The Nightingale of India, Lata Mangeshkar was also awarded the Guinness World Record for recording 30,000 songs in her career. She has millions of fans worldwide. If you are a fan of Lata didi, here are some fun facts.
• Lata Mangeshkar’s birth name was Heema Mangeshkar. And was born in the Marathi family. Her father changed it to Lata and their family name as Mangeshkar to identify with his native Mangeshi in Goa.
• Lata Mangeshkar is the eldest daughter of the family followed by Meena Khadikar, Asha Bhosle, Usha Mangeshkar, and Hridaynath Mangeshkar.
• There are numerous tales as to why Lata Mangeshkar never attended schooling. One, she dropped out of school because the teacher didn’t allow her to sing. Another being she wanted her younger sister Asha Bhosle to come with her, but the school did not permit. So she never went back again.
• Her father, Deenanath Mangeshkar, gave Lata Mangeshkar lessons in classical singing. After his death, Lata Mangeshkar had to start working as she was eldest. She began working at the age of 13 as a singer and actor.
• There was some royalty issue with payment of the fee. And when Lata Mangeshkar confided in Mohammed Rafi, they had a dispute as Rafi saheb refused to side with Lata didi.
• She has been honoured with Padma Bhushan (1969), Dadasaheb Phalke Award (1989), Padma Vibushan (1999), Bharat Ratna (2001), and Legion of Honour (2007).
Lata Mangeshkar is the one legend of the Indian music industry, and there will be no match to her voice.