Mumbai: Padma Bhushan awardee Suman Kalyanpur, one of India’s most versatile playback singers known for her soulful voice across Hindi, Marathi, Odia, and other regional cinemas, breathed her last on Sunday evening at her residence in Mumbai due to age-related health issues. She was 89.
Born Suman Hemmadi on January 28, 1937, in Dhaka (then part of undivided Bengal Presidency, British India, now in Bangladesh), Kalyanpur moved to Mumbai and pursued her passion for music after schooling at St Columba. She trained under renowned gurus including Pt Keshavrao Bhole and Ustad Khan Abdul Rehman Khan, initially exploring painting at JJ School of Art before fully dedicating herself to vocal music.
Her cinematic journey began in 1954 with Marathi films such as ‘Shukrachi Chandni’ and ‘Mangu’, marking an impressive debut. She went on to lend her voice to over 850 films, recording approximately 857 Hindi songs alone, and became a prominent figure in the 1960s and 1970s. Her voice, often compared to that of Lata Mangeshkar for its purity and melody, leading many listeners to mistake one for the other, shone brightly even during Lata’s dominant era.
Kalyanpur delivered several timeless Hindi classics, including “Sharaabi Sharaabi Yeh Saawan Ka Mausam” (Noor Jehan), “Aaj Kal Tere Mere Pyar Ke Charche” (Brahmachari), “Na Na Karte Pyar” (Jab Jab Phool Khile), “Na Tum Hamein Jaano” (Baat Ek Raat Ki), and “Parbaton Ke Pedon Par.” She shared a particularly fruitful collaboration with Mohammed Rafi, recording over 140 duets, many of which became evergreen hits amid the temporary rift between Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar. Other memorable solos include “Tumne Pukara Aur Hum Chale Aaye” and “Mere Mehboob Na Ja.”
Beyond Hindi and Marathi cinema, Kalyanpur made a lasting impact on Odia music. She lent her melodious voice to popular Odia films and songs such as those in ‘Gapa Hele Bi Sata’, ‘Chilika Tire’, and ‘Samaya,’ with tracks like “Guhari Suno”, “Saathi Re Jaa Kahi”, “E Banara Chai” and “Kahi Gale Shyama” winning the hearts of Odia audience and remaining classics to this day.
Throughout her career spanning over three decades (primarily 1953–1988), she worked with top music directors of the era and earned acclaim for her classical renditions. She received Sur Sringar Samsad award three times for the best classical song in a Hindi film. Other honours include the Lata Mangeshkar Award from the Maharashtra government in 2009 (and later from Madhya Pradesh), and the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian award, conferred in 2023 for her outstanding contributions to Indian music.
Tributes have poured in from across the music industry, political leaders including Sharad Pawar, and fans mourning the loss of a golden voice.
Her passing, coming weeks after the demise of another legend Asha Bhosle, marks another poignant chapter in the fading era of Bollywood’s iconic playback singers.
