CHANDIGARH, January 18: Strains of memorable tunes filled the air, lending a nostalgic touch to the function organised to observe the 51st death of anniversary of K.L.Saigal, a singer who is an eternal part of cinema.Organised by the Environment Society of India, the function paid rich tributes to the singer whose position in the world of music is secure for generations to come. The society also urged the Central Government to confer the ``Bharat Ratna'' award posthumously to K.L. Saigal, popularly known as ``Tansen of 20 Century''. A decision was also taken to honour Radio Srilanka which has been relaying the immortal singer's songs daily for more than four decades.
Saigal, who died on January 18, 1947, at the age of 42, left an indelible mark on the film industry by setting a new trend in his inimitable style. He sang in Hindi, Urdu, Persian, Punjabi, Bengali and Tamil with equal ease and was garlanded by Rabindra Nath Tagore at Shanti Niketan for his par excellence in Bengali songs. In a function at
Aroma Hotel, contests in songs, bhajans and ghazals sung by Saigal, were held. Unforgettable numbers like ``Gum diye mustakil'', ``Nuktacheen hai gam-e-dil'', ``Diya jaalao'' and ``Kya maine kiya hai'' were sung by singers a la Saigal. Although Saigal's style is inimitable but the old hits managed to conjure up the magic of old Hindi cinema.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
