In 1937, a Bombay business wanted the best and most prestigious singer to perform at a family event. Kundan Lal Saigal was offered Rs.25,000 for a few hours. But he preferred to keep his promise to a poor lighting assistant, whose daughter was getting married. Saigal sang

Just mention her name, and music lovers get misty-eyed. Geeta Dutt had an exquisite, almost ethereal voice, and gave Bollywood music some of its most radiant gems during the late 1940s and 1950s. Hers was a short but resplendent life and career, which ended tragically in 1972

If Allah wants to sing, it would be in Bhimsen Joshi’s voice.” This, says Dr Nagaraj Rao Havaldar, the late Kirana gharana icon’s disciple-biographer, is how a Pakistani music critic paid his homage to Joshi. And every time you listen to the maestro’s impassioned rendering of Tum

A song so powerful that it can bring a dead man to life.” That’s how Kishore Kumar described Dum maro dum, Asha Bhosle’s peppy song in Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1971). Composed by R D Burman for Dev Anand, the song became the international anthem of the Hippie

It is a winter morning in 1946. An Austin A40 stops in front of a typical middle class street house in Mysore, tile-roofed in the old architectural style that gives you a clear view, if you stand outside the front door of the backyard, your eyes sweeping

Can a single song capture the sheer magnificence of Hindi film music? Listen to Man tarpat Hari darshan ko aaj from the 1952 film Baiju Bawra, scripted by Shakeel Badayuni, composed by Naushad, sung by Mohammad Rafi. A stunning symphony of voice, word and image, it is

Young singer Kavita Krishnamurthy was excited. A film song of hers had become a chartbuster and she visited her guru Manna Dey to share the happy news with him. “Which song?” Manna Dey enquired. Tu cheez badi hai mast mast from the film Mohra, she responded.

His was a wonder voice. It could soar like Mohammad Rafi, intoxicate like Kishore Kumar, caress like A M Raja or energise like T M Soundarrajan. “Whenever I felt low, his voice would rejuvenate me,” said Suhasini Mani Ratnam, referring to the music legend S P Balasubrahmanyam.

He was gifted with this rare, fluent and mellifluous voice,” said Satyajit Ray about Kishore Kumar. “As a singer of popular songs, he had no equal.” “Just hear the word Kishore and you smile,” Amitabh Bachchan said. “That’s because his name symbolised entertainment.”

In 1964, when Mehboob Khan, producer-director of Mother India, was seriously ill at a Los Angeles hospital, his wife called Lata Mangeshkar from there. Khan snatched the phone and said, “Lata, I am very ill. Can you please sing Rasik balma for me?” Moist-eyed, Lata sang this