A voice that was matchless. A voice that had a mesmerizing intonation. The voice that took generations of musical lovers into her captivating fold. The musical aura that she created was truly legendary. She was S. Janaki. Her passing away undoubtedly marked the sunset of the most glorious era in South Indian music. Such was the power of her versatile voice. Rendering more than 40 thousand songs in different languages in almost all Indian languages speaks of her insurmountable versatility. Her voice had that mesmerizing tinge that took the tinsel world into an ecstatic mood. Her pristine vocals served many moods and each song of hers stood as a testimony to her ease of rendition. Who can forget her marvellous renditions in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Hindi. There was nothing that she could not sing. Really it was a feast to the listeners when they listened to her songs. She transcended languages and generations. It is really a god’s gift to sing as a child and as a bride and a grandmother in a single song. It was possible for a singer who is really legendary. Her pitch- perfect tonality is enduring influence enthralled one and all. It is a fact her singing style deeply resonated with the audience leaving a deep impact. She convinced the audience no matter the genre she sang. In a sense hers was a musical voice and Illayaraja made use of it in a way that enthralled one and all. Love, romance, pathos..her voice for every mood. The way she sways her voice is very artistic and it speaks of her incredible range. That is the reason she could flawlessly handle complex and demanding compositions in her career that saw her into singing such songs which her contemporaries dared not. Janaki’s passing away at the end of a peerless singer is also a void that can never be filled.
–B Rajeswara prasad (Courtesy – Sunday Pioneer)
July 13, 2026
