Lata Mangeshkar, Legendary Nightingale of India, Passes Away at 92

Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar, the Nightingale of India, passed away at the age of 92 earlier today. The prolific voice behind Indian film and devotional songs had been battling a Covid-19 infection since early January in the ICU of Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai, Times of India reports.

While it was reported that Mangeshkar had shown signs of recovery last week and was taken off ventilator support, her condition was critical by February 5th. The artist was responding to “aggressive therapy” for a while, according to hospital authorities at Breach Candy.

The celebrated artist was born in 1929 in Indore, into a family who staunchly took to music. Mangeshkar was the oldest of singer siblings Meena Khadikar, Asha Bhosle, Usha Mangeshkar and Hridaynath Mangeshkar. The eldest Mangeshkar went on to arguably become the voice of Indian film music’s most popular and evocative songs, including “Ek Pyar Ka Nagma Hai” from the movie Shor in 1972 to riding the Nineties wave with playful songs like “Didi Tera Devar Deewana” from 1994 family movie Hum Aapke Hai Koun! to the A.R. Rahman-helmed song “Jiya Jale” from 1998 movie Dil Se... In the process, she created fans across generations in India for her versatility, one that has stood the test of time over the last seven decades.

In addition to a host of accolades received over the years, Mangeshkar was continually feted with Indian civilian honors over the years. She received the Bharat Ratna in 2001, which was preceded by the Padma Bhushan in 1969, the Padma Vibhushan in 1999.

This is a developing story.