Ill-health keeps Lata away from 85th birthday celebration

Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar, who turned 85 Sunday, skipped her birthday celebrations as she was not well.

She was connected live on a telephone where she apologized for not making it to the event due to her ill-health.

Lata said she was feeling sorry for cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar who had come all the way to felicitate her.

Since Lata couldn't make it to the event, her sister Usha Mangeshkar was felicitated on her behalf instead.

Tendulkar had agreed to be the chief guest at the event, which was organized by music events organization Hridayesh Arts at the Shanmukhananda Auditorium, King's Circle here.

The occasion was momentous as Hridaynath Mangeshkar, younger brother of Lata, has also has completed 60 years of his music career.

Starting her career in 1943 at the age of 13 with the song "Mata ek sapoot ki duniya badal de tu" for Marathi film "Gajaabhaau", Lata, who is called the Nightingale of India, went on to record songs for more than 1,000 films in 36 languages.

She has sung classical to romantic numbers to ghazals to bhajans, thus maintaining a variety in her discography, which has evergreen lilting melodies like "Aaja re pardesi", "Kahi deep jale kahi dil", "Beeti na bitaai raina", "Tere bina zindagi se", "Naino mein badra", "Chalte chalte" and "Yaara sili silli".