Alka Yagnik is one of the famous playback singers in India. She has received many awards and honors for her soulful voice. She holds the record for singing more than 2,400 songs, with a career spanning more than 30 years.
Biography/Wiki
Alka Yagnik as a child
Alka Yagnik was born on 20 March 1966 in Kolkata, India (57 years old as of 2023). Her mother, Shubha Yagnik, is also an Indian classical music singer and trained Alka to sing since she was a child. She was educated at the Modern Girls High School in Kolkata, India. She started singing for Akashvani (All India Radio) at the age of six, translating devotional songs for the radio station. At the age of 10, she came to Mumbai as a child singer. She was told to wait until her voice matured. Her zodiac sign/sun sign is Pisces.
appearance
Height: 5′4”
Weight: 65kg
Eye color: black
Hair color: dark brown
family, caste and husband
Alka Yagnik with her parents and brother
Alka Yagnik with her Nana and Mausi
Alka was born in a Gujarati family. Her father’s name is Dharmendra Shankar.
Alka Yagnik and her father
Her mother Shubha Yagnik is an Indian classical singer.
Alka Yagnik and her mother
She has a brother named Samir Yagnik.
Alka Yagnik and her brother Samir
She married Shillong businessman Neeraj Kapoor in 1989.
Alka Yagnik and her husband Neeraj Kapoor
She has a daughter named Syesha Kapoor who is an entrepreneur.
Alka and her daughter Sesha
Profession
She started singing on Kolkata radio at the age of six. She started her Bollywood career in 1979 with just a few lines from Rasjshri’s song “Payal ki Jhankar”
Next up was “Mere Angne Mein” which proved to be a hit. Her first solo number was “Hum Tum Rahenge” for Rajesh Roshan in Hamari Bahu Alka (1982). She finally got her first break with the song “Ek Do Teen” from the movie “Tezaab”. She not only sings in Urdu-Hindi but also in other languages including Gujarati, Awadhi, Odiya, Assamese, Meitei, Rajasthani, Bengali , Bhojpuri, Punjabi, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, English and Malayalam. She has collaborated with almost all the most famous Indian composers, from Kalyanji-Anandji to Sandesh Shandilya and many more.
Alka Yagnik on stage with Anandji
In her career that spans three decades, she has sung various songs with singers like Udit Narayan, Kumar Sanu, Sonu Nigam, Shaan and others. Throughout her career, she sang 2,486 Hindi songs in 1,114 films. She is said to be Baolai after Asha Bhosle, Mohammad Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar The fifth most prolific singer in the history of music.
dispute
- The song “Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai” from the 1993 movie “Khalnayak” is the biggest hit of this century, but it is also a controversial song. The song was criticized for its sentimental and double-meaning lyrics. The song was considered vulgar and was opposed by 42 political parties. It was even banned from being played on Doordarshan and All India Radio.
- Anuradha Paudwal, known for her devotional songs; once gave Alka Yagnik a stiff competition. Alka once recorded a song with Anuradha Paudwal’s voice, which created a rift between the two. She even scolded her, saying: “What is she trying to prove, that her voice is more suitable for an actress than mine?”
Anuradha Baudwal
Awards and Honors
national awards
- In 1993, she won the Best Female Singer Award for “Ghoongat Ki Aad Se”
- Best Female Singer for “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” 1998
Film Audience Award
- Won the Best Female Singer Award in 1993 for “Ek Do Teen”
Alka Yagnik won the award
- 1994 shared the Best Female Singer Award for “Choli Ke Peeche” with Ila Arun
- 1998 Best Female Singer for “Meri Mehbooba”
- Best Female Singer for “Taal Se Taal” 2000
- 2001 Best Female Singer for “Dil Ne Yeh Kaha Hai Dil Se”
- Best Female Singer for “O Re Chhori” in 2002
- 2005 “Hum Tum” Best Female Vocalist
Lata Mangeshkar Award
- 2003 Outstanding Contribution to Indian Music Award
Favorites
- Cuisine: Gujarati, Maharashtrian, Italian and Chinese
- TV Shows: Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Little Champs (Zee TV), Indian Idol (Sony TV)
- Color: black, yellow, pink and white
fact
- She made her stage debut at Kala Mandir in Kolkata, India.
- Most of her songs were recorded at Mehboob Studio.
- Osama bin Laden had hundreds of her recordings at his residence in Abbottabad.
- She shares the title with Asha Bhosle as the playback singer who has won the most Filmfare Awards.
- In 2002, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Hindi cinema, her song “Taal Se Taal Mila” from the film “Taal” was chosen as the best song of the century according to a poll conducted by Hindustan Times and DesiMartini , and fever 104.
- Her song “Choli Ke Peeche” from the film “Khalnayak” was chosen as the hottest song of the century in a poll conducted by Sanona.
- She is involved in various projects aimed at empowering the girl child.
- She also sings with her brother Samir Yagnik.
- She has served as a judge on many singing reality shows in India, mainly Sa Re Ga Ma Pa and Star Voice India.
- Her song “Chamma Chamma” was featured in the movie “Moulin Rouge!” ” from the soundtrack “Hindi Sad Diamond”.
- She considered the music of this era to have a “forced element”.
- Alka regretted not singing a song for the film “Roja” (1992). According to her, she has committed to sing for other directors and the music director is AR Rahman, who made his acting debut in the film “Roza”. She and Kumar Sanu refused to sing for the film because they did not know AR Rahman.
- Alka has faced her own #MeToo moment. On one occasion, an anonymous film director arranged to meet her at her home. When he arrived at her house, he openly grabbed her. Fortunately, her mother was at home. He left her home without a word. She later had to withdraw from singing in the film because the director wanted her out of the film.
- In January 2023, her songs were played 16.6 billion, 17.0 billion and 15.3 billion times in 2020, 2021 and 2022 respectively, and then became the most played singer in the Guinness Book of World Records three times in a row.
- In 2024, she shared on her Instagram account that she had been diagnosed with a rare neurological sensory loss.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education