Legendary playback singer S Janaki has passed away. Filmfare’s Editor-in-Chief Jitesh Pillaai pays a special tribute to the iconic singer, reflecting on her timeless songs and recalling how deeply they shaped generations of listeners. In his words:
S Janaki is no more. My first waking memory as a child was her voice wafting into the room. Out of the Malayalam long-playing and EP records. The advantage of having a musically inclined mother is that songs stick to you. You can never erase them. And amma would only sing her songs. So, S Janaki’s voice reminds me of the innocence of childhood. Especially her Malayalam songs.
I remember her as a proficient singer in all four languages, but her Malayalam songs are closest to my heart. And despite being a non-Malayalee, her accent and intonations were pitch-perfect. Something that her other non-Malayalee contemporaries could never grasp.
For me, Janakiamma’s Sooryakanthi is as dear as Anjanakannezuthi. When she sings Avidunnen Gaanam, Innale Nee Oru or Vasantha Panchami Naalil, Aa Nimishatinde Nirvithi.
Every song has stayed with me, be it Mazhavilkodi or Manjani Poonilave. For me, Janakiamma encapsulates a whole wide range of emotions from love to desolation, from yearning to heartbreak. In her voice was a thousand wishes fulfilled. In her voice was the joy of womanhood. In her voice was the magic of youth. In her voice was love lost and rediscovered. Be it with music directors like Baburaj, Devarajan or Bichu Tirumala and Johnson Master.
S Janaki was the sweet song of innocence, of an unblemished life and a thousand more new journeys. In Sandhyekaneerilende, a girl child became a woman. In Manjanikumbil, a woman became a mother. In Janakiamma was a woman’s life completed.
Be it Tamil, Telugu, Kannada or Hindi, Janakiamma sang in over eighteen Indian languages with aplomb. Thank you for bringing back my childhood every single time. And long forgotten memories of my own mother crooning… Taleerittakinaavu. Rest in peace, Janaki amma. May the angels always keep you.
Also Read: S Janaki Passed Away At 88: The Voice That Became The Soul Of Indian Cinema
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