INDIA. Mumbai: Veteran singer Vani Jairam (78), who was honoured with the Padma Bhushan ahead of Republic Day 2023, was found dead at her residence in Nungambakkam, bakkam, Chennai, on February 4, Saturday.
She has no children. She was living alone in a downtown apartment. Her husband, Jairam, passed away in 2018.
Vani Jairam died at the age of 78
The cause of Vani Jairam’s death is still a mystery. When the singer’s maid arrived for work as usual on Saturday, she repeatedly rang the calling bell but got no answer. She told the singer’s family, who then called the police. Police forced open the door in the presence of the singer’s relative and discovered Vani Jaiaram dead, according to local sources.
Vani Jairam, was born on November 30, 1945, into a family of classically educated musicians. Duraisamy Iyengar and Padmavathi gave birth to her. She began her career as a playback vocalist in 1971 and continued to perform for the next five decades.
She recorded over 10,000 songs for Indian movies in 19 languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Kannada, and Gujarati, among many others. She was honoured with the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer in 1975, 1980, and 1991.
Her breakthrough came in 1971 with the Hindi film Guddi, starring Jaya Bhaduri (Bole Re Papiahara, Hum Ko Man Ki Shakti Dena). She collaborated with a number of great composers, including MS Vishwanathan, KV Mahadevan, Chakravarthy, Ilaiyaraaja, and Sathyam.
Speaking to the Transcontinental Times, a music connoisseur, Balakrishnan S, described her as the finest singer and a very humble person. “She used to visit the Fine Arts Society at Chembur in North East Mumbai many times for performance,” he added.
R Sridhar, associated with Mumbai-based Sri Shanmukhananda Fine Arts and Sangeetha Sabha recalled her stupendous performance in a concert organised by the Sabha in 2008.
Natcaharaju Venkata Subhash, official spokesperson of BJP TS and grand son of former PM late P V Narasimha Rao tweeted, “The graceful and ethereal Vani Jairam Garu has left us too soon, but her musical legacy will endure as a shining example of excellence in Indian cinema.OM Shanti.”
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