"How clueless are these executives?"
The 64th Annual Grammy Awards omitted 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.
Lata Mangeshkar, lovingly known as the ‘Nightingale of India’, passed away on January 6, 2022, due to multiple organ failure aged 92.
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.”
A fan said he feels sad that “Lata Mangeshkar wasn’t mentioned once”.
Another shared: “First the Oscars, now no mention of #LataMangeshkar in the In Memoriam of the Grammys either.
“How clueless are these executives? Lata was a bigger star than everyone on that Grammy stage tonight.”
Lata 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 singer for their films.
The likes of Amitabh Bachchan, Anupam Kher, Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Shraddha Kapoor visited Lata Mangeshkar’s house to pay their respects upon her death.
The government had announced two days of national mourning.
From February 6 to February 7, 2022, the national flag was flown at half-mast.
Government events were also suspended until the mourning period had come to an end.
It was announced that the singer would be given a state funeral.
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