Lata Mangeshkar pays tribute to Subbulakshmi on birth centenary

Mumbai, Sep 16 (IANS) Melody queen Lata Mangeshkar on Friday paid her tribute to legendary classical singer M.S. Subbulakshmi on her 100th birth anniversary.

“It’s legendary singer M.S. Subbulakshmi’s 100th birth anniversary. I bow in front of her melodious songs and personality,” Mangeshkar tweeted on Friday.

Subbulakshmi was born on September 16, 1916, at Madurai in the then Madras presidency in a family of artistes, musicians, singers and dancers. She started learning classical music at a young age.

She released her first music recording in 1926 at the age of 10 and gave her first public performance in 1927 at the Rockfort temple in Tiruchirapalli.

Later, she moved to Madras where she acted in movies and pursued her vocal music career, giving independent concerts at the age of 17 and travelled to many countries for performances, including at the UN Headquarters in New York in 1966.

The national and international awards conferred on Subbulakshmi include the Bharat Ratna — India’s top civilian award (1998), the Ramon Magsaysay Award (1974) and the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration (1990).

After a long and glorious career spanning almost eight decades, she died in December 2004 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.