Krishnan Nair Shantakumari Chithra (born 27 July 1963), always credited as K. S. Chithra or Chithra, is an Indian

playback singer A playback singer, also known as a ghost singer, is a singer whose singing is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras; the actual singer does not app ...

and Carnatic musician. In a career spanning over four decades, she has recorded over 25,000 songs in various Indian languages, as well as

foreign languages A foreign language is a language that is not an official language of, nor typically spoken in, a given country, and that native speakers from that country must usually acquire through conscious learning - be this through language lessons at school ...

such as Malay, Latin, Arabic, Sinhalese, English and French. She is also known for her extensive history of collaboration with music composers like

A. R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...

Ilaiyaraja Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one of ...

Hamsalekha Gangaraju (born June 23, 1951), professionally known as Hamsalekha, is an Indian film composer and a songwriter who works in South Indian cinema, predominantly in the Kannada film industry since the late 1980s. He is also a screenplay writer, di ...

M. M. Keeravani Koduri Marakathamani Keeravani (born 4 July 1961; credited as M. M. Keeravani) is an Indian film composer, playback singer, and lyricist, who predominantly works in Telugu cinema along with other languages including Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Ma ...

and with the playback singers K. J. Yesudas and

S. P. Balasubrahmanyam Sripathi Panditaradhyula Balasubrahmanyam (4 June 1946 – 25 September 2020), also referred to as SPB or SP Balu or Balu, was an Indian playback singer, television presenter, actor, music composer, dubbing artist, and film producer. He is wi ...

over the years. She is regarded as a cultural icon of South Indian states. Chithra is a recipient of six

National Film Awards The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...

, nine

Filmfare Awards South Filmfare Awards South is the South Indian segment of the annual Filmfare Awards, presented by the Filmfare magazine of The Times Group to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Indian film industry encompassing ...

and 36 different state film awards from six

states of India State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

such as 16

Kerala State Film Awards The Kerala State Film Awards are the film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala. The awards started in 1969 by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala and since 1998 the awards have been bestowed by Kerala State Cha ...

, 11 Andhra Pradesh State Film Awards, 4

Tamil Nadu State Film Awards Tamil Nadu State Film Awards were given for excellence in Tamil cinema in India. They were given annually to honour the best talents and provide encouragement and incentive to the South Indian film industry by the Government of Tamil Nadu. The aw ...

, 3

Karnataka State Film Awards Karnataka State Film Awards are the most notable and prestigious film awards given for Kannada film industry in Karnataka, India. These are considered the highest awards for Kannada language films. They are given annually by the Government ...

, 1

Orissa State Film Awards The Odisha State Film Awards have been conferred by the Department of Culture of the Government of Odisha, India. The awards were initiated in 1968. The awards are decided by independent juries formed by the Department of Culture. The jury ...

, 1 West Bengal State Film Awards. She was awarded India's third-highest civilian honours

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

in 2021 and

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

in 2005 for her valuable contributions towards the Indian musical fraternity. She is the first Indian woman to be honoured by

British Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremacy ...

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. She was honoured with the

Rashtrapati Award Rashtrapati Awards used to be given by the President of India, in some cases the Prime Minister of India, for achievements in the field of sports, art, military, literature, cinema, culture, science and technology, or Scouting. The award-giving ...

for “First Ladies” in the field of music felicitated by the Ministry of Women and Child Development at the

Rashtrapati Bhavan The Rashtrapati Bhavan (, rāsh-truh-puh-ti bha-vun; ; originally Viceroy's House and later Government House) is the official residence of the President of India at the western end of Rajpath, Raisina Hill, New Delhi, India. Rashtrapati Bh ...

on 20 January 2018.

Early life

Chithra received her training in

Carnatic music Carnatic music, known as or in the Dravidian languages, South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, an ...

from

K. Omanakutty Kamalakshi Omanakutty is an academician, music teacher and carnatic vocalist noted for her research and publications in the field of music. Her research on Kathakali music led to her doctorate in this field. She currently serves as professor a ...

, passed B.A. in music with first class and third rank from the

University of Kerala University of Kerala, formerly the University of Travancore, is a state-run public university located in Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital of Kerala, India. It was established in 1937 by a promulgation of the Maharajah of Travancore, Chit ...

, and completed a master's degree in music. She was selected to the National Talent Search Scholarship from the Central Government from 1978 to 1984.

Playback singing

Malayalam cinema

K. S. Chithra was introduced to

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

playback by M. G. Radhakrishnan in 1979 who recorded her voice for films and private albums. ''Attahasam'', ''Snehapoorvam Meera'' and ''

Njan Ekananu ''Njan Ekananu'' is a 1982 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by P. Chandrakumar and produced by Madhu. The film stars Madhu, R. Dilip, Poornima Jayaram and Sukumari in the lead roles. The film has musical score by M. G. Radhakrishnan. C ...

'' were the first few films in which she recorded her voice. She also performed live concerts with K. J. Yesudas in India and abroad. The song "Manjal Prasadavum" from the film ''

Nakhakshathangal ''Nakhakshathangal'' () is a 1986 Indian Malayalam-language film directed by Hariharan, written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair and starring Monisha, Vineeth and Saleema. Monisha, won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her role, making her th ...

'' (1986) composed by

Bombay Ravi Ravi Shankar Sharma (3 March 1926 – 7 March 2012), often referred to mononymously as Ravi, was an Indian music director, who had composed music for several Hindi and Malayalam films. After a successful career in Hindi cinema, he took a brea ...

got her the second

National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer The National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to a female playback singer for the best renditions of songs from soundtracks within the Indian film industry ...

. For the same composer, she sang the song "Indupushpam Choodi Nilkum" for the film '' Vaishali'' (1989) and won her third National Film Award. Her first

Kerala State Film Award for Best Singer The Kerala State Film Award for Best Singer is an honour, established in 1969, and presented annually at the Kerala State Film Awards of India for best female and male playback singer in Malayalam cinema. The first recipients of the award were P. ...

was for the song "Aayiram Kannumayi" from the film ''

Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu ''Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu'' () is a 1984 Indian Malayalam-language drama film written and directed by Fazil, and starring Mohanlal, Nadhiya, Padmini. The film features original songs composed by Jerry Amaldev and background score by Jo ...

'' (1986) composed by

Jerry Amaldev Jerome Thomas Veleeparambil, more popularly known by his stage name Jerry Amaldev (born 15 April 1939) is a three-time Kerala State Film Awards winning Indian composer of film scores who has given music to some of the most important motion pic ...

. Since then, she has earned wide recognition by singing popular songs under the compositions of

Raveendran Madhavan Raveendran ( ml, മാധവൻ രവീന്ദ്രൻ ), (born Kulathupuzha, Kollam, 9 November 1943 – died Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 3 March 2005), fondly known as ''Raveendran Master'', was a popular South Indian music composer an ...

Shyam Shyam is a name of Krishna and an Indian masculine given name and surname. Notable people with this name include: ;Shyam *Shyam (actor), Indian Hindi film actor *Shyam (composer), an Indian music composer from Kerala * Shyam Benegal, Indian film di ...

S. P. Venkitesh S. P. Venkatesh (also credited as Sangeetharajan; born 5 March 1955) is an Indian music director and composer who primarily works in Malayalam films. He was at his prime in the late 80s and 90s, being reputed for his background scores and song ...

Mohan Sithara Mohan Sithara is an Indian music composer. He received the Kerala State Film Award for the Best Music Director (2009) for the songs in Priyanandan's ''Soofi Paranja Kadha''. Since 1986 he has been an active musician in the Malayalam film industr ...

,Salil Chowdary,

Kannur Rajan Kannur Rajan (24 June 1940 – 7 April 1995) was a music composer from Kerala, India. Though his songs are less in numbers, they are noted as emotional and nostalgic in the Malayalam film songs. He was the father-in-law of currently famous mu ...

Ilaiyaraaja Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one of ...

Johnson Johnson is a surname of Anglo-Norman origin meaning "Son of John". It is the second most common in the United States and 154th most common in the world. As a common family name in Scotland, Johnson is occasionally a variation of ''Johnston'', a ...

Ouseppachan Mechery Louis Ouseppachan (born 13 September 1955), known mononymously as Ouseppachan, is an Indian film composer and singer who primarily works in Malayalam films. He is a recipient of National Film Award, Filmfare Award and Kerala State Film ...

M. K. Arjunan M. K. Arjunan ( ml, എം.കെ. അർജുനൻ; 1 March 1936 – 6 April 2020) was an Indian film and theatre composer, known for his works in Cinema of Kerala, Malayalam cinema and the theatre of Kerala. He was fondly referred to as ''Ar ...

A. T. Ummer Anjukandy Thalakkal Ummer ( ml, അഞ്ചുകണ്ടി തളയ്ക്കൽ ഉമ്മർ) (10 March 1933 – 18 October 2001) was a Malayalam music composer from Kerala, India. He is known for composing many soft melodies for 174 ...

Berny Ignatius Berny is a given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Bernard. It may refer to: * Bernardina Berny Boxem-Lenferink (born 1948), Dutch retired middle-distance runner * Berny Burke (born 1996), Costa Rican footballer * Bernabé Berny Peña (bo ...

M. B. Sreenivasan Manamadurai Balakrishnan Sreenivasan (19 September 1925 – 9 March 1988), or MBS, was a South Indian music director who worked mainly in the Malayalam and Tamil film industries. He was born to an orthodox Tamil Brahmin family on 19 Septe ...

, Vidyasagar,

Ramesh Narayan Ramesh Narayan (born 3 November 1959) is an Indian classical vocalist, composer and music producer who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema. He belongs to the Mewati gharana of Hindustani classical music. Narayan began his initial traini ...

Sharreth Sujith Vasudevan I (born 3 October 1969), professionally credited as Sharreth, is an Indian music director and singer. He predominantly composes film scores and songs for Malayalam films, but has gone on to compose for Tamil, Telugu and Hindi fil ...

M. Jayachandran Madhusoodanan Jayachandran is an Indian composer, singer, and musician. He has won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Music Director for a record number of nine times. In 2005, he also won the state award for best male singer. In 2015, he wo ...

and Deepak dev. She is regarded as "Nightingale of Kerala (Vanambadi)" and recorded many successful songs in Malayalam. She recorded a number of songs for the composer

and her maximum duet songs in Malayalam are with K. J. Yesudas and

M. G. Sreekumar Malabar Gopalan Sreekumar (born 25 May 1957), better known as M.G. Sreekumar is an Indian playback singer, composer, music producer, television presenter and film producer, who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema. He has sung more than 2000 ...

. As of 2017, she has won the Kerala State Awards for the record 16 times. Her latest song "Theerame" from the movie Malik 2021 became another awesome hit in Malayalam Music Industry .

Telugu cinema

Chithra's first Telugu song was "Paadalenu Pallavaina" from the dubbed version of Tamil film ''Sindhu Bhairavi'' (1985) composed by Ilaiyaraaja. Her first song in a Telugu film is "Abba Daanisoku" from ''

Aakhari Poratam ''Aakhari Poratam'' () is a 1988 Indian Telugu-language action film produced by C. Ashwini Dutt under the Vyjayanthi Movies banner and directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. It stars Nagarjuna, Sridevi with music composed by Ilaiyaraaja. Based on the ...

'' (1988), sung alongside S. P. Balasubrahmanyam. She gained recognition for "Jallanta Kavvinta" from ''Geethanjali'' (1989) and then went onto sing several songs. Chithra received her first

Nandi Award The Nandi Awards are the awards that recognise the excellence in Telugu cinema, Telugu theatre and Telugu television, and Lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. Presented annually by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, the award is named after ...

, presented by

Government of Andhra Pradesh Government of Andhra Pradesh, abbreviated as, GOAP, or, Andhra Government, is the Subnational administrative division, subnational government for the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is an elected government with 175 Member of the Legislative ...

for "Kalika Chilakala Koliki" from ''

Seetharamayya Gari Manavaralu ''Seetharamayya Gari Manavaralu'' ( Seetharamayya's granddaughter) is a 1991 Indian Telugu-language drama film directed by Kranthi Kumar, and produced by V. Doraswamy Raju under the VMC Productions banner. The film stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao ...

'' (1991). She won a total of 11 Nandi Awards as Best Female Playback Singer for various Telugu songs.

Hindi cinema

Chithra was introduced to Hindi film music in 1985; she recorded her first Hindi song composed by

, which was not commercially released. For the 1991 Hindi film ''

Love Love encompasses a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most sublime virtue or good habit, the deepest Interpersonal relationship, interpersonal affection, to the simplest pleasure. An example of this range of ...

'', composers

Anand–Milind Anand and Milind Srivastava are a duo of Indian film music composers. Born to composer Chitragupt, they have composed music for over 200 Bollywood films. The brothers debuted in 1984 with '' Ab Ayega Mazaa'' and had their major breakthrough with ...

, called upon her to sing duets song along with

and since then, Chithra has recorded for around 200 Bollywood songs. Apart from film songs, Chithra recorded for many private albums of which ''

Piya Basanti ''Piya Basanti'' is a Hindi album released on 28 November 2000. Sultan Khan and K. S. Chithra are the singers and Kishan Rajbhatt and Sandesh Shandilya are the composers. The album went on to become a huge success, winning an International Vie ...

'' and ''Sunset Point'' became hugely popular and went on to win several laurels including the MTV Music Video Awards. The popularity of the former album made her known among the Northern part of Indians identify her as "Piya Basanti" Chitra.

Other Indian languages

Performances

Work and association with music directors

Chithra has sung over 25,000 songs.

Concerts

Apart from playback singing, she also appeared among the panel of judges in the singing

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

shows at

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

(''

Idea Star Singer ''Star Singer'' is an Indian music reality-television competition, broadcast on Asianet and previously sponsored by Idea Cellular. The show, which selected contestants in the age group of 15–35 years determined the winner based on their ski ...

'' and ''Josco Indian Voice''), at

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

(''

Airtel Super Singer Junior Bharti Airtel Limited, commonly known as (d/b/a) Airtel, is an Indian multinational telecommunications services company based in New Delhi. It operates in 18 countries across South Asia and Africa, as well as the Channel Islands. Currently, ...

''), where she also won the award for Best Female Judge and at

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

(

MAA TV Star Maa (formerly Maa TV) is an Indian Telugu language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Disney Star, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company India. The channel telecasts Telugu language programmes such as serials, Reality ...

) ''Super Singer''. Apart from this judgement panel she has appeared in music-shows like Swarabhishekam, Super Masti, Jhumandi Nadam. She is a regular singer in

Ilayaraja Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one of ...

's,

A.R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...

's and

S.P. Balasubrahmanyam Sripathi Panditaradhyula Balasubrahmanyam (4 June 1946 – 25 September 2020), also referred to as SPB or SP Balu or Balu, was an Indian playback singer, television presenter, actor, music composer, dubbing artist, and film producer. He is wid ...

's concerts. She has performed all over the world in SPB's concerts along with S. P. Sailaja,

S. P. Charan Sripathi Panditharadhyula Charan is an Indian film playback singer, actor, producer and director known for his works in Tamil cinema and Telugu cinema. He is the son of legendary singer S. P. Balasubrahmanyam. He first worked as a playback sin ...

. She has been a regular singer participating in all the concerts of SPB50-The World Tour, she has performed almost all around the world with

S. P. B. Charan Sripathi Panditharadhyula Charan is an Indian film playback singer, actor, producer and director known for his works in Tamil cinema and Telugu cinema. He is the son of legendary singer S. P. Balasubrahmanyam. He first worked as a playback s ...

, S. P. Sailaja,

Sunitha Upadrashta Sunitha is an Indian playback singer and voice actor who primarily works in Telugu films. She is a recipient of nine Nandi Awards and two Filmfare Awards South in various categories. She also received a National Award from All India Radio und ...

Karthik &

Shweta Mohan Shweta Mohan (born 19 November 1985) is an Indian playback singer. She has received four Filmfare Awards South for Best Female Playback Singer, one Kerala State Film Award and one Tamil Nadu State Film Award. She has recorded more than 700 so ...

. She had performed at the Royal Albert Hall and House of Commons in London. On 6 June 2009, she performed in Qinghai International Musical Journey on Water and Life concert with a rendition of "Tunga Tarange Gange" alongside other singers from nations located around various major rivers such as the

Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

, and

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

Studio albums

Chithra recorded her first studio album with Voodoo Rapper for the album called ''Ragga Raaga'' in 1993. She recorded the albums in Hindi, ''

'' (2000) and ''Sunset Point''. She associated with

Ustad Sultan Khan Ustad Sultan Khan (15 April 1940 – 27 November 2011) was an Indian ''sarangi'' player and classical vocalist belonging to ''Sikar Gharana''. He was one of the founding members of the Indian fusion group Tabla Beat Science, with Zakir Huss ...

for ''Piya Basanti'' which was certified

Gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

. ''Sunset Point'' had eight songs written and narrated by

Gulzar Sampooran Singh Kalra (born 18 August 1934), known professionally as Gulzar, is an Indian Urdu poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, and film director known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of greatest Urdu poets of this ...

and sung by Chithra and Bhupinder. In 2006, she released an album in dedication to

M. S. Subbulakshmi Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi (16 September 1916 – 11 December 2004) was an Indian Carnatic singer from Madurai, Tamil Nadu. She was the first musician ever to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour. She is ...

named ''My Tribute''. It is a collection of ''

Kritis ''Kriti'' (Sanskrit: कृति, ''kṛti'') is a format of musical composition typical to Carnatic music. ''Kritis'' form the mental backbone of any typical Carnatic music concert and is the longer format of Carnatic song. "Kriti" also means C ...

'' and ''

bhajans Bhajan refers to any devotional song with a religious theme or spiritual ideas, specifically among Indian religions, in any language. The term bhajanam (Sanskrit: भजनम्) means ''reverence'' and originates from the root word ''bhaj'' ...

'' dedicated to Subbulakshmi. In 2009 she released ''Nightingale: A Salute to Lataji'', a musical tribute to

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her cont ...

on her 80th birthday. She also recorded many Malayalam albums for K. J. Yesudas,

and

compositions. She also planned a

ghazal The ''ghazal'' ( ar, غَزَل, bn, গজল, Hindi-Urdu: /, fa, غزل, az, qəzəl, tr, gazel, tm, gazal, uz, gʻazal, gu, ગઝલ) is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry. A ghazal may be understood as a ...

album with Ghulam Ali and

Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in the ...

International projects

* Recorded with the Arab singer Jawad Ali for his album ''Amar Ul Hob'' * Recorded a song for the jazz pianist

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

Public profile

Philanthropy

Chithra, along with a Kerala-based satellite channel, Asianet Cable Vision (ACV), jointly launched a fundraising organisation, Sneha Nandana, to raise funds for the welfare of retired musicians who have lost their careers due to changes in the music industry. She launched this organisation on the occasion of her completion of three decades in the music playback industry. She said that the fund would provide help to the musicians with financial impediments and those suffering from health problems. A cultural event called Chithra Pournami was held on 15 February 2011 at

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

to celebrate the 30th year of her career and also to launch this organisation.

Awards, honors, and recognition

Chithra is a recipient of six

, nine

and 36 different state film awards. She has won film awards from all the four south Indian states. She was awarded India's third highest civilian honor

in 2021 and

in 2005 for her valuable contributions towards the Indian musical fraternity. In 2019, she was honoured by

Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi '' , spouse = Jawaher bint Mohammed , issue = Azza bin SultanMohammed bin Sultan, Crown Prince of Sharjah Bodour bint SultanNoor bint SultanHoor bint SultanKhalid bin Sultan , house = Al Qasimi , father = Mohammed b ...

, sovereign ruler of the

Emirate of Sharjah The Emirate of Sharjah (; ar, إِمَارَة ٱلشَّارِقَة ') is one of the emirates of the United Arab Emirates, which covers and has a population of over 1,400,000 (2015). It comprises the capital city of Sharjah, after which it ...

and a member of the

Federal Supreme Council ) , legislature = , coa_pic = Emblem of the United Arab Emirates.svg , session_room = , house_type = Unicameral , term_limits = , structure2 = , structure2_res = , leader1_type = President , le ...

of the United Arab Emirates, for successfully completing 40 years in Indian

film industry The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post ...

. She was honoured with the

by the Ministry of Women and Child Development of the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

at the

on 20 January 2018. She received the

MTV Video Music Award – International Viewer's Choice MTV's International Viewer's Choice awards honored the best music videos as voted for by the audiences of MTV's channels around the world. They were given out every year during the VMAs from 1989 to 2003. History The first International Viewer's ...

at the Metropolitan Opera House,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

in 2001. She received

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

s from

Sathyabama University Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology (SIST), formerly Sathyabama University, is a deemed to be university, situated at Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It was founded in 1987 as Sathyabama Engineering College by the late Jeppiaar and re ...

in 2011 and from The International Tamil University, United States in 2018. She is the only South Indian female singer who has presented her maiden concert at the world's prestigious concert hall

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

in London in 2001. Her song " Kannalane/Kehna Hi Kya" from the film ''

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

'' (1995) was included in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' "1000 Songs Everyone Must Hear Before You Die" list.

Personal life

Chithra is married to Vijayashankar, an engineer and businessman. They had a daughter Nandana, who was born with

Down's syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual disa ...

. Her daughter drowned in a pool in

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

in 2011 when Chithra was about to perform at an

concert.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chithra, K. S. 1963 births Living people Assamese playback singers Singers from Kerala Bollywood playback singers 20th-century Indian singers Indian women playback singers Indian women classical singers Kannada playback singers Kerala State Film Award winners Tamil playback singers Malayalam playback singers Singers from Thiruvananthapuram Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts Telugu playback singers Tamil Nadu State Film Awards winners Filmfare Awards South winners Nandi Award winners Recipients of the Kalaimamani Award Women Carnatic singers Carnatic singers Film musicians from Kerala 21st-century Indian singers 20th-century Indian women singers 21st-century Indian women singers Women musicians from Kerala Best Female Playback Singer National Film Award winners Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts Sanskrit-language singers Screen Awards winners South Indian International Movie Awards winners