’ for the movie Raja Hindustani.

 

Udit Narayan has attained fame and respect for his original voice and cheerful songs. He is also the most natural singers around who is able to give exact feel to the song. His major hits include, Darr, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Taal, Swadesh, Dil Toh Pagal Hai, Veer Zaara, Mohabbatein, Lagaan, Rangeela and any more. He has also sung songs in other languages like, Tamil, Kannada, Oriya, Telugu, and Bengali etc. 

 

Udit Narayan- Introduction

Udit Narayan has managed to carve a niche for himself in the tough business of playback singing. He has one of the most original voices in the film industry. Udit Narayan is also a favorite with top notch music directors. His talent can be understood from the fact that he has sung for numerous heroes and in many languages. He is not only popular but has also managed to remain humble and that’s certainly a great quality to have. Born in a small village called ‘Bharadah’ in Nepal, Udit Narayan faced lot of struggles in his early days. His passion for singing brought him to Nepal radio. Therafer he sung songs in Maithili, Nepali and Bhojpuri languages. That was way back in 1970’s. But he was not satisfied with the progress he was making. His ambitions brought him to bollywood, the pinnacle for playback singers. His stint in Mumbai also involved six years of classical music training in Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan.

 

His first break materialized in form of movie ‘Unees Bees’ in the year 1980. He was also fortunate to sing with the legendary Mohammad Rafi. But his moment of fame came with the movie, Qayamat Se Qayamat tak in the year 1988. He also won the Filmfare award for the song ‘Papa Kehte hain’ for the same movie. This movie also launched the career of famous bollywood stars Amir Khan and Juhi Chawla. Since that movie, Udit narayan has never looked back.