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M S Subbulakshmi ~ Bharat Ratna
She was born on 16th September, 1916 in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Her full name is Madurai Shammukhavadivu Subbulakshmi. She is immortal for carnatic vocal music. Her voice is different from any other classical singers. Millions fell in love with her peculiar melodious voice. When she sings in Hindi, with that South Indian accent ( you know how South Indians pronounce Hindi words ) even an ordinary song became more and more interesting. Let any Hindi song sung by M S Subbulakshmi, it will instantly sound fresh to your ears, as if you are listening to a new song. I am very fond of her Meera Bhajans for this reason.
In India Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi were her great fans ; Nehru remarked : "I am merely a Prime Minister, but she is the Queen of Music". Mahatma Gandhi even sent a special request to M S Subbulakshmi to sing his favourite bhajan " Hari Tum Haro Jan Ki Bheer " (O Lord, please dispel the fear in mankind ). But her husband replied that it was doubtful that she could sing that particular song perfectly( fearing wrong pronouncement of words). And he advised the Mahatma to try another singer. But promptly came a humorous reply from the Mahatma, " I should prefer to hear it spoken by Subbulakshmi than sung by others !"
She recieved the awards : Raman Magsaysay (1974), Padma Vibhusan ( 1975 ), Kalidasa Sanman ( 1988), Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration ( 1990 ) and finally in 1998 the Bharat Ratna `~ the highest civilian in India ~ all the first recipient as a woman . She was also honoured as the exclusive court-singer at Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam ~ the most famous and richest temple in India.
She was born on 16th September, 1916 in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Her full name is Madurai Shammukhavadivu Subbulakshmi. She is immortal for carnatic vocal music. Her voice is different from any other classical singers. Millions fell in love with her peculiar melodious voice. When she sings in Hindi, with that South Indian accent ( you know how South Indians pronounce Hindi words ) even an ordinary song became more and more interesting. Let any Hindi song sung by M S Subbulakshmi, it will instantly sound fresh to your ears, as if you are listening to a new song. I am very fond of her Meera Bhajans for this reason.First she became famous as an actress ( she is good looking too ). Mainly because of her role as Bhakt Meera in the film Meera ( 1945). As her singing career progressed, she became famous all over the world. She had performed at Carnegie Hall, New York ; in front UN General Assembly on UN Day in 1966 ( when U. Thant was Secretary General ) ; at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in 1982 and the Festival of India in Moscow in 1987.
In India Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi were her great fans ; Nehru remarked : "I am merely a Prime Minister, but she is the Queen of Music". Mahatma Gandhi even sent a special request to M S Subbulakshmi to sing his favourite bhajan " Hari Tum Haro Jan Ki Bheer " (O Lord, please dispel the fear in mankind ). But her husband replied that it was doubtful that she could sing that particular song perfectly( fearing wrong pronouncement of words). And he advised the Mahatma to try another singer. But promptly came a humorous reply from the Mahatma, " I should prefer to hear it spoken by Subbulakshmi than sung by others !"Lata Mangeshkar called her "Tapaswini" ( the renunciate ).
She recieved the awards : Raman Magsaysay (1974), Padma Vibhusan ( 1975 ), Kalidasa Sanman ( 1988), Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration ( 1990 ) and finally in 1998 the Bharat Ratna `~ the highest civilian in India ~ all the first recipient as a woman . She was also honoured as the exclusive court-singer at Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam ~ the most famous and richest temple in India.After a breif illness this great soul of India left for her heavenly abode on December 11, 2004, at the age of 88.
