We celebrate the 101st birthday of legendary singer Mukesh

Legendary singer Mukesh is one of the most popular singers in the Indian film industry and has written some of the most timeless songs.

Born Mukesh Chand Mathur on July 22, 1923 in Delhi, he became one of the most popular singers of the golden era of Indian cinema, along with Kishore Kumar and Mohammad Rafi.

His list of evergreen hits is endless, some of the popular among them are “Mera joota hai Japani”, “Jeena yahan marna yahaan”, “Kisi Ki Muskurahaton Pe”, “Ek Pyar Ka Naghma Hai”, “Kahin Door Jab Din”. Dhal Jaye” and many more.

Mukesh’s singing talent was first noticed by his distant relative and actor Motilal when he performed at his sister’s wedding. Later, Motilal took him to Bombay and got him trained under Pandit Jaganath Prasad.

In his early days, he tried his hand at acting in the film Nirdosh (1942), but did not receive much recognition. His first success came with the song Dil Jalta Hai To Jalne De from the film Pahali Nazar (1945), which was made into a film on Motilal.

He later sang for many well-known actors like Manoj Kumar, Feroz Khan, Sunil Dutt and Dilip Kumar, but his most famous partnership was with legendary actor Raj Kapoor. After Mukesh’s death, Raj Kapoor was so disheartened that he said, “I have lost my voice.”

He won numerous awards for his enchanting voice, including the National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer for the song “Kai Baar Yuhi Dekha Hai” from the film “Rajnigandha” in 1974.

He died of a sudden heart attack on 27 August 1976 while on a concert tour in the USA. After his death, many of his recorded songs for various films were released. His last song was “Chanchal sheetal nirmal komal” for the film “Satyam Shivam Sundaram”.

He left an unforgettable legacy and an indelible mark on the hearts of music lovers. He will always be remembered for his melodious voice that perfectly captured the feeling of love and longing.