Mumbai: Veteran music director Usha Khanna has been named for the Maharashtra Government’s “Lata Mangeshkar Award” for 2019-2020, Culture Minister Vinod Tawde said here on Wednesday.
The award, which carries a cash reward of Rs.500,000, a citation and a memento shall be awarded to the 78-year old Khanna at a later date.
Instituted in 1993 by the state government, the previous recipients of the award have been on Krishna Kalle, Ram-Laxman, Uttam Singh, Pushpa Pagdhare and other personalities.
One of the earliest and few women music directors in the Indian film industry, Khanna made her mark in a largely male-dominated field by composing music for around 150 Hindi films, and a few for the South Indian film industry.
Starting her career in Bollywood barely in her teens, she first composed superhit songs for the Asha Parekh debut film “Dil Deke Dekho” (1959) and never looked back since.
Over the years, she not only worked with veteran stalwarts like Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosale, Mukesh, Kishore Kumar, K. J. Yesudas, S. Janaki, but also afforded big opportunities to newcomers like Anuradha Paudwal, Hemlata, Mohammed Aziz, Roop Kumar Rathod, Shabbir Kumar, Sonu Nigam and others.
Some of her memorable songs were for films like: “Shabnam” (1964), “Ek Sapera Ek Lutera” (1965), “Badal” (1966), “Honeymoon” (1973), “Hawas” (1974), “Do Khiladi” (1976), “Saajan Bina Suhagan” (1978), “Bin Phere Hum Tere” and “Dada” (1979), “Aap To Aise Na The” (1980), “Saajan Ki Saheli” (1981), “Gopichand Jasoos” (1982), “Souten” (1983), till her swansong film, “Dil Pardesi Ho Gaya” (2003).
Yesudas bagged the Filmfare Award for the song “Dil Ke Tukde, Tukde Karke” (“Dada” – 1979) composed by Khanna, and a few of her evergreen musical creations include: “Dil Deke Dekho”, “Hum Tumse Juda Hoke, Mar Jayenge Ro Roke”, “Jiske Liye Sabko Chhoda”, “Teri Galiyon Mein Na Rakhene Kadam”, “Chhodo Kal Ki Baatein”, “Shaayad Meri Shaadi Ka Khya”, “Jhumta Saavan Dekho Aaya”, “Zindagi Pyaar Ka Geet Hai”, “Tu Is Tarahse Meri Zindagi Mein Shaamil Hai”, etc.
