The diva supreme: Remembering 'the voice of India' Lata Mangeshkar

Her composers and lyricists seemed to be vying with each other to offer their best efforts for her voice

The epicentre of Hindi cinema shifted to Mumbai after Partition. A sea change in all aspects of film-making followed in its wake, none more so than in the case of its staple, the music. A whole new crop of voices — Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Geeta Roy, Mohammad Rafi, Talat Mahmood, Mukesh, Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey — brought in a gust of fresh air, under the batons of new and old music directors — Shankar-Jaikishan, S D Burman, O P Nayyar, Madan Mohan, Roshan. C Ramachandra and Naushad, not yet 30, were the seniors. That meant a whole new musical