‘Nightingale of India’ Lata Mangeshkar turns 84!

Zee Media Bureau Mumbai: Melody queen Lata Mangeshkar has turned a year older today. Personal tragedies have upset the legendary singer and hence she has expressed that she is in no mood to celebrate her 84th birthday. Born to a Marathi family headed by theatre actor and singer Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, Lata Mangeshkar is the eldest sister of an equally accomplished playback singer Asha Bhosle. Her other siblings-Hridayanath Mangeshkar, Usha Mangeshkar and Meena Mangeshkar are also into singing. Crowned as the ‘Nightingale of India’, Lata started her career as a playback singer in 1942 and ever since she has been associated with timeless classics. With a career spanning over six decades, the singer has the rare feat of crooning in thousands of Bollywood movies in addition to many Indian regional languages. From Nutan to Meena Kumari, Hema Malini to Rekha, Sridevi to Madhuri Dixit and Kareena Kapoor to Preity Zinta, Lata Mangeshkar has lent her voice to divas of different eras of Hindi cinema. She has now distanced herself from the arc light but actively expresses her views on various issues via her Twitter handle @mangeshkarlata. In an exclusive interview to Zee Media on Friday the legendary singer said that God had given her a lot and all that she wished for now was the love and blessings of her fans. Talking to Zee News Editor Sudhir Chaudhary, Lata said, "I thank my fans for their love and blessings." She also thanked Zee News for wishing her on her birthday. However, she added that she never liked celebrating her birthday and all she did on the day was to spend some time with relatives, either at their place or her place. "I just like being at home," Lata said. When asked as to what gift she would like on her birthday, Lata said, "I don`t want anything as gift. God has given me a lot. My fans have given me so much love. They have liked my songs. I just want their blessings." Lata has been bestowed with Padma Bhushan (1969), Padma Vibhushan (1999), Dada Saheb Phalke Award (1989), Bharat Ratna (2001) apart from three National Awards and couple of Bollywood awards. Here’s wishing the melody queen a very Happy Birthday.