Fans livid after Grammys fails to pay tribute to Lata Mangeshkar

A week after the Oscars, the 64th Annual Grammy Awards also omitted legendary Indian playback singer Lata Mangeshkar in the ‘In Memoriam’ section during the ceremony held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The said 'omission' upset fans, to say the least. 

The Grammys’ 2022 In Memoriam section paid their heartfelt tribute to songs by the late Broadway composer Stephen Sondheim, performed by Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr, Ben Platt and Rachel Zegler. Taylor Hawkins and Tom Parker were also honoured.

Mangeshkar, lovingly known as the ‘Nightingale of India’, passed away on January 6 due to multiple organ failure aged 92.

The fans took to Twitter to criticise the Recording Academy, the institution that conducts Hollywood’s biggest musical awards night.

A user wrote: “A little unrelated, but when they were paying tributes to artists who passed away this year and there was no mention of Lata Mangeshkar- India’s most loved singer, it all felt so futile and insignificant. These shows have no regard for ‘global’ music- only American.”

"Wow, Recording Academy. What a way to Go  Forgetting #LataMangeshkar, the Legend," penned a user.

A fan said he feels sad that “Lata Mangeshkar wasn’t mentioned once”. A user shared that he was hoping that the Grammys would have included Lata Mangeshkar’s name in the ‘In Memoriam’ section.

One more shared, "First the Oscars, now no mention of #LataMangeshkar in the In Memoriam of the Grammys either. How clueless are these executives? Lataji was a bigger star than everyone on that Grammy stage tonight."

Mangeshkar was born in 1929 and started her musical training early under the tutelage of her father Deenanath, singing in his theatrical productions when she was just five.

Her father's death when she was only 13 forced her to take on the role of breadwinner to support four younger siblings, and the family eventually moved to Mumbai in 1945. There she pursued a career as a playback singer, recording tracks to be mimed by actors, and her high-pitched voice soon became a staple of Bollywood blockbusters.

In a move reflecting her huge following, she was invited by the government to sing a patriotic tribute to the soldiers killed in the 1962 Indo-China war at India's Republic Day commemorations in January 1963. Her rendition of Oh the People of my Country reportedly moved then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to tears.

In the following decades, composers and film producers alike vied to sign the prolific Mangeshkar for their movies.