Vani Jairam | |
---|---|
Born | Kalaivani 30 November 1945 |
Died | 4 February 2023 | (aged 77)
Other names | South Indian Meera |
Alma mater | Queen Mary's College, Chennai |
Occupation | Playback singer |
Spouse |
Jairam
(m. 1969; died 2018) |
Parents |
|
Awards | Padma Bhushan (2023)
National film award for best female playback singer Filmfare awards |
Website | vanijairam |
Vani Jairam (born Kalaivani; 30 November 1945 – 4 February 2023) was an Indian playback singer in Indian cinema.[2][3] She is fondly referred to as the "Meera of modern India"[4][5] Vani's career started in 1971 and has spanned over five decades. She did playback for over one thousand Indian movies recording over 20,000 songs. In addition, she recorded thousands of devotionals and private albums and also participated in numerous solo concerts in India and abroad.[6][7]
Renowned for her vocal range and easy adaptability to any difficult composition, Vani has often been the choice for several composers across India from the 1970s until the late 1990s. She has sung in several Indian languages languages excluding such as Kannada, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Sanskrit,[8] Gujarati, Haryanvi, Assamese, Tulu, Kashmiri, Bhojpuri, Marwari, Urdu, Konkani, Punjabi and Bengali languages.[9][10]
Vani is the youngest artist to be awarded the "Sangeet Peet Samman". She won the National Film Awards for Best Female Playback Singer three times and also has won State Government awards from the states of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.[9] In 2012, she was honored with the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award – South for her achievements in South Indian film music.[11] In July 2017 she was honored with the Best Female Singer at the NAFA 2017 event at New York City.[12]
She was well versed in various forms of music, including Carnatic, Hindustani, thumri, ghazal and bhajan. Apart from singing, she was also a songwriter, composer and painter.[13]