Lata

"The Nightingale of India"

The population of India is currently 1.38 billion and rising. In the west, we are all very aware of this great and populous country with its rich and chequered history, its mysticism, its beauty, its joys and its sorrows. Yesterday, almost the entire Indian population shed collective tears over the death of  Lata Mangeshkar at 92 from COVID19.

She was a very famous "playback singer". This term describes recording artistes whose singing is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs on camera; the actual singer does not appear on the screen. Lata Mangeshkar's voice was familiar to generations of Indians for she sang countless songs for the ever expanding Bollywood film industry in at least thirty six Indian languages.

She received many awards in her long career. In 2001, in recognition of her contributions to the nation, she was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour.

Visitors to this blog are nearly all westerners and I guess that most of us feel disconnected from the soundtracks of Bollywood. We don't understand the lyrics and the singing styles are strange to our ears. Nonetheless, I think it is good to pause for a little while and give Lata Mangeshkar a listen as she departs this life for the "seventh heaven" of Hinduism.

Here she is in 1963 on India's Republic Day singing "Aye mere watan ke logo" in New Delhi in the presence of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru who was reportedly moved to tears. The Sinai-Indian War of 1962 appeared to have ended just a few months before. The first verse with English translation is printed below the video:-
ai mere vatan ke logo, zaraa aa.nkh me.n bhar lo paani
Oh, my fellow citizens! Shed a few tears.
jo shahiid hue hai.n unkii, zaraa yaad karo qurbaanii
Remember the sacrifice of those martyrs.
tum bhuul na jaao unko, is liye suno yah kahaanii
Listen to this story so that you do not forget them.
jo shahiid hue hai.n unkii, zaraa yaad karo qurbaani
Remember the sacrifice of those martyrs.


from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/o9uYXd5

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