S. Janaki

On 11th July 2026, legendary playback singer S. Janaki, popularly known as the "Nightingale of South India," passed away at the age of 88.

She was one of India's most celebrated playback singers, with a career spanning over six decades (1957-2017).
S. Janaki recorded more than 48,000 songs in nearly 20 Indian languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi, Odia, Bengali, Tulu, Punjabi, and Urdu.
She made her playback singing debut in 1957 with the Tamil film Vidhiyin Vilayattu and also began singing for Malayalam cinema the same year.
She became one of the most influential playback singers in South Indian cinema, particularly dominating Malayalam film music from the 1970s onwards.