February has been a sad month for Indian music aficionados. We lost three stalwarts from the music industry in less than a fortnight. Queen of Melody Lata Mangeshkar passed away on February 6. Even before the nation could come to terms with the loss, two other legends, composer-singer Bappi Lahiri and Bengali playback singer Sandhya Mukherjee, passed away 10 days later.
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar passed away in Mumbai on the morning of February 6, leaving behind legions of grieving fans. Mangeshkar, who was known as the ‘Queen of Melody’ and the ‘Nightingale of India,’ had tested positive for COVID-19 with mild symptoms on January 8 and was undergoing treatment at a city hospital. She was 92. Two days of national mourning was announced, for the duration of which the national flag was at half mast.
Her funeral at Shivaji Park was performed with full state honours as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several other politicians turned up to pay respects. Her sisters Asha Bhosle and Usha Mangeshkar were at the funeral, so were celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan and Sachin Tendulkar. Indian Cricket Team players wore black arm bands to mourn the loss of Mangeshkar at the India vs. West Indies 1st ODI.
One of the greatest and most influential singers in India, the Bharat Ratna had recorded songs in over thirty-six Indian languages and a few foreign languages, though primarily in Hindi, Bengali, Marathi. She received several accolades and honors throughout her career, including the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1989 and France’s highest civilian award, Officer of the National Order of the Legion of Honour, in 2007.
Sandhya Mukherjee
While Lata Mangeshkar was called the ‘Nightingale of India’, the title in Bengal definitely belonged to Sandhya Mukherjee. The prima donna of music in Bengal, known as “Geetashree” (famous singer), passed away at the age of 90. She had suffered a massive cardiac arrest. The veteran singer had tested positive for Covid-19 a couple of weeks ago and was admitted to a hospital.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took to Twitter to offer condolences and express that she used to look up to her as her elder sister and this is a grave personal loss to her. Mukherjee was awarded the Padma Shri in January 2022 for her performance in music. However, she refused the award, labelling it “disparaging and degrading” and coming too late in her life.
Mukherjee’s career as a singer spanned eight decades, primarily in Bengali. She also sang for many Hindi films.
Her best known collaboration is with the Bengali singer Hemanta Mukherjee with whom she sang numerous duets, primarily as playback for Bengali films.
Bappi Lahiri
Another music legend from Bengal passed away the same night as Sandhya Mukherjee. Bappi Lahiri is among the best composers in Indian film music. He revolutionised the sound and feel of Bollywood music, bringing disco to India and delivering several evergreen numbers which will remain popular for years to come.
The music icon died at a Mumbai hospital on Tuesday night after suffering from a sleep-related breathing disorder. He was 69. Several celebrities including Kajol, Shaan, Alka Yagnik, Rakesh Roshan, and Poonam Dhillon arrived at the late composer’s residence to pay respects.
He had delivered major box office successes in Bengali films like Amar Sangee, Asha O Bhalobasha, Aamar Tumi, Amar Prem, Mandira, Badnam, Raktelekha, Priya and so on. He was popular in the 1980s and 1990s with Hindi film soundtracks such as Wardat, Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal, Sharaabi, Naukar Biwi Ka, Naya Kadam, Masterji, Bewafai, Maqsad, Suraag, Insaaf Main Karoongaa, Dance Dance, Commando and Saaheb. Mithun Chakraborty starred in many films with songs composed by Bappi da, which majorly contributed to his career.
The composer was known for his trademark style of wearing lots of gold, sunglasses and bright clothes, creating an unforgettable image in pop culture in India. Several of his original songs are remixed and reused in movies even today.
