In honour of her completing 80 wonderful years last week, our next great Andhra Personality this week is none other than the Nightingale of the South, Smt. P.Susheela.
A singer and philanthropist who dominated playback singing in the 60s and 70s, she embodied sweetness of melody and range in modulation to Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada music lovers alike.
Background
Hailing from a well-to do family from Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh, Pulapaka Susheela was born in 1935 and began studying music from a young age. She credits her lawyer father for this interest as he was musically inclined.
She was trained in Carnatic Music and passed first class from Vijayanagaram Music College. She was discovered by Pendyala Nageshwara Rao when she was on All India Radio, and he had her sing in her first movie: A Tamil film called Petra Thaai. Having made her entry into the music industry in 1952, there was no looking back. She went on to dominate playback singing in the South for Decades.
She debuted in Malayalam in 1960, and spread her wings thereafter into other industries. P.Susheela sang many duets with illustrious vocalists such as Ghantasala, T.M.Sounderarajan, and even a very young S.P. Balasubramanyam. But it was in the movie Missamma that she truly established her reign in playback singing.
Despite he prolific professional career, she eventually married Shri Mohan Rao and started a family. She has a long-standing friendship with Lata Mangeshkar, and was mentored by composer and music director M.S.Viswanathan. Though now retired from the Cine industry, she still teaches informally on occasion.
Achievements
With such melodious classics such as “Mirajaala Galada” from the movie Sri Krishna Tulabharam and “Pillallu Devudu Challani Vaadey” from Leytha Manasu, Padma Bhushan P.Susheela needs no introduction to Telugus and Tamilians everywhere. Though born a Telugu, she made her debut in Kollywood, and soon expanded to the other southern industries, including her mother tongue’s, Tollywood.
Despite being offered many opportunities to sing in Hindi, she declined most of them. Nevertheless, she performed for a couple of Bollywood films after she was long-established in the South. She is famous not only for the sweetness of her voice, which earned her the moniker “Nightingale of the South”, but also for the precision of her pronunciation. Even in languages she is not familiar with, she has an excellent reputation for taking the time to master modulation and intonation, providing an outstanding musical experience for even the most nitpicky of native speakers. Most interestingly, she is famous for her range, having been able to sing for heroines and child stars alike, even in her later years.
- She Completed over 50 years in the Cine Music Industry
- Sang over 40,000 songs in 12 languages
- Sang over 5000 songs in Kannada alone–the most of any recorded singer
- Recipient of numerous awards at the state level in Karnataka, Kerala & T.N.
- 6 time Nandi Award winner
- 5 time National Award winner
- Finally received the Padma Bhushan in 2008
Legacy
“Melody Queen“, “Gandharva Gayaki“, “Lata of the South“, and even “Kannada Kokila“, true blue Telugu P.Susheela gaaru is known by many names and many titles. Her prominence in the music of the Dakshinapatha cannot be minimized. Even to this day and across continents and generations, she has a dedicated fan base.
She is recognisable through the South and even in Sinhalese songs for her sweet voice and care in pronunciation. She has touched both listeners and talent alike. In fact, S.P. Balasubramanyam sang his first cinematic song with her at the young age of 18. He credits her for his branching out from Telugu and achieving multi-lingual musical success.
A musical talent that has inspired numerous generations and countless singers and fans, she is undoubtedly a great vocal personality, not only in the Telugu states, but throughout the Indian Peninsula. Our best wishes to Smt. P.Susheela gaaru on the recent occasion of this milestone.
References:
- http://www.psusheela.org/
- http://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/interviews/article469943.ece?service=print
- http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/ode-to-a-southern-nightingale/article7871584.ece
- http://psusheela.org/articles/tel/sj_balasaraswathi.html
