Eranholi Moosa (18 March 1940 – 6 May 2019) was an Indian Mappilappatu and playback singer. He is considered one of the greatest and most influential Mappilappattu singers of all time. During his musical career, Moosa has performed solo in more than 1000 stages, which includes nearly 300 stages across several

gulf countries The Arab states of the Persian Gulf, also known as the Gulf Arab states (), refers to a group of Arab states bordering the Persian Gulf. There are seven member states of the Arab League in the region: Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Saudi ...

and has recorded more than 100 Mappila songs. He has also played a lead role in the movie ''

Gramophone A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration waveforms are recorded as corresponding physic ...

'' directed by Kamal.

Life and career

Moosa was born as the son of Eranholi Valiyakath Abu and Aasya and started singing at a very early age. During his early life, he used to sing for many low profile cultural organisations, notably in marriage functions. He later studied music for two years under Sarathchandra Marathe. He started his musical career with the song "Arimullappoomanam ulloole" in the 70's. It was in 1974 that he made his debut in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

. He rose to a popular figure after started singing to the tunes of legendary musician Raghavan Master in

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

. His famous songs includes Mihraj Raavile Kaatte, Misrile Raajan, Thaif Nagari, Nafsu Nafsine, and Samanin Koorirul Kaatte along with the most famous song " Manikyamalaraya Poovi". This song, which was originally composed in 1978 became one of the most listened Malayalam song in

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

after it was recreated for the 2018 Malayalam movie ''

Oru Adaar Love ''Oru Adaar Love'' () is a 2019 Malayalam-language romantic comedy film. The screenplay was written by Sarang Jayaprakash and Lijo Panadan from a story by Omar Lulu, and produced by Ousepachan Vaalakuzhy under his production company Ousepachan ...

''. In 2003, he acted as an aging musician in the Malayalam film ''

'', which shows the reality of many talented musicians struggling to make a living and aging in the narrow lanes of

Mattancherry Mattancherry (; Cochin Portuguese Creole: ''Cochim de Cima'' ), is a historic ward of Kochi, Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, follow ...

. In 2009, he received the

Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award is an award given by the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi, an autonomous organisation for the encouragement, preservation, and documentation of the performing arts of Kerala, set up by the Department of Cultu ...

in Mappilappattu category. During his final years before death, Musa served as the vice chairman of the

Kerala Folklore Academy Kerala Folklore Academy is an autonomous center for cultural affairs constituted by the Government of Kerala and works under the Department of Cultural Affairs. It was established on 28 June 1995 to promote and project the traditional art forms ...

. Due to age related issues, Moosa suffered from breathing problems and later died on 6 May 2019, aged 79.

Music style and influence

Eranjoli Moosa played an important role in popularizing Mappila songs. He was known for his unique voice and singing style. According to some experts in Mappilappatu, it was Moosa's unique voice that gave him the recognition as one of the most popular Mappilappattu singer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moosa, Eranjoli 1940 births 2019 deaths Malayali people 20th-century Indian singers 21st-century Indian singers 20th-century Indian male singers 21st-century Indian male singers Male actors in Malayalam cinema Recipients of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award