NEW DELHI — Lata Mangeshkar, a legendary Indian singer with a prolific, groundbreaking catalog and a voice recognized by a billion people in South Asia, has died, her doctor said. She was 92.
The iconic singer died of multiple organ failure at Breach Candy hospital in Mumbai, Dr. Pratit Samdani told reporters. She was hospitalized on Jan. 11 after contracting Covid-19.
Over the course of nearly eight decades, Mangeshkar was a major presence as a playback singer, singing songs that were later lip-synced by actors in India’s lavish Bollywood musicals. She was also fondly revered as the “Melody Queen” and “Nightingale of India.”
Mangeshkar’s songs, always filled with emotion, were often sad and mostly dealt with unrequited love, but others involved national pride.
Born in Maharashtra on Sept 28, 1929, Mangeshkar first sang at religious gatherings with her father, who was also a trained singer. After she moved to Mumbai, India’s film industry capital, she became a star with immense popular appeal, enchanting audiences with her smooth but sharp voice and immortalizing Hindi music for decades to come.