Mahendra Kapoor (9 January 1934 – 27 September 2008) was an Indian

playback singer A playback singer, as they are usually known in South Asian cinema, or ghost singer in Western cinema, is a singer whose performance is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and the performers lip-sync the ...

. In a long career spanning decades, his repertoire included popular songs such as ''Chalo ekbaar phir se Ajnabi ban jayen hum dono'' ( Gumrah) and ''Neele Gagan ke tale'' (

Hamraaz ''Hamraaz'' () is a 1967 Indian Bollywood suspense thriller film, produced and directed by B. R. Chopra and written by Akhtar-Ul-Iman. It stars Raaj Kumar, Sunil Dutt, Vimi, Mumtaz in lead roles, with Balraj Sahni, Madan Puri, Jeevan, I ...

). His name however became most closely associated with patriotic songs including Mere Desh Ki Dharti in Manoj Kumar's film Upkaar. He considered

Mohammad Rafi Mohammed Rafi (24 December 1924 – 31 July 1980) was an Indian playback singer. He is considered to have been one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. Rafi was notable for his versatility and range of voice ...

as his Guru. In 1972, he was awarded the

Padma Shri The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

. He lent his voice to actors

Manoj Kumar Manoj Kumar (born Harikrishan Giri Goswami; 24 July 1937 – 4 April 2025) was an Indian actor, film director, screenwriter, lyricist and editor who worked in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most successful actors in t ...

and

Sunil Dutt Sunil Dutt (born Balraj Raghunath Dutt; 6 June 1929 – 25 May 2005) was an Indian actor, film producer, director, and politician known for his work in Hindi Cinema. He acted in more than 80 films over a career spanning five decades and was t ...

in most of their films and had a lengthy association with director-producer

Baldev Raj Chopra Baldev Raj Chopra (22 April 1914 – 5 November 2008) was a prolific Indian director and producer noted for pioneering the Hindi film industry and television series. He's known for directing notable films, such as ''Afsana (1951 film), Afsana'' ...

Biography

Mahendra Kapoor was born in

Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...

, but soon moved to

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

. At an early age, he was inspired by legendary singer

Mohammed Rafi Mohammed Rafi (24 December 1924 – 31 July 1980) was an Indian playback singer. He is considered to have been one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. Rafi was notable for his versatility and range of voice ...

and considered him his mentor. He started learning classical music under classical singers like Pt. Hussanlal, Pt. Jagannath Bua, Ustad Niaz Ahmed Khan, Ustad Abdul Rehman Khan and Pt.Tulsidaas Sharma. Kapoor created a style of his own moulded largely on Rafi and won the Metro Murphy All-India singing competition, which led to his debut as a playback singer in V. Shantaram's Navrang in 1958, singing ''Aadha Hai Chandrama Raat Aadhi'', under the musical direction of C. Ramchandra.
Mere desh ki dharti' will always be with us Some of Kapoor's most notable songs were the ones he performed in B.R. Chopra's films (

Dhool Ka Phool ''Dhool Ka Phool'' () is a 1959 Indian Hindi-language film produced by B. R. Chopra and directed by B. R.'s brother Yash Chopra, being his first movie as a director, having been an assistant director in B. R.'s earlier film '' Naya Daur''. Th ...

, Gumrah, Waqt,

, Dhund,

Nikaah In Islamic law, marriage is accomplished through the marriage contract, known as a () or more specifically, the bride's acceptance of the groom's dowry (''mahr'') and the witnessing of her acceptance. The contract has rights and obligatio ...

and

Awam (film) ''Awam'' () is a 1987 Indian Hindi-language action drama film directed and produced by B. R. Chopra. The film stars Ashok Kumar, Rajesh Khanna, Raj Babbar, Smita Patil, Poonam Dhillon, Nana Patekar, Shafi Inamdar in pivotal roles. Plot Ca ...

and TV series

Mahabharat The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kurukshetra War, a war of succes ...

); and for

( Upkaar,

Purab Aur Paschim () is a 1970 Indian Hindi-language drama film. The movie was produced and directed by Manoj Kumar, and it stars Manoj Kumar, Saira Banu, Ashok Kumar, Pran and Prem Chopra in the lead roles. The music is by Kalyanji Anandji. The 2007 film '' ...

). Kapoor had a very large vocal range, and he is sometimes known as ''The Vibrant Voice of India''. He was the first Indian playback singer to record music in English. He was asked by the group

Boney M Boney M. is a German reggae, funk and disco music group founded in 1974. It achieved popularity during the disco era in the second half of the 1970s. The band was created by German record producer Frank Farian, who was the group's primary song ...

to sing their songs in Hindi with Musarat from Pakistan, which resulted in the Pop Album ''M-3''. Some of the songs on the album are ''Chori Chori Chalo!!'' (Original, Hoorray! Hoorray! by

), ''O Meri Champe Ki Daali''. Most of the hit songs sung by Mahendra Kapoor which are famous, are from B. R. Chopra movies or Manoj Kumar's movies. His song from ''Bandhan'', ''Shakti'', ''Doli'', ''Ek Nazar'', ''Admi Aur Insaan'', ''Sangam'' and ''Tawaif'' are also quite popular. Mahendra Kapoor also sang a duet with

. The song was ''Kaisi Haseen Aaj Baharon Ki Raat'' from the 1967 film Aadmi, which was originally recorded as a duet with Rafi and Talat Mehmood.

, one of the lead stars refused to use Talat's voice for him and the song was re-recorded with Kapoor replacing Talat. Kapoor sung in a large number of Indian languages and is the playback singer who has performed in the largest number of in Gujarati,

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...

Bhojpuri Bhojpuri may refer to: * Bhojpuri language, an Indo-Aryan language of India and Nepal * Bhojpuri grammar, grammatical rules of the language * Bhojpuri nouns, nouns of the language * Bhojpuri people, people who speak the language * Bhojpuri region ...

and

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India **Marathi people (Uttar Pradesh), the Marathi people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Mar ...

movies. In Marathi, he was very popular for being the voice of

Dada Kondke Krishna "Dada" Kondke (Marathi pronunciation: ̪aːd̪a koːɳɖke 8 August 1932 – 14 March 1998) was an Indian actor and film producer. He was one of the most renowned personalities in Marathi film industry, famous for his double entendre ...

in all his movies. In spite of being associated with Dada Kondke's colloquial style his singing for Marathi movies was not limited to Dada Kondke's movies only. Kapoor was married and had three daughters and one son. His son Rohan Kapoor is an actor and singer, who acted in a few films in the 1980s such as

Yash Chopra Yash Raj Chopra (27 September 1932 21 October 2012) was an Indian film director and film producer who worked in Bollywood, Hindi cinema. The founding chairman of the film production and distribution company Yash Raj Films, Chopra was the reci ...

's Faasle (1985) and

Love 86 Love 86 (Hindi: लव Urdu: ) is a 1986 Bollywood romantic drama film directed by Esmayeel Shroff, starring Govinda, Neelam, Farha Naaz, Rohan Kapoor, and Tanuja. It was a remake of the 1982 Tamil film '' Ilanjodigal''. This was Govinda's D ...

(1986), and Prakash Mehra's ''Imandaar'', and later did stage shows together with his father. On September 27, 2008, Kapoor died following a

cardiac failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF typically pre ...

at his home in Mumbai, aged 74. He was survived by his wife, children, children-in-law and grandchildren. Mahendra Kapoor is one of the golden era singers. He remained as one of the most popular singers in Bollywood who has given his voice to almost all of the popular heroes and leading well known actors. For Punjabi movies, he has given his voice to Varendra, Mehar Mittal, Prem Nath and many more.

Notable songs

Hindi

*''Unhe Dekhen Toh'' – Madmast (1953) Mahendra Kapoor sang debut movie song with Pandit Shiv Dayal Batish known as S.D Batish *''Kisi Ke Zulm Ki'' – Madmast (1953 ) Mahendra Kapoor sang with Dhan Indorewala *"Tere Pyaar Ka Aasra" –

(195

*"Aadha Hai Chandramaa Raat Aadhi" - Navrang (1959) *"Aap Aaye Tho Khayal" - Gumrah (1963) *"Chalo Ek Baar" – Gumrah (1963) *"Chhod Kar Tere Pyar" -

Woh Kaun Thi ''Woh Kaun Thi?'' () is a 1964 Indian Hindi-language mystery thriller film directed by Raj Khosla, starring Sadhana, Manoj Kumar and Prem Chopra. Though the screenplay was written by Dhruva Chatterjee, parts were later rewritten, wherein Manoj ...

(1964) *"Har Dil Jo Pyaar Karega" - Sangam (1964) (trio with

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar (; born Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. He ...

and

Mukesh Mukesh is an epithet for the Hindu god Shiva, and literally means "conqueror of the Muka demon". It is commonly used as a male given name in India. People with the name Mukesh include: * Mukesh (singer) (1923–1976), Indian playback singer from ...

) *"Mera Pyar Woh Hai" – Yeh Raat Phir Na Aayegi (1965) *"Badal Jaaye Agar Maali" – Baharen Phir Bhi Aayengi (1966) *"Ye kali jab talak phool banke khile" –

Aaye Din Bahar Ke ''Aaye Din Bahar Ke'' () is a 1966 Indian Hindi-language film produced by J. Om Prakash. The film stars Dharmendra, Asha Parekh, Sulochana Devi, Balraj Sahni, Nazima and Rajindernath. It became a box office hit and stood 7th in Indian box o ...

(1966) *"Kisi Pathar Ki Moorat Se" –

(1967) *"Na Muh Chupa Ke Jiyo" –

(1967) *"Neele Gagan Ke Tale" –

(1967) *"Tum Agar Saath Dene Ka Wada Karo" –

(1967) *"Tu Husn Hai Main Tujmein" –

(1967) *"Mere Desh Ki Dharti" –

Upkar ''Upkar'' () is a 1967 Indian Hindi film directed by Manoj Kumar. Set in the backdrop of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, ''Upkar'' celebrates village life and the contributions of farmers and soldiers to India. The film was inspired by Indian pr ...

(1967) *"Lakhon Hain Yahan Dilwale" – Kismat (1968) *"Jiske sapne humen roz aate rahe" – Geet (1970) *"Iktara Bole" – Yaadgar (1970) *"Bharat Ka Rahnewala Hoon" –

(1970) *"Hey Ramchander keh gaye Siya se"-

Gopi Gopi (, ) or Gopika in Hinduism are commonly referred to the group of milkmaids of Braj. They are regarded as the consorts and devotees of Krishna and are venerated for their unconditional love and devotion (''Bhakti'') to him as described i ...

(1970) * "Sansar ki har shae" - Dhund (1973) *"Aur Nahin Bas Aur Nahin" –

Roti Kapada Aur Makaan ''Roti Kapada Aur Makaan'' (; occasionally written as ''Roti Kapda Aur Makaan'') is a 1974 Indian Hindi-language action drama film written, directed, and produced by Manoj Kumar, who also plays the leading role in the film. The title of the movi ...

(1974) *"Fakira Chal Chala Chal" –

Fakira ''Fakira'' is a 1976 Indian Hindi-language crime action film produced by N.N. Sippy and directed by C.P. Dixit. The film stars Shashi Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Asrani, Aruna Irani, Danny Denzongpa, Asit Sen, Ramesh Deo and Madan Puri. The mus ...

(1976) *"Ab Ke Baras" –

Kranti ''Kranti'' () is a 1981 Indian historical drama film, produced, edited, dialogue and directed by Manoj Kumar, with the story and screenplay written by Salim–Javed. It stars an ensemble cast, consisting of Dilip Kumar in the title role along ...

(1981) *"Andhere Mein Jo Baite" - Sambandh (1982) *"Beete Hue Lamhon Ki Kasak Saath" –

(1982) *"Chehra Chupaliya Hai Kisi -

(1982) *"Dil Ki Yeh Arzoo Te Koi -

(1982) *"Mangi Thi Ek Duajo -

Shakti Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; 'energy, ability, strength, effort, power, might, capability') in Hinduism, is the "Universal Power" that underlies and sustains all existence. Conceived as feminine in essence, Shakti refer ...

(1982) *"KAB TALAK SHAMA JALI" – Painter Babu (1983) *"JAB YAAD KI BADLI CHAHTI HAI" – Painter Babu (1983) *"Dil Hi Dil Mein Le Liya" - Aaj Ki Awaaz (1984) *"Tere Pyar Ki Tamanna" -

Tawaif A ''tawaif'' () was a highly successful courtesan singer‚ dancer‚ and poet who catered to the nobility of the Indian subcontinent, particularly during the Mughal era. Many tawaifs (" nautch girls" to the British) were forced to go into pro ...

(1984) *"De Daru De Daru" -

Karma Karma (, from , ; ) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called ...

(1986) *"Dekh Tamasha Lakdi ka" - Insaaf Ki Manzil (1988) * Title Song of

(1988)

Marathi

* Var dhagala lagli khala pani themb themb gala वरं ढगाला लागली कळं....पाणी थेंब थेंब गळं.... * Ti Yete Aneeka Jate..Yetana kadhi kalya aneete ती येते आणिक जाते,येतांना कधि कळ्या आणिते, * He Chincheche zad dise maj chinar vrukshapari हे चिंचेचे झाड दिसे मज चिनार वृक्षापरी * Ratris khel chale ya gudh chandanyacha, sampel na kadhihi ha khel savalyancha रात्रीस खेळ चाले या गूढ चांदण्याचा संपेल ना कधीही हा खेळ सावल्यांचा * Abol Zalis ka saajani.. अबोल झालीस का साजणी * Saang kadhi kalanar tula.. सांग कधी कळणार तुला * Sur tech chhedita.. सूर तेच छेडीता, गीत उमटले नवे * Madhu ithe ana chandra tithe.. मधू इथे अन् चंद्र तिथे झुरतो अंधारात * Swapnaat pahile je te roop hech hote.. स्वप्‍नात पाहिले जे ते रूप हेच होते * Nako menaka nako urvashi ... * Anjanichya suta tula Ramacha Vardaan

Gujarati

*"Dhuni Re Dhakhavi Beli Ame Tara Namni ધૂણી રે ધખાવી બેલી અમે તારા નામની" -

Jesal Toral ''Jesal Toral'' is a 1971 Indian Gujarati devotional film written and directed by Ravindra Dave. It proved to be one of the biggest hits of Gujarati cinema and ran for 25 weeks in theatres. Cast The cast is as follows: * Anupama as Toral * Up ...

(1971) *"Pela Pela Jug Ma raani" - "પેલા પેલા જુગ માં રાણી તું હતી પોપટી ને" *" Bhiksha De Ne Maiya Pingda" - "ભિક્ષા દે ને મૈયા પિંગળા"

Bhojpuri

* "Ishq Karaye O Jiski Jeb Me" - Bidesiya (1963) * "Hansi Hansi Panda Khiwanle" - Bidesiya (1963) * "Doliya Utha Ke" -

Bhaiya Dooj Bhaiya Dooj is an Indian Bhojpuri-language film released in 1984. The film stars Rakesh Pandey and Padma Khanna in the lead roles. Cast * Rakesh Pandey as Mohan * Padma Khanna * Sujit Kumar Sujit Kumar (7 February 1934 – 5 Febr ...

(1984)

Other languages

* "Saagarakanyaka" - '' Priya''

Awards

* 1972 –

National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer The National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to a male playback singer for the best renditions of songs from films within the Indian film industry. The awar ...

** 1968 Won – "Mere Desh Ki Dharti" –

Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer The Filmfare Best Male Playback Singer Award is given by Indian film magazine '' Filmfare'' as a part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a male playback singer who has delivered an outstanding performance in a film so ...

** 1964 Won – "Chalo Ek Bar" – Gumrah ** 1968 Won – "Neele Gagan Ke Tale" –

** 1968 ''Nominated'' – "Mere Desh Ki Dharti" –

** 1975 Won – "Aur Nahi Bus Aur Nahi" –

Roti Kapda Aur Makaan ''Roti Kapada Aur Makaan'' (; occasionally written as ''Roti Kapda Aur Makaan'') is a 1974 Indian Hindi-language action drama film written, directed, and produced by Manoj Kumar, who also plays the leading role in the film. The title of the mov ...

** 1977 ''Nominated'' – "Sunke Teri Pukar" –

Maharashtra State Film Award Maharashtra State Film Awards, one of the prestigious awards of Marathi cinema, are awarded by the Government of Maharashtra to Marathi language films and artists. They were first awarded in 1963. The Maharashtra State Film Awards are adjudicat ...

** Maharashtra State Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer For Song Saang Kadhi Kalnar Tula ** Maharashtra State Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer For Song Anjanichya Suta.

Others

** 1967 Won – "Mian Tansen Award" – Sati Nari – Tum Nacho Ras Barse ** 2000 Won – "Bollywood Music Awards- New York" – Life Time Achievement Award ** 2002 Won – "Lata Mangeshkar Puruskar" – Madhya Pradesh State Award ** 2008 Won – "Maharashtra State Award" – Life Time Achievement

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kapoor, Mahendra 1934 births 2008 deaths Indian male playback singers Bollywood playback singers Musicians from Amritsar Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts 20th-century Indian singers Singers from Punjab, India Best Male Playback Singer National Film Award winners Filmfare Awards winners 20th-century Indian male singers